How to Remove Centurylink.net Redirects

Can’t Remove Centurylink.net hijacker virus? This page includes detailed Centurylink.net Removal instructions!

Centurylink.net is a page, whose display forebodes trouble. Consider it a harbinger of unpleasantness. If the page shows up, your system is no longer infection-free. It harbors a browser hijacker. And, the website is your first clue. The cyber threat uses slyness to slither in undetected. So, the site is its way of announcing its existence. Heed its warning, and don’t underestimate your situation. These tools make for horrendous company. They’re meddlesome and throw you into a whirl of annoyance. Spare yourself the grievances that follow the hijacker. Heed its grand reveal, and once Centurylink.net pops up, act! Do your best to locate the infection’s exact location. And, when you find where it lurks, get rid of it. Do NOT delay its removal. Delays have consequences. If you wish to avoid facing a plethora of problems, delete the threat ASAP. Once you get the opportunity, act. Don’t discard the display of Centurylink.net. Your future self will thank you for the program’s prompt deletion.

How did I get infected with?

Centurylink.net pops up, because of the hijacker forcing it on you. That explains the page’s display. But not the hijacker’s. How did it end up on your computer? Do you recall approving its admission? Odds are, you don’t. But that doesn’t change the fact, you did. Here’s the thing. Hijackers need your permission on their admission. They have to ask if you agree to install them. And, only if you do, can they proceed. No consent, no entry. So, these tools do their best to get it, and avoid rejection. They resort to trickery and finesse, and dupe you into saying YES. Freeware, spam email messages, fake updates, corrupted links, sites, or torrents. They have a myriad of options to choose from. However, neither one can prove successful, without you. Well, rather, without your carelessness. The tool needs you to throw caution to the wind, and rely on luck. To rush, and skip reading terms and conditions. To leave your fate to chance, and not do any due diligence. Why would you oblige? Why would you ease the infection’s infiltration? Do what’s best, and be extra thorough. Take the time to be vigilant. Attention goes a long way, and it can save you a ton of troubles. Caution keeps threats out. Carelessness does not.

Why is this dangerous?

The hijacker does NOT miss a chance to force the site on you. You get stuck seeing Centurylink.net, at every turn. It’s there, when you open a new tab. Type a search, and you’ll find it among the results. Do anything at all, and it will make an appearance. But the hijacker doesn’t only redirect you to Centurylink.net. It also forces an array of other malicious pages on your screen. Not to mention, it bombards you with advertisements. Banner, in-text, pop-up. You see a whirlwind of ads. And, each one is ‘Powered by Centurylink.net.‘ Also, apart from interfering with your browsing, it forces reshuffles on you. Unwanted and unapproved ones. The hijacker is free to implement a variety of changes, throughout your system. And, it can d so, without bothering to clue you in, or seek consent. That leaves the door open to all manner of threats. What if it chooses to install malware? It can. It can fill your system to the brim with infections. What then? How long do you imagine it takes, before your PC gives up? Yes, The blue Screen of Death is a valid option. Granted, it’s a minuscule one. But that doesn’t dismiss it as a non-existent one. So, ask yourself if it’s worth the risk. And, you better answer ‘No’ because the list of grievances continues still. As if these issues aren’t enough, you also encounter a security risk. The hijacker spies on you. It keeps track of your online activities, and records everything you do. That includes, personal and financial details. Not data, you can trust strangers with. And, that’s whose gonna get it, unless you act. You see, after the hijacker deems it has stolen enough data, it exposes it. It hands it over to the cyber criminals behind it. And, when they get it, they can use it as they see fit. Don’t allow that! Protect yourself, and your PC. Find and remove the nasty threat at once!

How to Remove Centurylink.net virus

The Centurylink.net 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 Centurylink.net 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 Centurylink.net related processes in the computer memory

STEP 2: Locate Centurylink.net startup location

STEP 3: Delete Centurylink.net traces from Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer

STEP 4: Undo the damage done by the virus

STEP 1: Track down Centurylink.net related processes 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 Centurylink.net 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 Centurylink.net 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 Centurylink.net traces from Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer

• Open Google Chrome

• In the Main Menu, select Tools then Extensions
• Remove the Centurylink.net 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 Centurylink.net

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 Centurylink.net, 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 Centurylink.net 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 Centurylink.net Virus (automatic) Removal Guide

Please, have in mind that once you are infected with a single virus, it compromises your whole system or network 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.