Safe2Search Browser Hijacker
Safe2Search is a website that features a hoax search engine. It tries to force people to use bogus searching services.
The website is very likely to be pushed by a potentially unwanted program – a browser hijacker. Browser hijackers alter main browser settings without users’ permission. As potentially unwanted programs, they are mainly spread via software bundles.
Find out how to get rid of the Safe2Search hijacker and how to fix browsing settings.

Safe2Search Summary
Name | Safe2Search |
Type | Browser Hijacker, PUP |
Short Description | A program that pushes questionable search enigne. It hijacks browsers without asking for pemission. |
Symptoms | The homepage, new tab page and search enigne in preferred web browser are set to display a hoax search engine associated with Safe2Search. |
Distribution Method | Freeware Installations, Bundled Packages, Corrupted Websites |
Detection Tool |
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Safe2Search Search Engine – Is It Safe?
Safe2Search is the search engine pushed by a browser hijacker. Browser hijackers invade computer operating systems and alter installed browsers’ settings without any notifications. As a result, affected web browsers are forced to load the questionable search engine Safe2Search on the homepage and every new tab page. Some fresh examples of browser hijackers detected in the wild are Charmsearching, GameSearchOnline and ProPDFConverterSearch.
Hoax search engines like Safe2Search are often programmed to apply modifications that enable the uninterrupted collection of specific data from both the affected browser and the system. When fraudsters obtain those specific details, they misuse them for the launch of target advertising campaigns. At worst, they may decide to sell the records to third parties or publish them on darknet forums.
Collected data may unclude information about your:
- Search queries;
- Browsing history;
- IP address;
- Clicks on links;
- and other non-personal details.
As a result of having the Safe2Search hijacker on your PC, you may happen to see phishing pages that aim to steal sensitive credentials or hacked websites that propagate malicious software.
To sum up, Safe2Search is not a malicious site. Still, the program that may be supporting its activities is potentially unwanted. As long as the affected browser keeps forcing you to use the deceptive services of a hoax search engine, your online security remains lowered, hence, your device is vulnerable to malware attacks.
For the sake of your online security, we advise you to consider a thorough removal of the Safe2Search hijacker from the affected Mac and browser.

Safe2Search Hijacker Removal Guide
In order to remove the Safe2Search browser hijacker along with all associated files that enable its appearance in the browser, you should complete several removal steps. The guide below presents all the steps required for the complete removal of browser hijacking programs. If you want to make sure that no undesired and potentially harmful files are running on your system, we recommend that you follow the guide to the end.
Have in mind that some of the installed files installed by the hijacker may be named in a completely different way, so they can be hard to find. If you find difficulties in locating harmful files, navigate to the automatic part of the removal where a reliable anti-malware tool is presented. The tool is capable of detecting unnecessary/unwanted files. Then it will let you remove them with a single click.
In case you have further questions or need additional help with the removal process, don’t hesitate to leave a comment.
- Guide 1: How to Remove Safe2Search from Windows.
- Guide 2: Get rid of Safe2Search on Mac OS X.
- Guide 3: Remove Safe2Search in Google Chrome.
- Guide 4: Erase Safe2Search from Mozilla Firefox.
- Guide 5: Uninstall Safe2Search from Microsoft Edge.
- Guide 6: Remove Safe2Search from Safari.
- Guide 7: Eliminate Safe2Search from Internet Explorer.
- Guide 8: Disable Safe2Search Push Notifications in Your Browsers.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
How to Remove Safe2Search from Windows.
Step 1: Boot Your PC In Safe Mode to isolate and remove Safe2Search





Step 2: Uninstall Safe2Search 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:



Step 3: Clean any registries, created by Safe2Search 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 Safe2Search there. This can happen by following the steps underneath:



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.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Get rid of Safe2Search from Mac OS X.
Step 1: Uninstall Safe2Search 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:
- 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 Safe2Search 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 Safe2Search files from your Mac
When you are facing problems on your Mac as a result of unwanted scripts and programs such as Safe2Search, 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.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Remove Safe2Search 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 Safe2Search 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 Safe2Search 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 Safe2Search 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 Safe2Search will be removed.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer Stop Push Pop-ups
Eliminate Safe2Search 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 Safe2Search 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".