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Welcome, reader, to our WinArcher “Virus” removal guide. The following instructions will aid you in removing the unwanted software from your PC.
Having your Chrome, IE or Firefox browser covered with a thick wall of annoying pop-ups, banners and box messages is surely a frustration. Unfortunately, this is exactly what happens when the program called WinArcher gets installed on your PC. This irritating piece of software is certainly something you’d be better off without. However, keeping it away from your machine might not be as easy as it seems. Many users have been complaining from the endless barrage of online ads that do not cease to bombard their browser, making it nearly impossible for them to navigate different webpages. Therefore, we have decided to address this issue with this article, in which we will attempt to give you some important and essential information concerning WinArcher and other similar programs.
Adware
Adware is the name used to describe this type of unwanted and bothersome applications, such as WinArcher, that do not seem to have any higher purpose than to nag people with the different advertising materials they display. In fact, from a certain point of view, this is true. However, the adverts you see are not there for no reason. Of course, you do not benefit from them in any given way, but the creator of the Adware surely does. Via a method known as Pay-Per-Click, Adware developers gain revenue through the programs they create. Every time an ad gets clicked, a small amount of money is generated. Since programs like WinArcher are usually spreading like wildfire and there are a lot of uninformed users that might actually interact with the adverts, Adware developers profit greatly from this revenue-earning scheme. At times, an Adware program might even be promoted as useful and beneficial to the end user. In fact, it might even hold some kind of function that might seem useful. However, in most cases it is not really worth putting up with the frustration and annoyance of the pop-ups, even if there is such a function.
Potential negative effects of WinArcher “Virus”
It is important to note here that even though they are considered unwanted, Adware programs like WinArcher are nothing like malicious viruses of the likes of Ransomware and Trojans. There is the common misconception that Adware can damage your system and harm your data. Surely, programs similar to WinArcher might be very frustrating to have around, but they are usually not dangerous to your PC and virtual security, unlike the infamous Ransomware, for example, or other harmful viruses. With that being made clear, we need to warn our readers that they should still be careful when dealing with Adware.
- Sometimes those ads you see are capable of redirecting you to shady and obscure sites that might on some occasions prove to be potentially harmful. This is not common and should not be a reason for panic. However, staying away from those ads is advisable.
- Another possible negative trait to an Adware program is its potential capability of looking through your browser search queries. This is done for marketing purposes – in most cases the data acquired is utilized in order to modify the generated ads in accordance with the user’s personal preferences, effectively increasing the chance of any of them getting clicked.
- Additionally, it is possible that your machine might become sluggish under the effects of WinArcher. This is not intended by the creator of the unwanted program and is simply a side-effect of the high CPU and RAM consumption required by the Adware in order to support the ads it displays. However, it’s yet another reason to best remove the problematic software from your PC as soon as possible. You can find a manual below the final paragraph of this article that will show you the different steps you need to undertake in order to remove the bothersome piece of programming. However, before you go there, make sure to read our tips on how to prevent any further Adware installations, so that you can keep your machine safe and clean in the future.
Precautions and PC protection
The following tips and ideas will enable you to fend off any potential future encounters with any unwanted programs of the infamous Adware type.
- Avoid opening hyperlinks and e-mails that seem suspicious, no matter who has sent them to you (even if the person is from your list of contacts).
- Do not visit or download content from any sites that you are unsure of whether you can trust. Stick to the reputable and trustworthy ones.
- Beware of potential file bundles. If you are about to install a new program, make sure to do it using the Custom installation settings. That way, if there is an added application such as WinArcher bundled within the main program installer, you’d be able to see it and leave it out. Never go for the Quick installation setting, unless you are one hundred percent sure that there is nothing added that might turn out to be unwanted.
WinArcher “Virus” Removal
I – Uninstallation
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- Use the Winkey+R keyboard combination, write Control Panel in the search field and hit enter.
- Go to Uninstall a program under Programs.
- Seek the unwanted software, select it and then click on Uninstall
- If you are unable to spot WinArcher, 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.
II – Safe mode and revealing hidden files
III – Cleaning all your browsers
- Go to your browser’s icon, right-click on it and select Properties.
- Go to the Shortcut tab and in the Target make sure to delete anything written after “.exe”.
- Now, open your browser and follow the instructions below depending on whether you are using Chrome, Mozilla or IE.
- Chrome users:
- Go to your browser’s main menu located in the top-right corner of the screen and select Settings.
- Scroll down, click on Show Advanced Settings and then select Clear browsing data. Just to be sure, tick everything and clear the data.
- 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:
- Similarly to Chrome, go to the main menu and select Add-ons and then Extensions.
- Remove any suspicious browser extensions that you may have even if they do not have the name WinArcher on them.
- IE users:
- Go to Tools and select Manage add-ons.
- 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
- Go to your start menu, type Task Manager in the search field and from the results open View running processes with Task Manager.
- Thoroughly look through all processes. The name WinArcher 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.
- If you spot the process ran by WinArcher, 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
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- In the start menu search box write View Network Connections and open the first result.
- Right-click on the network connection you are using and go to Properties.
- Select Internet Protocol Version (TCP/IPv4) and click on Properties.
- If Obtain DNS server addresses automatically is not checked, check it.
- Go to Advanced and select the DNS If there is anything in the DNS server addresses field, remove it and click OK.
- Click OK on the rest of the opened windows.