Google Redirect Virus is a very notorious malware designed to redirect your searches to malicious websites. This virus is also known as browser hijack virus or search engine redirect virus. This virus is infecting thousands of new machines everyday and It is very hard to remove as it is bundled with many rootkits commonly known as TLD3 or Alureon Rootkits. These rootkits change your computer settings in such a way that when type Google’s web address in address bar of your web browser, you are not actually taken to Google but to a malicious webpage which looks exactly as Google. When you make a search, you’ll see results exactly like Google, but when you click on any of those results, you’ll be taken to a website you’re not supposed to visit.
In other words, you’ll see legitimate websites in search results but clicking on those results will take you to dubious websites which are engaged in spreading more malware to your computer. You will be offered to download more dubious products and file sharing applications which will do more harm than good. Scammers redirect Google search results for sole purpose of getting traffic easily. They know that everybody in the world uses Google and If they infect your computer with the redirect virus, they can drive lots of traffic their websites for free.
The big question is, how Google Redirect Virus spreads? It might seem a big harsh, but almost everyone having access to Internet is trying to get something for free. People are searching for free software (which are actually paid), keygens, free music and videos and use torrents to download all sort of things which are actually not free. Those downloads come bundled with various viruses and rootkits and If you don’t have a very good antivirus on your computer, you’ll get infected very easily. This image illustrates how Google Redirect Virus works :
Google Redirect Virus can affect Google, Yahoo, Bing as well as many other search engines and using a different browser will not help as the redirect virus is running in background and modifying the search results on the fly. It can also pollute DNS settings on your computer and make bogus entries in HOSTS file of your computer. This virus is a real threat and It should not be ignored. Specially, If you use online banking websites, you must make sure that your system is completely clean and no malwares are residing in your computer without your knowledge. Read next part to know how Google Redirect Virus Removal works.
How to Remove Google Redirect Virus
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