Pr.Updater Malware Removal

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If the Pr.Updater utility has managed to enter your OS, prepare for trouble. Security experts have categorized it as a nasty adware. It is an aggressive ad-displaying type of malware which jeopardizes your privacy and ruins your browsing experience. The adware infects your web browsers and forces them to display adverts. It injects dozens and dozens of banners, hyperlinks, and in-text adverts on every website you open. You must have noticed that previously ad-free websites are now so heavy on advertisements that your browser struggles to display them correctly. The numerous adverts will eventually make your browser unstable. It will freeze and crash frequently. Yet, the aggressive advertising is not the biggest problem. Something much worse is happening behind your back. The Pr.Updater malware spies on you. That is right. It collects information about your online behavior. Which websites you visit, what search inquiries you make, what videos you watch. This data may not strike as too sensitive, but a capable advertiser needs very little to successfully target you with customized adverts. Thus, if you type “sneakers,” the malware will display ads for sports shoes. In theory, it sounds great. But imagine what may happen if the advertiser has bad intentions! What if the ads are corrupted or if they redirect you to infected websites? What will happen if the collected data leak to cyber criminals? The Pr.Updater malware is too hazardous to be kept on board! Do not tolerate it. Remove this parasite the first chance you get!

How did I get infected with?

Why did you install the Pr.Updater utility? Do you even remember doing so? You probably don’t. Nevertheless, it was you the one who installed this parasite. Sadly, this is not a joke. The thing about this parasite is that it cannot enter your OS without your permission. So, at some point, you approved its installment. The malware asked you and you obliged. But don’t imagine the exchange as a straightforward operation. The parasite deceived you. It asked in the sneakiest way possible and stole your permission. The positive aspect of this malware infection is that you can learn a lesson and prevent future problems. Your caution is the key to a secure and infection-free computer. Parasites like the Pr.Updater adware travel hidden in software bundles, torrents, and fake updates. If you do your due diligence, you can prevent these methods from succeeding. Download your software from reputable sources only. When you start an installation process, opt for the Advanced/Custom/Manual option. Under it, you will be presented with a list of all additional apps that are about to be installed as bonuses. Deselect these extras. More often than not, they are malicious. Furthermore, if you truly needed such programs, you would have downloaded them by yourself. This is your PC, you decide what to be installed on it. Do not let others make this decision for you. Make sure you know what you are giving your permission to. Read the Terms and Conditions/End User License Agreement (EULA). If you spot anything out of the ordinary, abort the installation immediately!

Why is this dangerous?

The Pr.Updater adware is extremely intrusive. It covers your screen pop-ups every time you as much as touch your browser, injects countless adverts on every web page you load, and even pauses your online videos for commercial breaks. This parasite is intolerable. You should not put up with it. It’s not just its intrusive behavior. You should remove it for its spying abilities. The parasite knows everything you do online and sells access to the data. Numerous crooks use the pest to target potential victims. They prepare customized adverts and force them on you. The crooks show you what you want to see, but when you click on the ads, you end up on questionable websites. Numerous online scams are promoted through the adware. The parasite is more likely to redirect you to bogus pages than to legitimate ones. It may redirect you infected websites and by doing so, infect your computer with other malware and viruses. Do not allow this scenario to unfold. Protect your privacy and cybersecurity. Remove the Pr.Updater adware immediately!

How to Remove Pr.Updater virus

The Pr.Updater infection is specifically designed to make money to its creators one way or another. The specialists from various antivirus companies like Bitdefender, Kaspersky, Norton, Avast, ESET, etc. advise that there is no harmless virus.

If you perform exactly the steps below you should be able to remove the Pr.Updater infection. Please, follow the procedures in the exact order. Please, consider to print this guide or have another computer at your disposal. You will NOT need any USB sticks or CDs.

STEP 1: Track down Pr.Updater in the computer memory

STEP 2: Locate Pr.Updater startup location

STEP 3: Delete Pr.Updater traces from Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer

STEP 4: Undo the damage done by the virus

STEP 1: Track down Pr.Updater in the computer memory

• Open your Task Manager by pressing CTRL+SHIFT+ESC keys simultaneously
• Carefully review all processes and stop the suspicious ones.

• Write down the file location for later reference.

Step 2: Locate Pr.Updater startup location

Reveal Hidden Files

• Open any folder
• Click on “Organize” button
  
• Choose “Folder and Search Options”
• Select the “View” tab
• Select “Show hidden files and folders” option
• Uncheck “Hide protected operating system files”
• Click “Apply” and “OK” button

Clean Pr.Updater virus from the windows registry

• Once the operating system loads press simultaneously the Windows Logo Button and the R key.

• A dialog box should open. Type “Regedit”

• WARNING! be very careful when editing the Microsoft Windows Registry as this may render the system broken.

Depending on your OS (x86 or x64) navigate to:

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run] or
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run] or
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run]

• and delete the display Name: [RANDOM]

• Then open your explorer and navigate to: %appdata% folder and delete the malicious executable.

Clean your HOSTS file to avoid unwanted browser redirection

Navigate to %windir%/system32/Drivers/etc/host

If you are hacked, there will be foreign IPs addresses connected to you at the bottom. Take a look below:

STEP 3 : Clean Pr.Updater traces from Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer

• Open Google Chrome

• In the Main Menu, select Tools then Extensions
• Remove the Pr.Updater by clicking on the little recycle bin
• Reset Google Chrome by Deleting the current user to make sure nothing is left behind

• Open Mozilla Firefox

• Press simultaneously Ctrl+Shift+A
• Disable the unwanted Extension
• Go to Help
• Then Troubleshoot information
• Click on Reset Firefox

• Open Internet Explorer

• On the Upper Right Corner Click on the Gear Icon
• Click on Internet options
• go to Toolbars and Extensions and disable the unknown extensions
• Select the Advanced tab and click on Reset

• Restart Internet Explorer

Step 4: Undo the damage done by Pr.Updater

This particular Virus may alter your DNS settings.

Attention! this can break your internet connection. Before you change your DNS settings to use Google Public DNS for Pr.Updater, be sure to write down the current server addresses on a piece of paper.

To fix the damage done by the virus you need to do the following.

• Click the Windows Start button to open the Start Menu, type control panel in the search box and select Control Panel in the results displayed above.
• go to Network and Internet
• then Network and Sharing Center
• then Change Adapter Settings
• Right-click on your active internet connection and click properties. Under the Networking tab, find Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4). Left click on it and then click on properties. Both options should be automatic! By default it should be set to “Obtain an IP address automatically” and the second one to “Obtain DNS server address automatically!” If they are not just change them, however if you are part of a domain network you should contact your Domain Administrator to set these settings, otherwise the internet connection will break!!!

You must clean all your browser shortcuts as well. To do that you need to

• Right click on the shortcut of your favorite browser and then select properties.

• in the target field remove Pr.Updater argument and then apply the changes.
• Repeat that with the shortcuts of your other browsers.
• Check your scheduled tasks to make sure the virus will not download itself again.

How to Permanently Remove Pr.Updater Virus (automatic) Removal Guide

Please, have in mind that once you are infected with a single virus, it compromises your system and let all doors wide open for many other infections. To make sure manual removal is successful, we recommend to use a free scanner of any professional antimalware program to identify possible registry leftovers or temporary files.