Home Malware Programs Potentially Unwanted Programs (PUPs) iPrivate Multi Search

iPrivate Multi Search

Posted: January 20, 2017

Threat Metric

Threat Level: 10/10
Infected PCs: 115
First Seen: January 20, 2017
Last Seen: March 16, 2023
OS(es) Affected: Windows

The iPrivate Multi Search is a Web browser extension that is only compatible with Google Chrome and can be downloaded from the official Chrome Extension repository. However, the fact that the iPrivate Multi Search is hosted there does not mean that everything about this software is transparent and reliable necessarily. The iPrivate Multi Search extension promises users to keep their searches private, therefore not revealing their search queries to the advertisers and marketing experts that may rely on such data provided by search engines, since it allows them to improve the quality of targeted advertising campaigns. However, the way that the iPrivate Multi Search promises to achieve this is not as special as you may think at first. The extension's installation leads to only one change – the user's default homepage will be replaced by a 3rd-party search engine associated with the iPrivate Multi Search. This means that everyone who opts to install this extension may help improve the traffic and popularity of a low-quality page linked to the iPrivate Multi Search involuntarily.

The positive thing is that the new tab page that the iPrivate Multi Search is assigned to promote is not that bad since it allows users to select the search engine they'd wish to use – Google, Bing or Yahoo quickly. When the users enter a search query, they'll be transferred to the search results page of the search engine they chose automatically. However, while the users are at the iPrivate Multi Search's page, they might be exposed to 3rd-party advertisements regarding various products, services, and pages.

Some users might find the iPrivate Multi Search's questionable features useful, but many people might be eager to learn how they can remove this extension from their Web clients, as well as how to restore their old settings. The removal of the iPrivate Multi Search is an operation that can be carried out with the assistance of anti-malware software, or manually by experienced users who know how to use Google Chrome's extension manager. Regardless of the removal technique you use, you must not forget to edit your browser's settings manually to restore your favorite new tab page.

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