Whitesmoke Search Conduit - How do I get rid of it?

[crobatman]

So, I was taking an online Biostatistics class, and one of my study tips was to view a website: http://biostat.mc.vanderbilt.edu/wiki/Main/PowerSampleSize

While doing my Chapter Problems, I thought the statistics program it had for Power and Sample Size Calculation would be a benefit. When I went to download the Windows version, I did not get any statistics program. In stead, I had downloaded a thing called Whitesmoke Conduit. It is like malware or adware, and I am having a tough time getting rid of it. Just warning everyone not to download it. It is not worth the trouble!!!

I tried uninstalling it from my programs, but it still on all of my web browsers. It is very annoying. Any tips to delete it would be appreciated.

Thank you!

 

[ShinySandshrew]

Crobatman, I work in IT and I've had to remove this kind of thing numerous times. Here are some steps to take:



First Step: It is possible that it didn't uninstall properly. Look in your browser's add-ons and see if it is still listed. If so, remove it. If you don't know how, here are some instructions. Furthermore, it could be that the Conduit search is still listed as the default search engine. Try removing from the list of search engines. And if it is showing up as your homepage, set a new homepage.

If the above tips don't work, you're going to have to dig in deeper and follow the below steps.

Second Step:
1.) Download the free version of Malwarebytes Anti-malware . Don't install it just yet.
2.) Reboot your computer. When most computers reboot, they show a splash screen with the manufacturer's logo. While this screen is displayed, repeatedly tap the F8 key. If you see the Windows logo, you missed your window of opportunity and will have to reboot again.
3.) After hitting the F8 key, it will bring up basic menu, consisting of a black screen with white text. You will see such options as "Safe Mode", "Safe Mode with Networking", and "Safe Mode with Command Prompt". Choose "Safe Mode with Networking".
4.) A list of files will be displayed. Don't worry the operating system is just listing what files it is loading. It may hang for a moment at this screen. This is normal. After the list of files passes, you will be presented with the Windows desktop. It will probably have a low resolution, but this is normal.
5.) Now we will install Malwarebytes. Run the installer, accepting the default options. If the program says that it needs to download an update, let it download an update.
6.) After the software is installed and you run the program, you will be presented with a screen that has three options: 1) Perform Quick Scan, 2) Perform Full Scan, and 3) Perform Flash Scan. Choose "Perform Quick Scan". Let the scan run. When it finishes, it will give you a list of threats found. Check the box next to all threats and click the Remove button. It will then remove the threats. If Malwarebytes prompts you to restart your computer, go ahead and restart your computer.
7.) Check to see if the problem is resolved by opening up your web browsers.

Let me know how this works out, okay?

 

[crobatman]

Thanks a lot! I will look through the steps again tomorrow afternoon. On the first step, I did make a new home page, so that helped. Every time I open a new tab, the conduit site shows up. I will check the add-ons soon and see what happens.

This is a very well set of steps to do this. When I look online for solutions, I can get really confused on what to do.