Fullex.pw “Malware” Removal (Chrome/FF/IE)

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Welcome to our Fullex.pw “Malware” removal guide. The following instructions will aid you in removing the unwanted software from your PC.

Most software program types are useful, helpful or entertaining to the user. However, there are also types of software that, though usually not harmful or malicious, are considered to be unwanted due to the fact that they cause more problems than they solve. One specific kind of undesirable program is the so called Browser Hijacker. Applications that fall under this category are usually promoted as helpful system optimization tools or online security boosters while in reality they can be quite unpleasant and obstructive to have around.

More about Browser Hijackers

What’s typical about Hijackers is that they would try to mess with the user’s browser regardless of whether it is Chrome, IE or Firefox by having its homepage changed, its search engine replaced and oftentimes redirecting it to websites that the Hijacker tries to advertise. This is, in fact, the prime purpose of those programs – to promote different websites, software products, online services, etc. through aggressive advertising methods such as the ones we mentioned above. The user’s is hardly ever given anything that would compensate for the Hijacker’s intrusiveness and obstructiveness which is why most people want to have such programs removed from their machine. If you are reading this article, the chances are that you too are one of those unfortunate users and the name of the Hijacker you’re currently dealing with is likely to be Fullex.pw since this is one of the newest applications from this category.

Can Fullex.pw damage your PC?

In the introduction to this article, we mentioned that Browser Hijackers are generally not harmful or threatening. However, it is quite possible that you’ still see people referring to them as malware. It is important to understand that despite certain undeniable similarities between malicious viruses and programs of the Browser Hijacker type, there are quite a few things that set the two types of software apart from each other.

• Hijackers are primarily used for marketing purposes and although their approach is more often than not quite aggressive, it still does not pose much of a threat to your computer on its own. Harmful viruses like Trojans and Ransomware, on the other hand, are very dangerous and can cause a whole lot of trouble if they infect your PC.
• The second major difference is that a typical Hijacker will not try to remain unnoticed. Most of the time, as soon as a program like Fullex.pw gets installed on your machine, you will know that it is there. With Ransomware and Trojan horses, it is the exact opposite – they are very difficult to detect and oftentimes the user remains absolutely unaware of their presence.
• Lastly, know that a lot of Browser Hijackers are not illegal and have been developed and are being used within the law. Obviously, the same statement cannot be made when referring to actual virus programs.

What to expect from Fullex.pw

The fact that Browser Hijackers are not malicious and dangerous viruses is not to say that they cannot cause a bunch of problems that you’d have to deal with if such a program gets installed inside your PC’s system. For example, apart from making changes to your browser, some Hijackers might also fill it with big, obnoxious banners that cover most of your screen and would not go away until you click on them. However, interacting with those banners is a bad idea since there’s always the chance that they redirect you to some shady and potentially harmful website or directly download more unpleasant software to your PC. Additionally, some Browser Hijackers can also scan your browser’s history and use the data to modify the ads they generate in an attempt to make them relevant to the user’s interests – this is a particularly unpleasant and invasive marketing technique since it is basically a violation of your virtual privacy. Another thing that ought to be mentioned is the fact that Fullex.pw could attempt to add registry keys to your system’s Registry or modify already existing ones. This, too, is generally made for advertising purposes but it could also leave your machine open to more serious hazards such as the noxious Ransomware, for example.

Security

There are a lot of precautions that one can take so as to enhance the protection and safety of their computer. Here, we have summarized the most important ones, so make sure to remember them for future use.

• First and foremost, be careful with what pages and websites you visit when browsing. As soon as you get the notion that a specific website might have something potentially unwanted or dangerous among its pages, be sure to leave it.
• Different forms of internet spam are commonly employed for spreading Hijackers. For that reason, you should never interact with links or download file attachments from e-mails and online messages that look fishy and suspicious.
• When it comes to making your machine better protected, it is always worth investing into a professional anti-malware program so keep that in mind. If you don’t feel like spending money, you can at least get the free version of some respected and reliable security tool that you know you can trust.
• Lastly, be on your guard for any potential software bundles. If you want to install some new program, first meticulously check its installer wizard to see if there are any added applications to it. If there indeed are bundled installs, make a quick research on them and see if they are not some sort of unwanted Hijacker or similar. If any of the added applications turns out to be shady, leave it out. Bear in mind that you should always opt for the Advanced/Custom installation if you are given such an option.

Fullex.pw “Malware” Removal

I – Safe mode and revealing hidden files

1. Boot your PC into Safe Mode /link/
2. Reveal hidden files and folders /link/

II – Uninstallation

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1. Use the Winkey+R keyboard combination, write Control Panel in the search field and hit enter.
   
2. Go to Uninstall a program under Programs.
   
3. Seek the unwanted software, select it and then click on Uninstall

If you are unable to spot Fullex.pw, search for any unrecognized programs that you do not remember installing on your PC – the unwanted software might disguise itself by going under a different name.

III – Cleaning all your browsers

1. Go to your browser’s icon, right-click on it and select Properties.
   
2. Go to the Shortcut tab and in the Target make sure to delete anything written after “.exe”.
   
3. Now, open your browser and follow the instructions below depending on whether you are using Chrome, Mozilla or IE.

• Chrome users:

1. Go to your browser’s main menu located in the top-right corner of the screen and select Settings.
   
2. Scroll down, click on Show Advanced Settings and then select Clear browsing data. Just to be sure, tick everything and clear the data.
   
3. Now, in the left pane, go to Extensions and look through all extensions that are integrated within your browser. If you notice any suspicious add-on, disable it and then remove it.
   

• Firefox users:

1. Similarly to Chrome, go to the main menu and select Add-ons and then Extensions.
2. Remove any suspicious browser extensions that you may have even if they do not have the name Fullex.pw on them.

• IE users:

1. Go to Tools and select Manage add-ons.
   
2. Click on all add-on types from the left pane and check if there is anything suspicious in the right panel. In case you find anything shade, make sure to remove it.

IV – Removing Shady processes

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1. Go to your start menu, type Task Manager in the search field and from the results open View running processes with Task Manager.
   
2. Thoroughly look through all processes. The name Fullex.pw might not be there, but if you notice any shady looking process that consumes high amounts of memory it might be ran by the unwanted program.
3. If you spot the process ran by Fullex.pw, right-click on it, open its file location and delete everything in there. Then go back to the Task Manager and end the process.
   

V – DNS check

1. In the start menu search box write View Network Connections and open the first result.
   
2. Right-click on the network connection you are using and go to Properties.
   
3. Select Internet Protocol Version (TCP/IPv4) and click on Properties.
   
4. If Obtain DNS server addresses automatically is not checked, check it.
   
5. Go to Advanced and select the DNS If there is anything in the DNS server addresses field, remove it and click OK.
   
6. Click OK on the rest of the opened windows.