Widgi Toolbar

Posted: May 10, 2011

Threat Metric

The Threat Meter is a malware assessment that SpywareRemove.com's research team is able to give every identifiable malware threat. Our Threat Meter includes several criteria based off of specific malware threats to value their severity, reach and volume. The Threat Meter is able to give you a numerical breakdown of each threat's initial Threat Level, Detection Count, Volume Count, Trend Path and Percentage Impact. The overall ranking of each threat in the Threat Meter is a basic breakdown of how all threats are ranked within our own extensive malware database. The scoring for each specific malware threat can be easily compared to other emerging threats to draw a contrast in its particular severity. The Threat Meter is a useful tool in the endeavor of seeking a solution to remove a threat or pursue additional analytical research for all types of computer users.

The following fields listed on the Threat Meter containing a specific value, are explained in detail below:

Threat Level: The threat level scale goes from 1 to 10 where 10 is the highest level of severity and 1 is the lowest level of severity. Each specific level is relative to the threat's consistent assessed behaviors collected from SpyHunter's risk assessment model.

Detection Count: The collective number of confirmed and suspected cases of a particular malware threat. The detection count is calculated from infected PCs retrieved from diagnostic and scan log reports generated by SpyHunter.

Volume Count: Similar to the detection count, the Volume Count is specifically based on the number of confirmed and suspected threats infecting systems on a daily basis. High volume counts usually represent a popular threat but may or may not have infected a large number of systems. High detection count threats could lay dormant and have a low volume count. Criteria for Volume Count is relative to a daily detection count.

Trend Path: The Trend Path, utilizing an up arrow, down arrow or equal symbol, represents the level of recent movement of a particular threat. Up arrows represent an increase, down arrows represent a decline and the equal symbol represent no change to a threat's recent movement.

% Impact (Last 7 Days): This demonstrates a 7-day period change in the frequency of a malware threat infecting PCs. The percentage impact correlates directly to the current Trend Path to determine a rise or decline in the percentage.

Ranking:	5,793
Threat Level:	1/10
Infected PCs:	12,490

First Seen:	July 31, 2012
Last Seen:	October 16, 2023
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

The Widgi Toolbar is one of several toolbar products that are marketed by the Spigot company. Although the Widgi Toolbar is marketed as a seemingly legitimate product, the overwhelming majority of user experiences have been negative, and SpywareRemove.com malware researchers have also pinned Widgi Toolbar with showing many of the traits that are common to low-level PC threats, including browser hijackers and minor types of spyware. Normally, Widgi Toolbar should be removed by anti-malware software, since the Widgi Toolbar may resist normal deletion methods, although some of its functions can be disabled from within your browser's settings. Despite its drawbacks, most prominently its tendency to hamper your operating system's performance, the Widgi Toolbar can't be considered a high-level threat in the same ranks as backdoor Trojans or banking Trojans, and a minor delay in removing Widgi Toolbar shouldn't cause any extreme harm to your computer.

When a File Editor for Adobe Formats Goes Rogue

Currently, Widgi Toolbar is distributed in installations of PDF Creator, along with related toolbars, such as the PDFforge Toolbar, the Dealio Toolbar, YoutubeDownloader or MyBrowserBar. Symptoms from Widgi Toolbar and other Spigot company toolbars (which should be treated as clones of each other with respect to their danger levels) can include:

Constant usage of RAM and other system resources. This can make Widgi Toolbar guilty of worsening your computer's performance, causing slowdowns and overall instability with unrelated programs.
Browser hijacks that change your browser settings or redirect you to Spigot-related websites at Widgi Toolbar's whims. Some notable redirect targets include 404 error pages, your homepage and your search engine.
Low-level spyware attacks that gather information about your web-browsing habits, such as which sites you visit and how long durations of your visits last.

Sending the Widgi Toolbar PUP Away without Its Bone

Widgi Toolbar, as a Potentially Unwanted Application, may resist standard deletion attempts. However, anti-malware programs should be able to remove Widgi Toolbar easily, although this may also entail the removal of related programs that were installed with Widgi Toolbar. SpywareRemove.com malware analysts generally encourage PC users to avoid software with a history of bundling with PUPs like Widgi Toolbar unless no other alternatives are available.

Widgi Toolbar and related PC threats can sometimes be disabled by disabling your browser's extensions and other add-ons. Nonetheless, this doesn't remove the Widgi Toolbar, which should be deleted appropriately if you have no intention of using its questionable features or related programs.

Browsers that are affected by Widgi Toolbar and related PC threats include Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox.

Technical Details

File System Modifications

Tutorials: If you wish to learn how to remove malware components manually, you can read the tutorials on how to find malware, kill unwanted processes, remove malicious DLLs and delete other harmful files. Always be sure to back up your PC before making any changes.

The following files were created in the system:

E:\Archivos de programa\FreeRIP Toolbar\IE\4.6\freeripToolbarIE.dll

File name: freeripToolbarIE.dll
Size: 734.04 KB (734048 bytes)
MD5: 42c62a8cdb10de179747f917070efbea
Detection count: 5,106
File type: Dynamic link library
Mime Type: unknown/dll
Path: E:\Archivos de programa\FreeRIP Toolbar\IE\4.6\freeripToolbarIE.dll
Group: Malware file
Last Updated: October 6, 2023

%PROGRAMFILES%\Search.com Toolbar\IE\6.9\searchcomToolbarIE.dll

File name: searchcomToolbarIE.dll
Size: 1.35 MB (1350896 bytes)
MD5: 3cffa72079d81334e92b778eeb204498
Detection count: 4,665
File type: Dynamic link library
Mime Type: unknown/dll
Path: %PROGRAMFILES%\Search.com Toolbar\IE\6.9
Group: Malware file
Last Updated: April 15, 2020

C:\Config.Msi\34fbec8.rbf

File name: 34fbec8.rbf
Size: 1.62 MB (1627408 bytes)
MD5: 6a5ef17c5c7522d0250f2e7088d3e8d6
Detection count: 304
Mime Type: unknown/rbf
Path: C:\Config.Msi\34fbec8.rbf
Group: Malware file
Last Updated: January 2, 2023

%COMMONPROGRAMFILES%\Spigot\wtxpcom\components\IFBHOHelperWidgiToolbar.xpt

File name: IFBHOHelperWidgiToolbar.xpt
Size: 232B (232 bytes)
MD5: d2fe788edbfafcb041a266faa706251a
Detection count: 150
Mime Type: unknown/xpt
Path: %COMMONPROGRAMFILES%\Spigot\wtxpcom\components
Group: Malware file
Last Updated: July 27, 2023

%COMMONPROGRAMFILES%\Spigot\wtxpcom\components\IFBHOWidgiToolbar.xpt

File name: IFBHOWidgiToolbar.xpt
Size: 308B (308 bytes)
MD5: 78790228a0f4cacc233ed694b6c70cb2
Detection count: 150
Mime Type: unknown/xpt
Path: %COMMONPROGRAMFILES%\Spigot\wtxpcom\components
Group: Malware file
Last Updated: July 27, 2023

%SYSTEMDRIVE%\Config.Msi\4cecf41.rbf

File name: 4cecf41.rbf
Size: 1.61 MB (1611584 bytes)
MD5: fc6572f8e23ab65f6d167d909737db97
Detection count: 129
Mime Type: unknown/rbf
Path: %SYSTEMDRIVE%\Config.Msi\4cecf41.rbf
Group: Malware file
Last Updated: November 6, 2022

C:\Config.msi\4047d3c.rbf

File name: 4047d3c.rbf
Size: 1.61 MB (1612096 bytes)
MD5: 61d418b5df113ab280f91130a92d7fec
Detection count: 84
Mime Type: unknown/rbf
Path: C:\Config.msi\4047d3c.rbf
Group: Malware file
Last Updated: November 12, 2022

C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\Spigot\Search Settings\SearchSettings.exe

File name: SearchSettings.exe
Size: 1.61 MB (1611072 bytes)
MD5: 6253d6b467ee6193215d6fea00413da2
Detection count: 63
File type: Executable File
Mime Type: unknown/exe
Path: C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\Spigot\Search Settings\SearchSettings.exe
Group: Malware file
Last Updated: October 18, 2021

%COMMONPROGRAMFILES%\Spigot\Search Settings\SearchSettings.exe

File name: SearchSettings.exe
Size: 524.55 KB (524556 bytes)
MD5: ba0791fde36b94fd5a97cb531219b1ae
Detection count: 26
File type: Executable File
Mime Type: unknown/exe
Path: %COMMONPROGRAMFILES%\Spigot\Search Settings
Group: Malware file
Last Updated: August 7, 2014

%COMMONPROGRAMFILES%\Spigot\Search Settings\SearchSettings.exe

File name: SearchSettings.exe
Size: 1.43 MB (1436480 bytes)
MD5: 38f7bf90cf4e5fba8227d589bab0f799
Detection count: 23
File type: Executable File
Mime Type: unknown/exe
Path: %COMMONPROGRAMFILES%\Spigot\Search Settings
Group: Malware file
Last Updated: September 23, 2014

applicationupdater.exe

File name: applicationupdater.exe
File type: Executable File
Mime Type: unknown/exe
Group: Malware file

searchsettings.exe

File name: searchsettings.exe
File type: Executable File
Mime Type: unknown/exe
Group: Malware file

Registry Modifications

The following newly produced Registry Values are:

HKEY..\..\{CLSID Path}HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{C089D5FC-CFE2-4BCD-A522-2981448227CE}HKEY..\..\..\..{Subkeys}HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Interface\{C3ABD5A3-E699-4B9F-97FF-25B121A41276 "(Default)" = "IWidgiBHO"HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Interface\{2DC9C611-D7C2-42A3-9312-BFF512812022} "(Default)" = "IWidgiToolbarHost"