How to remove Search-space.net

What is Search-space.net

Like Select-search.com and other clones, Search-space.net is a suspicious redirect forced by browser extension or hijacker that is installed on your PC. These apps are supposed to improve browsing, however, the affected changes allow its creators to collect personal data (e.g. passwords, geolocations, IP-addresses, etc.) and share it with cybercriminals for making a profit. These changes include a new search engine (search-space.net), SearchSpace extension, customizable interface, and other insignificant features. Search-space.net generates no unique results, instead, it simply replicates them from legitimate platforms like Google. Besides data-tracking capabilities, Search-space.net displays intrusive advertisements that may contain redirects to questionable or even malicious pages.

How Search-space.net infected your computer

There is a set of most common methods used by cybercriminals to promote Potentially Unwanted Programs. One of them is apparently bundling which is a sneaky technique of injecting third-parties software into freeware repacks. These repacks are advertised on every single corner of the web and does not inform users about the presence of additional software. Thus, inexperienced users end up skipping “Advanced” or “Custom” options during the setup which results in inadvertent infections that leave users totally puzzled. Keep in mind that untrustworthy software can be spread also via ads, fake software updates (and cracking tools), trojans, and others. The only way to evade such infiltrations is to download software only from trusted resources and avoid clicking on unknown content. If you spotted sudden browser changes, we strongly insist on detecting a suspicious application and removing it. The full guide on how to do it is presented below.

Remove Search-space.net manually for free

Here is a manual step-by-step tutorial for full Search-space.net removal from your computer. This works 99% and was checked with the latest versions of the Search-space.net installer on operating systems with the latest updates and browser versions.

Note: Search-space.net can be installed as Google Chrome extension as Administrator (you may see Installed by enterprise policy inscription near it), and this will not allow removal. Therefore, before starting removal process, perform these actions:

1. Start the Command Prompt by clicking the Start menu button and typing command prompt (or just searching for “command prompt” in Windows 10 search field). Right click on the Command Prompt result and choose Run as Administrator.



2. Type in and execute the following commands:

   
rd /S /Q "%WinDir%\System32\GroupPolicyUsers"
rd /S /Q "%WinDir%\System32\GroupPolicy"
gpupdate /force

Remove Search-space.net from Control Panel

To start removing Search-space.net you should uninstall it using Control Panel. It can be present by different names – “SearchSpace” or “Search-space.net”. It should uninstall correctly, however, we recommend you to use IObit Uninstaller to clean leftover items after uninstalling. Here are instructions for Windows XP, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10 or Mac.

Remove Search-space.net from Mac:

1. In the Finder sidebar, click Applications.
2. Search-space.net might have an Uninstaller.
3. Otherwise, drag SearchSpace from the Applications folder to the Trash (located at the end of the Dock).
4. Then choose Finder > Empty Trash.

Remove Search-space.net from Windows XP:

1. Click on Start button.
2. Choose Control Panel.
3. Click Add or Remove Programs.
4. Find SearchSpace or other suspicious program.
5. Click Uninstall.

Remove Search-space.net from Windows 7:

1. Click Start button.
2. Then go to Control Panel.
3. Click Uninstall a Program.
4. Find SearchSpace or other suspicious program and click Uninstall.

Remove Search-space.net from Windows 8:

1. Hover mouse pointer to the bottom-right corner to see Menu.
2. Click Search.
3. After that click Apps.
4. Then Control Panel.
5. Click Uninstall a Program under Programs.
6. Find SearchSpace or other suspicious program, click Uninstall.

Remove Search-space.net from Windows 10:

There are 2 ways to uninstall Search-space.net from Windows 10

Way one

1. Click on the Start button.
2. In opened menu choose Settings.
3. Click on the System tile.
4. Click Apps & features and locate SearchSpace or other suspicious program in the list.
5. Click on it and then click Uninstall button near it.

Way two (classic)

1. Right-click on the Start button.
2. In opened menu choose Programs and Features.
3. Locate SearchSpace or other suspicious program in the list.
4. Click on it and then click Uninstall button above.

Cannot uninstall Search-space.net

In some cases, Search-space.net won’t uninstall and gives you the message, that “You do not have sufficient access to uninstall Search-space.net. Please, contact your system administrator” when you try to remove it from Control Panel or “Access denied” error when removing the Search-space.net folder and files. This happens because the process or service does not allow you to do it. In this case, I will recommend you to use SpyHunter 5 or Malwarebytes or uninstall Search-space.net in Safe Mode. To boot in Safe Mode do the following:

1. Reboot your computer.
2. While it starts booting press F8 button.
3. This will open Advanced Boot Options menu.
4. Choose Safe Mode and wait until Windows loads.
5. Go to Control Panel > Uninstall a program and remove SearchSpace or other suspicious program

>> See detailed instructions and video tutorial on how to boot in Safe Mode

and for Mac:

If you can’t uninstall Search-space.net using instructions above, or it keeps coming back, you can use free AppCleaner for Mac to remove all residual data and libraries of Search-space.net. Follow instructions below:

1. Download free AppCleaner.
2. Drag SearchSpace from Applications folder to AppCleaner window.
3. Choose files and folders you want to remove along with Search-space.net.
4. Click Delete button.

Remove malicious add-ons from your browsers

Uninstalling Search-space.net from Control Panel often does not bring the desired effect. It sometimes has browser extension and it may still be active in Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox. Here are instructions on how to remove Search-space.net related extension from your browsers manually.

Safari:

1. Start Safari on your Mac, click Safari to open drop-down menu and choose Preferences
2. Click Extensions tab.
3. Find SearchSpace 1.3 extensions.
4. Click Uninstall button to remove it.

Google Chrome:

1. Start Google Chrome browser
2. In address box type (or copy-paste) chrome://extensions.
3. Find SearchSpace 1.3 or other suspicious extensions.
4. Click the trash can icon to remove them.
5. Also remove other suspicious extensions from the list.

Mozilla Firefox:

1. Start Mozilla Firefox browser.
2. In address box type (or copy-paste) about:addons.
3. Choose SearchSpace 1.3 or other suspicious extensions.
4. Click Disable or Remove button.
5. Remove all suspicious extensions from the list.

Internet Explorer (9, 10, 11):

Note: There is no feature to remove browser extensions from browser in latest version of Internet Explorer. To remove Search-space.net from Internet Explorer, please, perform instructions for uninstalling program from Control Panel. To disable Search-space.net, please, do the following:

1. Open Internet Explorer.
2. Click on gear/asterisk icon in the top-right corner.
3. In opened menu Manage Add-ons.
4. Select Toolbars and Extensions.
5. Click Disable SearchSpace 1.3 or other suspicious extensions.
6. Also disable other suspicious extensions from the list.

Opera Browser:

Generally, Search-space.net does not install in Opera browser however you can always double check. Do the following:

1. Start Opera browser.
2. Go to Tools > Extensions > Manage Extensions.
3. Find SearchSpace 1.3 or other suspicious extensions.
4. Click Uninstall button.
5. Also remove other suspicious extensions from the list.

Reset browsers settings (homepage, default search)

Search-space.net installs a search engine that hijacks your browsers. Here is the instruction to reset your browser’s homepage, new tab, and search engine to default values.

Reset Safari:

1. Start Safari on your Mac, click Safari to open drop-down menu and choose Preferences
2. Go to the Privacy section of Safari’s preferences.
3. Click Remove All Website Data button.
4. In opened window click Remove Now button to remove data stored by websites in Safari.
5. Go to the Advanced section of Safari’s preferences.
6. Click the Show Develop menu in menu bar option.
7. In the menu click Develop and select Empty Caches from this menu.
8. Again, go to Safari menu and choose Clear History….
9. Choose to clear all history and click Clear History button.

Google Chrome:

1. Start Google Chrome browser
2. In address box type (or copy-paste) chrome://settings.
3. Scroll down and find Show advanced settings link.
4. Click on it and scroll down to the bottom again.
5. Click Reset browser settings button and click Reset to confirm.

Mozilla Firefox:

1. Start Mozilla Firefox browser.
2. In address box type (or copy-paste) about:support.
3. Click Reset Firefox… button.
4. Click Reset Firefox to confirm.

Internet Explorer (9, 10, 11):

1. Start Internet Explorer.
2. Click on gear/asterisk icon in the top-right corner.
3. In opened menu choose Internet options.
4. Click Advanced tab.
5. Click Reset button.
6. Choose Delete personal settings and click Reset.

Opera Browser:

1. Close Opera and open command prompt from the start menu.
2. Type following command del %AppData%\Opera\Opera\operaprefs.ini
3. Start Opera.

Alternative way to remove adware browser extensions and reset browser settings

For safe and effective browser extension removal use avast! Browser Cleanup utility. Run it with administrator privileges and remove all extensions with bad rating including related to Search-space.net. You can also reset your browser settings for each of your browsers: Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox.

Download Avast Browser Cleanup

Cleaning browsers shortcuts

You can clean your browser shortcuts manually right-clicking on your browser icon, choosing “Properties” and removing hijacker address from “Target” field (leave just the path to your browser). However it is easier to use free Shortcut Cleaner from BleepingComputer. Download it here – its FREE:

Download Shortcut Cleaner

Final tips

Be careful surfing the internet and downloading software, as programs like Search-space.net may become a real headache as they are hard to remove and break your privacy. To keep safe from such threats we recommend you always use antivirus and one of the anti-malware programs available on the market. One of the best anti-virus programs is SpyHunter 5. It can protect your PC from threats like Search-space.net.