What is Ecosia?
Ecosia is promoted as a search provider that supposedly “save the environment”. The main page of the search claims: “You search the web, we plant trees”. True or not, we do not know, but some features of Ecosia make us clear that it’s yet another browser hijacker. At first, the distribution method – this app spreads together with freeware/shareware programs the user can download from the Internet. If the user doesn’t decline optional Ecosia, it is installed automatically. Secondly, a huge amount of pop-ups in your browser that will follow you every time while you browse the Internet. And finally, the browser hijacker is able to track users’ browsing activity. This might result in serious privacy issues. Therefore, we advise you to remove Ecosia search since it сan do far more harm than good.
How to remove Ecosia?
Performing an antimalware scan with Norton would automatically search out and delete all elements related to Ecosia. It is not only the easiest way to eliminate Ecosia, but also the safest and most assuring one.
Norton Antivirus is a well-established tool for Mac users that can clear your computer from malware like Ecosia and all related files from your computer. Another important advantage of the program is an up-to-date database of computer threats which is perfect to protect your computer in case of a new malware attack.
Steps of Ecosia manual removal
To make sure that the hijacker won’t appear again, you need to delete Ecosia completely. For this, you need to remove the application from the Control Panel and then check the drives for such leftovers as Ecosia files and registry entries. We should warn you that performing some of the steps may require above-average skills, so if you don’t feel experienced enough, you may apply to the automatic removal tool.
Uninstall Ecosia from Control Panel
As it was stated before, more likely that the hijacker appeared on your system brought by other software. So, to get rid of Ecosia you need to call to memory what you have installed recently.
How to remove Ecosia from Mac
- Open a Finder window
- Click Applications line on the sidebar
- Select the application related to Ecosia right-click it and choose Move to Trash
How to remove Ecosia from Windows XP
- Click the Start button and open Control Panel
- Go to Add or Remove Programs
- Find the application related to Ecosia and click Uninstall
How to remove Ecosia from Windows 7/Vista
- Click the Start button and open Control Panel
- Go to Uninstall Program
- Find the application related to Ecosia and click Uninstall
How to remove Ecosia from Windows 8/8.1
- Right-click the menu icon in left bottom corner
- Choose Control Panel
- Select the Uninstall Program line
- Uninstall the application related to Ecosia
How to remove Ecosia from Windows 10
- Press Win+X to open Windows Power menu
- Click Control Panel
- Choose Uninstall a Program
- Select the application related to Ecosia and remove it
If you experience problems with removing Ecosia from Control Panel: there is no such title on the list, or you receive an error preventing you from deleting the application, see the article dedicated to this issue.
Read what to do if program won’t uninstall from Control Panel
Remove Ecosia from browsers
How to unlock Windows Group Policies
Before you will started to remove Ecosia from browser you should perform following instructions in Command Prompt
This step is necessary to delete Windows Group Policies created by Ecosia
- Start Command Prompt as Administrator
- To do this in Windows 10/8 or Windows 7 click Start and in the search box type cmd. Right-click on the found result and choose Run as Administrator.
- While in command prompt type:
rd /S /Q "%WinDir%\System32\GroupPolicyUsers" - Press Enter button.
- Then type:
rd /S /Q "%WinDir%\System32\GroupPolicy" - Press Enter button.
- Finally, type:
gpupdate /force - Press Enter button.
Since some of the hijacker threats use a disguise of a browser add-on, you will need to check the list of extensions/add-ons in your browser.
How to remove Ecosia from Safari
- Start Safari
- Click on Safari menu button, then go to the Extensions
- Delete Ecosia or other extensions that look suspicious and you don’t remember installing them
How to remove Ecosia from Google Chrome
- Start Google Chrome
- Click on More tools, then go to the Extensions
- Delete Ecosia or other extensions that look suspicious and you don’t remember installing them
How to remove Ecosia from Internet Explorer
- Launch Internet Explorer
- Click on the Tools/Gear icon, then select Manage Add-ons
- Delete Ecosia or other extensions that look suspicious and you don’t remember installing them
How to remove Ecosia from Mozilla Firefox
- Start Mozilla Firefox
- Click on the right-upper corner button
- Click Add-ons, then go to Extensions
- Delete Ecosia or other extensions that look suspicious and you don’t remember installing them
How to remove Ecosia from Microsoft Edge
- Start Microsoft Edge
- Click the three-dot button in the upper right corner
- Choose Extensions
- Click the gear icon near Ecosia or other extensions that look suspicious and you don’t remember installing them
- Choose Remove
Reset your browsers
How to reset settings in Google Chrome
- Click on the icon in the right-upper corner
- Choose Settings
- Click Advanced settings
- Click the Reset button
- In “reset” window click the Reset button
How to reset settings in Mozilla Firefox
- Click the icon in the upper right corner
- Choose Help
- Select Troubleshooting Information
- Click the Refresh Firefox… button
How to reset settings in Internet Explorer
- Click on the Tools button
- Go to Internet options
- Go to the Advanced tab
- Click Reset
How to reset settings in Microsoft Edge
- Start Microsoft Edge
- Click the three-dot button in the upper right corner
- Choose Settings
- Under the Clear browsing data category select Choose what to clear
- Select everything and click Clear
If the above-mentioned methods didn’t help in eliminating the threat, then it’s better to rely on an automatic way of deleting Ecosia.
We also recommend to download and use Norton to scan the system after Ecosia removal to make sure that it is completely gone. The antimalware application will detect any vicious components left among system files and registry entries that can recover Ecosia.
