Several websites have been automatically redirecting me to the Yahoo! search engine without me requesting that.
I will click on the URL for a specific website (often a Tumblr blog) and the browser will automatically redirect me to a Yahoo! search for terms related to that phrase. In some cases I can click the back button and it will take me to the website I originally wanted to go to, but sometimes it doesn't even do that. It's very annoying. The most common example of this is when I attempt to visit the blog gaslightgallows.tumblr.com, which redirects me to the search screenshotted in the attached image.
Chosen solution
sackobooks said
The only add-ons listed are as follows: Extensions: Feedly, SearchMe, Trend Micro Toolbar, and maybe Hola but also maybe not Hola.
Searchme is a Spigot add-on.
Here's my suggestion: if you do not remember installing or do not recognize an extension, disable it. If nothing goes wrong, remove it. All extensions are optional; none ship with Firefox.
You may want to remove the Spigot folder completely; this article mentions where it is: http://www.thesafemac.com/arg-spigot/
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Please update your plugins to the latest version. Check to make sure you are up to date:
If you see any issues also see:
Just in case please also consider a Refresh Refresh Firefox - reset add-ons and settings
Type about:addons<enter> in the address bar to open your Add-ons Manager. Hot key; <Control>(Mac:<Command>)<Shift> A)
In the Add-ons Manager, on the left, select Extensions. Remove Yahoo Anything. Now do the same in the computers Programs Folder.
Windows: Start > Control Panel > Uninstall Programs. Mac: Open the "Applications" folder. Linux: Check your user manual.
Hmm, interesting. The page attempts to retrieve this URL
https://twitter.com/statuses/user_timeline/gaslightgallows.json?count=1&callback=jsonp1434418279929
but it fails with a 404 Not Found error, as you can see in the attached screen shot.
Since the search result page matches the terms in that request, I suspect it is one of those annoying "domain solutions" type pages. If you check the bottom of the page, is there anything about opting out or about the results? Sometimes that will provide more information about the culprit, whether it is an add-on or your ISP.
Okay, so I clicked on a link at the bottom of the search results that said "learn more", and it directed me to this link (http://www.mybrowserbar.com/searchsettings.html?cnid=0&ccv=0&ct=), which talks about how it's a tool for helping when URLs are mistyped. Trouble is it says I can manipulate it by going to the "Spigot" toolbar on my browser, which I'm pretty sure doesn't exist (or at least doesn't appear to). Screenshot of a portion of the linked page is below, in case the link doesn't work.
P.S. I don't have any Yahoo-related add-ons, but I may or may not have recently downloaded the extension Hola, which can disguise your IP address to make it look like it's coming from another country.
Do you have a api.mybrowserbar.com add-on?
Nope, not that I can see. The only add-ons listed are as follows: Extensions: Feedly, SearchMe, Trend Micro Toolbar, and maybe Hola but also maybe not Hola.
Appearance: Default theme.
Plugins: OpenH264 Video Codec, Shockwave Flash, Adobe Acrobat NPAPI, Default Browser Helper, iPhotoPhotocast, Java Applet Plugin, Quicktime Plugin, and Silverlight Plugin.
I just tried the link. I ended up on; http://gaslightgallows.tumblr.com/
It's a very long page with lots on pictures.
Chosen Solution
sackobooks said
The only add-ons listed are as follows: Extensions: Feedly, SearchMe, Trend Micro Toolbar, and maybe Hola but also maybe not Hola.
Searchme is a Spigot add-on.
Here's my suggestion: if you do not remember installing or do not recognize an extension, disable it. If nothing goes wrong, remove it. All extensions are optional; none ship with Firefox.
You may want to remove the Spigot folder completely; this article mentions where it is: http://www.thesafemac.com/arg-spigot/
See: http://www.spigot.com/about/contact-us/uninstall-spigot-toolbar/ http://www.spigot.com/about/contact-us/uninstall-search-protection-spigot/ http://www.spigot.com/about/contact-us/remove-spigot-search-settings-application-searchsettings-exe/ http://www.spigot.com/about/contact-us/remove-spigot-application-updater-applicationupdater-exe/
Download Malwarebytes. http://www.malwarebytes.org/ This will protect you in the future and remove the SearchMe toolbar.
Modified by GCHQ
Thank you, that seems to have fixed it! I removed the SearchMe addon and checked a few of the websites where I'd been having trouble, and they all seem to be working fine. If the issue pops up again within the next few days I'll be sure to let everyone know, but I'm feeling optimistic. Thanks for your help!