Claro Search and Toolbar Finds Its Way onto Gamers’ Computers

Claro Search adware, or what is an unwanted toolbar by the name of Claro LTD, has found its way on to a number of gamers' computers where it has caused a multitude of problems ranging from pop-up advertisements to putting systems at risk of having stored data stolen.

The Claro LTD Toolbar is an application that is usually installed with the loading of an installer of many applications including recent PC games. Security researchers have recently found where PC users who installed games overlook where Claro has a check-box to install when they are running an installer for a newly download program. During the install process, Claro will automatically load itself onto a system and usually run in the background unnoticed for long periods of time. It is not until popular web browsers are utilized when Claro will launch annoying pop-ups and sometimes redirect users to unwanted and potentially malicious web pages.

Claro Search (Isearch.claro-search.com) or the Claro toolbar (Claro LTD Toolbar) is not a virus by itself. In the hands of cybercriminals, Claro can be the calm before the storm just as it loads URLs pointing to sites either compromised by hackers or specifically created to spread PC threats. Either way, Claro search or the Claro toolbar is not a welcomed application on a computer.

Claro search and the toolbar have been around for a long time usually peddled by installer programs as another part of bloatware to load on a system when a PC user downloads a new program. It was not until recently that PC gamers were a primary target for hackers who wield Claro around like their magic 'malware wand', to ultimately infiltrate a system with malware.

There have been reported cases where computer users installing new downloaded games such as Diablo 3 automatically have Claro search or the Claro toolbar installed along with their game. Most times the installers are from a 3rd party where they tend to include other applications to install, most times toolbars or internet search applications, prior to installing the initially downloaded program. You can think of the installers acting much like ones that ask if you wish to change your web browser home page to a particular page. Usually, the check-box is pre-checked for you and most PC users do not realize that they need to un-check the box to avoid installation of another program, such as in the case of Claro search or the Claro toolbar.

By targeting PC gamers with the installation of Claro, which may eventually lead to an infiltration of malware, the computer user demographic base changes drastically. Hackers utilizing Claro for malicious purposes gets a broad reach within the younger age of computer users, ones who play games. If you think about it, the tactic of targeting PC gamers is a clever way of finding a larger base of gullible PC users who may be more apt to leave the installation check box for Claro checked. Additionally, PC gamers, who naturally generate high online traffic for playing their online games, will increase the chances of them reaching compromised or malicious sites over the Internet.

Those who run into Claro Search or the Claro Toolbar may face a serious opposition in attempting to remove the application. Often, the installation of Claro may fail to list it as an installed program in the Windows control panel thus eliminating any possibility of automatically uninstalling Claro. However, removal of Claro Search or Claro Toolbar may be conducted with a genuine antivirus or antispyware program. This will also ensure the PC has an effective way of protecting against future viruses created by nifty hackers.