SubSearch

Posted: March 29, 2005

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.

Threat Level:	5/10
Infected PCs:	28

First Seen:	July 24, 2009
Last Seen:	May 6, 2019
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

SubSearch is adware that attaches itself to Internet Explorer and adds SubSearch's own paid links to your search results. Some versions of SubSearch can also create pop-up advertisements or hijack your search results. In addition to being annoying, SubSearch may represent a security risk due to SubSearch's ability to initiate update downloads and installations without your permission. If you start to see strange additional search engine results, you should scan for and delete SubSearch to reestablish the privacy and security of your PC.

Theoretically Useful but Pragmatically Dangerous

SubSearch has advertised itself as a useful program since 2002 and is also known by the names of HighTraffic and Qual Net (the company affiliated with the earliest versions of SubSearch). Known domains associated with this malicious adware include cpcads.com, hightrafficads.com and .popunder.info. Most infection routes for SubSearch are through malicious websites that promote SubSearch as a useful application.

As a Browser Helper Object or BHO for Internet Explorer, SubSearch markets itself as a convenient search engine tool. However, SubSearch creates many different problems for the user that leave the PC less secure as a result:

SubSearch interferes with your search engine results by adding on sponsored links. These sidebar links may redirect you to malicious websites and at the very least will make your search results more disorganized and irrelevant. SubSearch attempts to camouflage these paid links by making them look like a part of whatever search engine you're currently using.
SubSearch will run automatically whenever you open Internet Explorer with no readily visible options for disabling this function.
Even your legitimate search results may be altered just by having SubSearch on your PC, since later versions of SubSearch possess an explorer bar add-on with hijacking functions.
Central servers can also direct recent versions of SubSearch to display pop-up advertisements. Pop-up advertisements from SubSearch aren't dependent on which website you're visiting and may contain malicious code that can force other malware infections onto your computer.
Unlike legitimate software, SubSearch will update itself automatically without requesting your permission or even notifying you about the event. This allows the questionable programmers behind SubSearch to add on functions at a whim without you ever knowing the difference.

And Then There's the Door SubSearch Leaves Wide Open

As if all of these deliberate attacks weren't bad enough, SubSearch also has several serious security holes in SubSearch's code. These holes allow any website with the appropriate code to direct SubSearch to download any file and write SubSearch to any portion of your PC. This can overwrite legitimate files and automatically run other malware, causing serious harm to the computer.

Since the sloppy coding of SubSearch makes SubSearch an incredible security risk and its adware functions make SubSearch generally undesirable, you shouldn't hold back on removing SubSearch just like a standard virus or Trojan. Deleting SubSearch should prove minimally difficult with the help of quality anti-malware applications, since reports haven't indicated SubSearch to have many of the more invasive defenses that are in common use by other types of adware.

SubSearchz

SubSearch

Threat Metric

Theoretically Useful but Pragmatically Dangerous

And Then There's the Door SubSearch Leaves Wide Open

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