A new Referrer spam has become increasingly widespread over many URLs, such as the one going by the name of Get-Your-Social-Buttons(.)Info. The website itself posts a link with its domain redirecting the user who clicks on it on one of the several domains of sharebutton – .to .net and .org, all of which have different codes for share buttons embedded on a site. Although it is advertised as a free service, users are strongly advised not to use this suspicious bunch of code due to the fact that it may be harmful to the website in several different ways. Users are also advised to keep away from Get-Your-Social-Buttons(.)info links and to scan their computer with an anti-malware program if they have visited third-party websites via this domain. In case you have seen referrer spam linking to sharebutton.to, make sure to follow the instructions after this article to remove it.
Threat Summary
| Name | Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam |
| Type | Referral Spam |
| Short Description | The web page has been seen on many referral spams on predominantly medium sized and smaller blogs in traffic. |
| Symptoms | The user may witnes the spam on various places of the website that is being targeted, leading to Copyrightclaims.org which then redirects to a phishing website. |
| Distribution Method | Most often via spammed URL’s. Bundling or unwanted software as well as spammed advertisements also a scenario. Even possible via malware. |
| Detection Tool |
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| User Experience | Join Our Forum to Discuss Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam. |
Sharebutton(.)to Blocking In Google Analytics Instructions Video
Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam – What Does it Do?
This particular type of referrer spam may be two types:
#1 – Web Crawler Spam
Web crawler spam, also known as spider, is named this way because the spam bot essentially ‘crawls’ the web looking for opportunities in the face of underdeveloped or small websites. It is not very persistent since the spam bot is usually programmed in a massive scale to stop spamming the same website after being deleted or flagged, however there may be advanced spammers that could develop such software into being a pain in the neck.
#2 – Ghost Referrer Spam
This particular type of spam is very sophisticated because it uses the free hype text protocol (HTTP) in order to take advantage of it and remain hidden and in some cases not even logically present in the website it spams. Ben Davis at vidget.com claims that such spam is not even present on the website it is spamming. What is more the spam may target different parts of the website.
Either way, referrer spam aims to drive hoax traffic to third-party websites and most spammers do not really mind what type of sites they advertise this way. It may be sites like the suspicious sharebutton(.)to. However, it may also be more dangerous web links that may either be phishing sites that aim to steal info, scamming sites or simply malicious URLs that may infect your PC.
Sharebutton Domains – More About Them
The Sharebutton network itself is potentially harmful and it has been advertised via other spam domains as well, such as buttons-for-website(.)com which advertises its .net domain. The website itself has been reported to be with an overall poor reputation with potential containing of malware in it by Scamanalyze.com researchers. According to Alexa around 30% of the visitors of the website are from India. However, there are also visitors from other countries such as Brasil, Turkey and Spain and also the US.
When entered, the website itself displays the following code to copy and each one of its domains contains different HTML based script:
This code links to its .org location and to the “cdn.script(.)to/share6(.)js” java script posted online, featuring a social map to the most widely used social networks such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Vkontakte, Tumblr and others. It has not been confirmed whether or not this script is dangerous for the user, however security experts strongly advise users to change their passwords in case they have used this share button.
Getting Rid of Sharebutton Domains Referrer Spam
Back to referrer spam, it primarily aims to drive traffic to third-party websites. However it should be noted that it may be dangerous in several different ways:
- Devaluating website statistics.
- Overcrowding the webiste with spam comments, causing Google to flag it from it search results.
This is why referral spam should not be underestimated. In order to remove sharebutton(.)to referral spam, it is highly advisable to try the following methods:
There is a method outlined by security researchers online that uses WordPress plugins to block referrer spams from sites. There are many plugins that help deal with referrer spam, simply do a google search. We have currently seen one particular plugin reported to work, called WP-Ban, but bear in mind that you may find an equally good or better. WP-Ban has the ability to block users based on their IP address and other information such as the URL, for example.
Also, in case you feel like you may have clicked and been redirected to one of the domains mentioned in the spam message, and you believe your system may be compromised, you should scan your computer with a particular anti-malware tool. Downloading such software will also make sure your computer is safe against any future intrusions as well.
Spy Hunter scanner will only detect the threat. If you want the threat to be automatically removed, you need to purchase the full version of the anti-malware tool.Find Out More About SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool / How to Uninstall SpyHunter
Ventsislav Krastev
Ventsislav is a cybersecurity expert at SensorsTechForum since 2015. He has been researching, covering, helping victims with the latest malware infections plus testing and reviewing software and the newest tech developments. Having graduated Marketing as well, Ventsislav also has passion for learning new shifts and innovations in cybersecurity that become game changers. After studying Value Chain Management, Network Administration and Computer Administration of System Applications, he found his true calling within the cybersecrurity industry and is a strong believer in the education of every user towards online safety and security.
Follow Me:
- Guide 1: How to Remove Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam from Windows.
- Guide 2: Get rid of Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam on Mac OS X.
- Guide 3: Remove Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam in Google Chrome.
- Guide 4: Erase Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam from Mozilla Firefox.
- Guide 5: Uninstall Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam from Microsoft Edge.
- Guide 6: Remove Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam from Safari.
- Guide 7: Eliminate Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam from Internet Explorer.
- Guide 8: Disable Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam Push Notifications in Your Browsers.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
About the Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam Research
The content we publish on SensorsTechForum.com, this Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam 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 Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam?
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 Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam threat is backed with VirusTotal https://www.virustotal.com/gui/home/upload.
To better understand this online threat, please refer to the following articles which provide knowledgeable details.
References
1.Browser Redirect – What Is It?
2.Adware Is Malicious, and It Uses Advanced Techniques to Infect
3.The Thin Red Line Between Potentially Unwanted Programs and Malware
4.The Pay-Per-Install Affiliate Business – Making Millions out of Adware
5.Malicious Firefox Extensions Installed by 455,000 Users Blocked Updates
How to Remove Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam from Windows.
Step 1: Boot Your PC In Safe Mode to isolate and remove Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam
Step 2: Uninstall Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam 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 3: Clean any registries, created by Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam on your computer.
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 Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam there. This can happen by following the steps underneath:
1. Open the Run Window again, type "regedit" and click OK.
2. When you open it, you can freely navigate to the Run and RunOnce keys, whose locations are shown above.
3. You can remove the value of the virus by right-clicking on it and removing it.
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.
Before starting "Step 4", please boot back into Normal mode, in case you are currently in Safe Mode.
This will enable you to install and use SpyHunter 5 successfully.
Step 4: Scan for Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam with SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool
1. Click on the "Download" button to proceed to SpyHunter's download page.
2. After you have installed SpyHunter, wait for it to update automatically.
3. After the update process has finished, click on the 'Malware/PC Scan' tab. A new window will appear. Click on 'Start Scan'.
4. After SpyHunter has finished scanning your PC for any files of the associated threat and found them, you can try to get them removed automatically and permanently by clicking on the 'Next' button.
Video Removal Guide for Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam (Windows).
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Get rid of Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam from Mac OS X.
Step 1: Uninstall Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam and remove related files and objects
1.Hit the ⇧+⌘+U keys to open Utilities. Another way is to click on “Go” and then click “Utilities”, like the image below shows:
2. Find Activity Monitor and double-click it:
3.In the Activity Monitor look for any suspicious processes, belonging or related to Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam:
4.Click on the "Go" button again, but this time select Applications. Another way is with the ⇧+⌘+A buttons.
5.In the Applications menu, look for any suspicious app or an app with a name, similar or identical to Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam. If you find it, right-click on the app and select “Move to Trash”.
6: Select Accounts, after which click on the Login Items preference.
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 Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam. Check the app you want to stop from running automatically and then select on the Minus (“-“) icon to hide it.
7: Remove any left-over files that might be related to this threat manually by following the sub-steps below:
- 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 Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam 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:
1: Click on "Go" and Then "Go to Folder" as shown underneath:
2: Type in "/Library/LauchAgents/" and click Ok:
3: Delete all of the virus files that have similar or the same name as Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam. If you believe there is no such file, do not delete anything.
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 Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam files from your Mac
When you are facing problems on your Mac as a result of unwanted scripts and programs such as Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam, 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 Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam (Mac)
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Remove Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam 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.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Erase Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam 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.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Uninstall Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam 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.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Remove Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam 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 Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam will be removed.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Eliminate Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam 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 caused by Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam 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".
Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam FAQ
What is Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam?
The Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam threat is adware or browser redirect virus. It may slow your computer down siginficantly 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 Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam?
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 has poor performance in general.
Symtpom #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 reccomend 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 Mac can be the following types:
- Rogue Antivirus programs.
- Adware.
- Browser hijackers.
- Clickers.
- Fake optimizers.
What to do if I have a "virus" like Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam?
Do not panic! You can easily get rid of most adware or unwanted program threats by firstly isolating them and then removing them from your browser and computer. One reccomended way to do that is by using a reputable malware removal software that can take care of the removal automatically for you. There are many anti-malware apps out there that you can choose from. SpyHunter is one of the reccomended anti-malware apps, that can scan your computer for free and detect any viruses, tracking cookies and unwanted adware apps and eliminate them quickly. This saves time when compared to doing the removal manually.
How to secure my passwords and other data from Sharebutton(.)to Referral Spam?
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 e-mail 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 activiites 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 reccomendations, 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.
More tips you can find on our website, where you can also ask any questions and comment underneath the articles about your computer problems. We will try to respond as fast as possible.
The site you mentioned” persihablepress” has got huge list of spamming website. Thanks for sharing.
You are welcome! Stay tuned :)
Thank you for such an informative article. What is the web address to the whois site you mention in the video, please?
Also, how do these get into my website?
they use a sophisticated software that allows them to connect to your website without having to visit it. This means that they use the information and the security settings on your website against you. This means that you should increase the security, apply captcha and other measures as well as other services that conceal as much information from your website as possible.
they have found your website via a special tactic spammers use about which I will not type in detail, but it is basically taking advantage of google via specific codes during searching that allow it to display certain websites based on their interests
the technique is called “Google Dorking”
software che permette???