GamesLava.com is a website which mainly has online gaming content. Games hosted on that website run either on HTML5 or the Adobe Flash Player. The website could have injected an application connected to it on your computer machine. GamesLava is considered adware because it produces lots of advertising content around the Internet. To remove the advertisements and prevent the website from appearing again, you should read this article.
Threat Summary
| Name | GamesLava.com |
| Type | Adware, PUP |
| Short Description | Advertisements generated from this site can be seen on different websites and redirect you from there. |
| Symptoms | You see adverts in your browsers, such as in-game ads or pop-ups. You can get redirected from the games, ads and links on the website. |
| Distribution Method | Freeware Installations, Bundled Packages |
| Detection Tool |
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| User Experience | Join Our Forum to Discuss GamesLava.com. |
GamesLava.com – Spread Tactics
GamesLava.com could be spread through third-party installation setups. GamesLava related applications might get inside your personal computer, without your knowledge. Bundled packs or setups of free software could spread the adware to your PC. Such installations might have a default setting for installing additional components. Preventing the installations of unneeded applications such as these is doable if you search for and find a Custom or an Advanced options menu. There you could probably deselect components.
A way that the GamesLava.com site uses to spread itself can be through websites consisting of online gaming content, and show similar adverts. If you click on any redirecting links on the Internet, you might also end up having the adware. Banners, pop-unders, pop-ups and other ads can be displayed to advertise the gaming platform and could also spread the adware and redirect to its main site page. Browsers that are usually affected are: Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, Internet Explorer and Safari.
GamesLava.com – In Detail
GamesLava.com is the official domain of the gaming website which has the same name – GamesLava. It does not stand out much from other gaming websites, but after a while, you notice the advertising content being pushed on it. Advertisements can show up, and that can potentially slow down your Internet or computer system. The website, the platform related to it, and every application tied to them generate a multitude of advertisements.
Whenever you try to load a game on the GamesLava.com website, different advertising content is going to be generated. Mostly, that content is in the form of pop-ups, banners, interstitial and transitional adverts. Each of the games, shown on this website uses either the Adobe Flash Player or HTML5 for loading. One of the biggest problems with the Flash Player is if an older version of it is required to launch a game. Thus, active vulnerabilities on that Flash version could still be open and waiting to be exploited. In-game and interstitial ads show when you start games on this website, or you could get redirected.
An example of an in-game advert on GamesLava.com:
As you can see above, you can get redirected to external websites, like BuzzFeed.
In case your browser software or your computer has any applications connected to the adware platform, lots of advertising, sponsored content and redirect links could be generated from it.
Advertisements can have one of these texts in them:
- Ad by GamesLava.com
- Ads by GamesLava.com
- Advert from GamesLava.com
- Powered by GamesLava.com
- Advertisement by GamesLava.com
- Brought to you by GamesLava.com
The GamesLava website can host links redirecting you to both popular and unknown online sites. Aiming to generate traffic and turn it into revenue on a pay-per-click basis no doubt. Most of the advertising content on the site is probably associated with affiliates and partners for the gaming platform in question. The advertisements can collect all types of information about you and the way you browse. Advertisements on GamesLava.com can show as banners, pop-ups, pop-unders in-game ads, text links, transitional, interstitial, or full page adverts.
GamesLava.com – Privacy Policy
The Privacy Policy of the GamesLava.com site can be accessed from the footer of any page on the site. You can view a screenshot of it under this paragraph. In the policy, it is stated that the GamesLava gaming website and all of its extensions may acquire information from you and your browsing habits. Third parties’ advertisements might collect extra data. The gaming platform can gather personally and non-personally identifying information.
The policy describes that the following data is collected:
- Your Name and Email Address
- Your IP address
- Operating system
- Geographic location
- Viewed pages
- Your Internet service provider
- Type of Browser
Your geolocation and other, similar information that can identify you personally may be sent to the owners of the website. Cookies and various tracking technologies, such as Web beacons are used by GamesLava.com to obtain more information about you. If you disapprove of how your privacy is intruded in this way and have an application tied to the game site on your computer, then you should remove the adware and its related components.
Remove GamesLava.com Completely
To remove GamesLava.com manually from your computer, follow the step-by-step instructions manual provided down here. If the manual removal does not get rid of the ads and gaming website from appearing, you should search for and remove any leftovers with an advanced anti-malware tool. Such a program can keep your computer safe in the future.
- Windows
- Mac OS X
- Google Chrome
- Mozilla Firefox
- Microsoft Edge
- Safari
- Internet Explorer
- Stop Push Pop-ups
How to Remove GamesLava.com from Windows.
Step 1: Scan for GamesLava.com with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool
Step 2: Boot Your PC In Safe Mode
Step 3: Uninstall GamesLava.com and related software from Windows
Here is a method in few easy steps that should be able to uninstall most programs. No matter if you are using Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista or XP, those steps will get the job done. Dragging the program or its folder to the recycle bin can be a very bad decision. If you do that, bits and pieces of the program are left behind, and that can lead to unstable work of your PC, errors with the file type associations and other unpleasant activities. The proper way to get a program off your computer is to Uninstall it. To do that:
Follow the instructions above and you will successfully uninstall most programs.
Step 4: Clean Any registries, Created by GamesLava.com on Your PC.
The usually targeted registries of Windows machines are the following:
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
You can access them by opening the Windows registry editor and deleting any values, created by GamesLava.com there. This can happen by following the steps underneath:
Tip: To find a virus-created value, you can right-click on it and click "Modify" to see which file it is set to run. If this is the virus file location, remove the value.
Video Removal Guide for GamesLava.com (Windows).
Get rid of GamesLava.com from Mac OS X.
Step 1: Uninstall GamesLava.com and remove related files and objects
Your Mac will then show you a list of items that start automatically when you log in. Look for any suspicious apps identical or similar to GamesLava.com. Check the app you want to stop from running automatically and then select on the Minus (“-“) icon to hide it.
- Go to Finder.
- In the search bar type the name of the app that you want to remove.
- Above the search bar change the two drop down menus to “System Files” and “Are Included” so that you can see all of the files associated with the application you want to remove. Bear in mind that some of the files may not be related to the app so be very careful which files you delete.
- If all of the files are related, hold the ⌘+A buttons to select them and then drive them to “Trash”.
In case you cannot remove GamesLava.com via Step 1 above:
In case you cannot find the virus files and objects in your Applications or other places we have shown above, you can manually look for them in the Libraries of your Mac. But before doing this, please read the disclaimer below:
You can repeat the same procedure with the following other Library directories:
→ ~/Library/LaunchAgents
/Library/LaunchDaemons
Tip: ~ is there on purpose, because it leads to more LaunchAgents.
Step 2: Scan for and remove GamesLava.com files from your Mac
When you are facing problems on your Mac as a result of unwanted scripts and programs such as GamesLava.com, the recommended way of eliminating the threat is by using an anti-malware program. SpyHunter for Mac offers advanced security features along with other modules that will improve your Mac’s security and protect it in the future.
Video Removal Guide for GamesLava.com (Mac)
Remove GamesLava.com from Google Chrome.
Step 1: Start Google Chrome and open the drop menu
Step 2: Move the cursor over "Tools" and then from the extended menu choose "Extensions"
Step 3: From the opened "Extensions" menu locate the unwanted extension and click on its "Remove" button.
Step 4: After the extension is removed, restart Google Chrome by closing it from the red "X" button at the top right corner and start it again.
Erase GamesLava.com from Mozilla Firefox.
Step 1: Start Mozilla Firefox. Open the menu window:
Step 2: Select the "Add-ons" icon from the menu.
Step 3: Select the unwanted extension and click "Remove"
Step 4: After the extension is removed, restart Mozilla Firefox by closing it from the red "X" button at the top right corner and start it again.
Uninstall GamesLava.com from Microsoft Edge.
Step 1: Start Edge browser.
Step 2: Open the drop menu by clicking on the icon at the top right corner.
Step 3: From the drop menu select "Extensions".
Step 4: Choose the suspected malicious extension you want to remove and then click on the gear icon.
Step 5: Remove the malicious extension by scrolling down and then clicking on Uninstall.
Remove GamesLava.com from Safari
Step 1: Start the Safari app.
Step 2: After hovering your mouse cursor to the top of the screen, click on the Safari text to open its drop down menu.
Step 3: From the menu, click on "Preferences".
Step 4: After that, select the 'Extensions' Tab.
Step 5: Click once on the extension you want to remove.
Step 6: Click 'Uninstall'.
A pop-up window will appear asking for confirmation to uninstall the extension. Select 'Uninstall' again, and the GamesLava.com will be removed.
Eliminate GamesLava.com from Internet Explorer.
Step 1: Start Internet Explorer.
Step 2: Click on the gear icon labeled 'Tools' to open the drop menu and select 'Manage Add-ons'
Step 3: In the 'Manage Add-ons' window.
Step 4: Select the extension you want to remove and then click 'Disable'. A pop-up window will appear to inform you that you are about to disable the selected extension, and some more add-ons might be disabled as well. Leave all the boxes checked, and click 'Disable'.
Step 5: After the unwanted extension has been removed, restart Internet Explorer by closing it from the red 'X' button located at the top right corner and start it again.
Remove Push Notifications from Your Browsers
Turn Off Push Notifications from Google Chrome
To disable any Push Notices from Google Chrome browser, please follow the steps below:
Step 1: Go to Settings in Chrome.
Step 2: In Settings, select “Advanced Settings”:
Step 3: Click “Content Settings”:
Step 4: Open “Notifications”:
Step 5: Click the three dots and choose Block, Edit or Remove options:
Remove Push Notifications on Firefox
Step 1: Go to Firefox Options.
Step 2: Go to “Settings”, type “notifications” in the search bar and click "Settings":
Step 3: Click “Remove” on any site you wish notifications gone and click “Save Changes”
Stop Push Notifications on Opera
Step 1: In Opera, press ALT+P to go to Settings.
Step 2: In Setting search, type “Content” to go to Content Settings.
Step 3: Open Notifications:
Step 4: Do the same as you did with Google Chrome (explained below):
Eliminate Push Notifications on Safari
Step 1: Open Safari Preferences.
Step 2: Choose the domain from where you like push pop-ups gone and change to "Deny" from "Allow".
GamesLava.com-FAQ
What Is GamesLava.com?
The GamesLava.com threat is adware or browser redirect virus.
It may slow your computer down significantly and display advertisements. The main idea is for your information to likely get stolen or more ads to appear on your device.
The creators of such unwanted apps work with pay-per-click schemes to get your computer to visit risky or different types of websites that may generate them funds. This is why they do not even care what types of websites show up on the ads. This makes their unwanted software indirectly risky for your OS.
What Are the Symptoms of GamesLava.com?
There are several symptoms to look for when this particular threat and also unwanted apps in general are active:
Symptom #1: Your computer may become slow and have poor performance in general.
Symptom #2: You have toolbars, add-ons or extensions on your web browsers that you don't remember adding.
Symptom #3: You see all types of ads, like ad-supported search results, pop-ups and redirects to randomly appear.
Symptom #4: You see installed apps on your Mac running automatically and you do not remember installing them.
Symptom #5: You see suspicious processes running in your Task Manager.
If you see one or more of those symptoms, then security experts recommend that you check your computer for viruses.
What Types of Unwanted Programs Are There?
According to most malware researchers and cyber-security experts, the threats that can currently affect your device can be rogue antivirus software, adware, browser hijackers, clickers, fake optimizers and any forms of PUPs.
What to Do If I Have a "virus" like GamesLava.com?
With few simple actions. First and foremost, it is imperative that you follow these steps:
Step 1: Find a safe computer and connect it to another network, not the one that your Mac was infected in.
Step 2: Change all of your passwords, starting from your email passwords.
Step 3: Enable two-factor authentication for protection of your important accounts.
Step 4: Call your bank to change your credit card details (secret code, etc.) if you have saved your credit card for online shopping or have done online activities with your card.
Step 5: Make sure to call your ISP (Internet provider or carrier) and ask them to change your IP address.
Step 6: Change your Wi-Fi password.
Step 7: (Optional): Make sure to scan all of the devices connected to your network for viruses and repeat these steps for them if they are affected.
Step 8: Install anti-malware software with real-time protection on every device you have.
Step 9: Try not to download software from sites you know nothing about and stay away from low-reputation websites in general.
If you follow these recommendations, your network and all devices will become significantly more secure against any threats or information invasive software and be virus free and protected in the future too.
How Does GamesLava.com Work?
Once installed, GamesLava.com can collect data using trackers. This data is about your web browsing habits, such as the websites you visit and the search terms you use. It is then used to target you with ads or to sell your information to third parties.
GamesLava.com can also download other malicious software onto your computer, such as viruses and spyware, which can be used to steal your personal information and show risky ads, that may redirect to virus sites or scams.
Is GamesLava.com Malware?
The truth is that PUPs (adware, browser hijackers) are not viruses, but may be just as dangerous since they may show you and redirect you to malware websites and scam pages.
Many security experts classify potentially unwanted programs as malware. This is because of the unwanted effects that PUPs can cause, such as displaying intrusive ads and collecting user data without the user’s knowledge or consent.
About the GamesLava.com Research
The content we publish on SensorsTechForum.com, this GamesLava.com how-to removal guide included, is the outcome of extensive research, hard work and our team’s devotion to help you remove the specific, adware-related problem, and restore your browser and computer system.
How did we conduct the research on GamesLava.com?
Please note that our research is based on independent investigation. We are in contact with independent security researchers, thanks to which we receive daily updates on the latest malware, adware, and browser hijacker definitions.
Furthermore, the research behind the GamesLava.com threat is backed with VirusTotal.
To better understand this online threat, please refer to the following articles which provide knowledgeable details.