Welcome to our Padsdel removal instructions. This article intends to help you remove Padsdel from your system and is designed to work for Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer and all Windows versions.
In case you are reading the following article, you may have had some annoying experience related to Padsdel or “go.padsdel.com”. If this is indeed the case then you might be seeking sensible answers to your questions about how to detect, remove and avoid such irritating software in the future.
To begin with, you might have already found out what has been the reason for your unpleasant technical issues for a certain period. Its name is Padsdel and it’s defined as a Browser Hijacker. You may also encounter it as “go.padsdel.com”. Nonetheless, I am going to explain its characteristics and effects to you in the article below.
Browser Hijackers are software products which displays pop-ups, banners, pop-unders and other types of ads. Usually by opening new browser windows and tabs without the user’s approval. Some experts claim that Browser Hijackers might represent an even greater problem than most computer malware when it comes to the number of different issues. Generally, it could be an unpleasant distraction with numerous and hard-to-close pop-up ads. What’s more, it’s possible that the overall computer performance might be compromised. The aforementioned factors are among the reasons why Browser Hijackers has created such a notorious image for itself.
Now a few words about the way it gets into somebody’s system
It’s most likely that you would “receive” such a disturbing software surprise, when you download a program from the Internet, usually a free one. Don’t forget that Browser Hijackers is frequently bundled with other software and downloaded without the user’s knowledge and clear consent. This occurs whenever you decide to choose the Quick/Default installation option. This lets the installer install on your computer whatever extra program is lurking inside of it. Unfortunately, most of the time “bonus” programs are nothing but Browser Hijackers. When installing a new program, it is recommended that you select the Advanced/Custom installation option, instead of the default one and carefully read through all menus. In this way you will have all the details about the components that get installed and you will be allowed to opt-out of anything that you don’t really need.
In fact, this is the reason why some developers embed Browser Hijackers scripts into their program bundles- advertisements are worth a lot of money and this is a typical way for programmers to fund their business practices. Consequently, in most of the cases Browser Hijackers is just extremely annoying and behaves like a stubborn girlfriend, but it does not damage your system in any way.
At the moment you install a free software bundle on your machine, the surprise extra gifts (the Browser Hijackers programs) get installed as well. Almost all Browser Hijackers can integrate itself into the most widely used browsers such as Chrome, Firefox and IE. Nevertheless, don’t worry and remember that Browser Hijackers DO NOT copy and use your private information, including banking data, accounts info or passwords. It might “only” be able to keep track of your browsing history and show advertisements based on your search preferences. However, there might also be certain types of Browser Hijackers that could sell the data about your usual and preferred searches to 3rd parties.
Essential information about Padsdel
“Go.padsdel.com” is a typical Browser Hijacker program that might have many suspicious features. Most security experts have referred to it as a PUP (potentially unwanted program), instead of malware (malicious software). Padsdel has not been labeled “highly dangerous” because it’s not similar to a virus- it cannot self-replicate like malware and doesn’t put your personal information in danger.
At first Padsdel has been created to act as a marketing tool. The ads generated by Padsdel could have a lot of different forms including banners, pop-ups, pop-unders or links, which can be built within webpages or sections of the Windows interface. The Padsdel’s behaviour depends on your browsing history- usually it strives to generate only ads relevant to your personal searches and preferred webpages.
How to say goodbye to Padsdel for good
Luckily, it’s not really complicated to remove Padsdel. There is a chance that you may be able to uninstall it by using the uninstall function that can be accessed within the “Add/Remove programs” feature of the Windows operating system. However, there is also the possibility that additional actions have to be taken. Our removal guide will help you get through the uninstallation process successfully.
Threat | Padsdel or “go.padsdel.com” |
Classification | Browser Hijacker |
Security Alert |
Medium |
Negative Effects | Constantly reappearing ads in the form of pop-ups/banners/pop-unders. Browser Redirects to go.padsdel.com. |
Padsdel Removal
Step 1
Reveal Hidden Files. If you don’t know how to do this, ask us in the comments.
Step 2
Press => Control Panel => Uninstall a program.
Locate the Browser Hijackers and any other suspicious looking programs and uninstall them.
Sort the programs by Installed On.
Delete recent suspicious entries.
In the search field type => msconfig => hit Enter.
Go to Startup and disable all entries with Unknown as Manufacturer.
Step 3
=> Search=> Copy/Paste “notepad %windir%/system32/Drivers/etc/hosts” => Enter.
If you notice other IPs different from the localhost IPs – you might be in danger!
Ask for additional help in the comments.
Step 4
Padsdel Removal from Chrome
Click => More Tools => Extensions.
Locate the Browser Hijackers and remove it.
Padsdel Removal from Firefox
Click => Add-ons=> Extensions.
Locate the Browser Hijackers and delete it.
Removal from Internet Explorer
Press on => Manage Add-ons =>
Find the Browser Hijackers and remove it.
Step 5
Right click on the Taskbar => Start Task Manager.
Navigate to Processes.
Locate any suspicious processes associated with Padsdel. Right click on the process = > Open File Location => End Process = > Delete the directories with the suspicious files.
Step 6
=> Search => Type:
- %AppData%
- %LocalAppData%
- %ProgramData%
- %WinDir%
- %Temp%
Hit Enter after each new search. Check each Folder and delete recent entries.
If you run into any trouble – ask us for help in the comments section!