If you are interested in this entry, then you have become the “lucky” owner of a new start page for your browser. You open the browser, and there, instead of the usual Google search or Yandex bookmarks opens the page http://start.webalta.ru
The Webalta start page or a browser add-on in the form of a search on the webalta service is an unwanted gift for those who thoughtlessly install software from the network on their computer. Webalta is very often added by developers to software installation packages. By installing a player or torrent client, we can install a new search service and update the browser start page.
Why is Webalta dangerous?
Many users mistakenly think that Webalta is a fraudulent site or a virus that affects the operation of the system. In fact, this is not true. Webalta does not pose a threat to your PC, however, it is unpleasant when, instead of the usual and necessary start page, something incomprehensible opens in the browser.
There is no danger from Webalta. This is a search engine and application, a browser add-on that is installed with some software. You can remove Webalta by going to the control panel in the “Programs and Features” section. In addition, you can remove the add-on from the browser in managing browser extensions (Firefox, Chrome, Opera).
How to delete the Webalta start page?
Most often, the Webalta start page is written in the browser shortcut. When you open a browser on your desktop through a shortcut, the source code specified in the shortcut properties is executed. To remove the Webalta start page from the shortcut, you need to right-click on the shortcut and select properties. In the line “Properties”, “Object” the path to the launch file is indicated. This is where the start page is written in the form http://start.webalta.ru or http://home.webalta.ru, which resets the browser settings.
Anything outside the quotation marks “installation path/firefox.exe” needs to be removed. You can uninstall Webalta Toolbar in the Control Panel through “Programs and Features” or through “Add or Remove Programs” (for Windows XP). After removing the toolbar from the system, launch the browser and check whether everything has returned to its original form.
Complete removal of Webalta start page from PC
Uninstalling the add-on from the browser and removing the Webalta panel from the program list may leave traces of the program in Windows. To finally get rid of Webalta, you need to clean the registry. Press Win+R to call command line or call the “Run” command through the “Start” menu. There we write the command regedit or regedt32.
In the top menu, select the “Edit”, “Find” tab, and enter Webalta in the search bar. We start the search and wait for the results. All found parameters, values and registry branches that include Webalta are deleted. In addition to the registry, Webalta can leave traces on the computer among system and program files, so we check the system disk for the presence of this program. To do this, we use regular search.
How to avoid Webalta reappearing on your computer
Did you see how many steps you had to perform to clear your computer of uninvited guest. To avoid recurrence of the problem in the future, when installing a new program on your computer, do not mindlessly click “Next”, “Install”. Almost all programs are installed with additional options for customizing the installation process - “Custom Installation”. This way you can fully control the process of installing the program on your computer and avoid installing unnecessary applications Amigo, Mail.ru, Webalta, Yandex Browser, etc.
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You won't be able to get rid of Webalta by simply changing the home page in your browser. When you restart the browser, you will again see the already familiar start.webalta.ru. We need to remove the intrusive Webalta from our computer.
The secret to keeping this nasty search engine in your browsers is that data about it is entered into the registry operating system. This is the data that needs to be deleted. Click Start, then type regedit in the search bar. Press Enter on your keyboard, this action will open the Windows registry.
Find the “Edit” item in the top menu, then “Find” in the drop-down list. In the search box that opens, enter the word webalta and click the “Find Next” button. When the search is completed, you will see a list of entries that contain this word. As you might guess, these records must be deleted. Right-click on the entry and select “Delete” from the drop-down menu. You can also select an entry by left-clicking and then pressing Delete on your keyboard.
Let's start taking action
It is best to scan the registry several times, since almost no one has been able to delete all entries the first time. When the search does not show any results, you can move on to the next step of our operation to remove Webalta from your computer. It is also worth noting that any changes you make to the registry are at your own risk. This is a very dangerous procedure and if an error occurs, the operating system may need to be repaired.
When you're done cleaning the registry, change your browser's home page as you usually do:
- for Google Chrome: click the menu button in the top right panel, then “Settings”, “ Appearance", check the box next to "Show the "Home Page" button, then "Change";
- for Opera: “Tools”, then “Settings”, select “General” and at the very end “Home”;
- for Internet Explorer: select “Tools”, then “Internet Options”, now go to “General” and finally “Home Page”.
We double-check
Another place where you should definitely look to get rid of Webalta is the properties of the shortcuts of all browsers. For example, right-click the Google Chrome browser shortcut and select “Properties” from the context menu. Look for the "Shortcut" tab and then "Object" and see if there's anything there that looks like this: "C:\Program Files (x86)\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe" http:// start.webalta.ru".
If there is one, then you need to delete “http://start.webalta.ru” and leave the first part of the entry. After this, you can click “Ok”. If you have several browsers on your PC, check their properties in the same way.
You can also check the list of installed programs; Webalta often installs its program there too. In the Control Panel, click Programs and Features (In XP, this is Add or Remove Programs). Look there for something called Webalta. If detected, immediately delete the suspicious object. Go through the registry search again.
You see how sometimes it is difficult to get rid of intrusive programs. Webalta is not the only one who uses such “black” methods of promotion.
There is nowhere on the Internet without search engines. They are the user’s first assistants: Google, Bing, Yandex - it all depends on the tasks and, of course, the user’s likes. But the trouble is, there are other “search engines” (yes, in quotes!) - extremely dubious and far from safe - such as Webalta. It is unlikely that you will find at least one user in the entire Runet who would like this service and who would use it. Moreover, only negative emotions are associated with it.
The owners and partners of Webalt use “black” methods to popularize their brainchild. The search engine toolbar is distributed online using viruses, adware, and “cunning” packagers and installers. The PC owner, unaware of anything, opens an infected web page or clicks the “Install” button, and then finds the notorious search engine Webalta.
Ultimately: while frustrated users are racking their brains over how to remove webalta from their computer, the authors of a truly predatory and treacherous project are warming their hands on a new source of network traffic.
So, if this infection has attached itself to your PC, be patient and follow the steps below.
Attention! If you don’t have the slightest desire to delve into the depths of the operating system, or you are not sure that you will do everything correctly, then try using special utilities for removing webalta: avast! Browser Cleanup or Malwarebytes Anti-Malware. But it also happens that the “cleaner” does not cope with the task (it all depends on the specific case of OS infection). Then better call a PC setup specialist!
Removal instructions
1. View the list of installed programs, delete all objects whose names include the name of the virus search engine:
- open the Start menu and go to Control Panel;
- go to the “Uninstall a program” option;
- view the list of installed software for the presence of Webalta. All detected objects, regardless of their type (toolbar, desktop application, utility) must be deleted.
2. Scan the system using standard OS tools to get rid of the remaining Webalt files and folders:
- click the “My Computer” icon or press the “Win” + “E” key combination;
- in the upper right part of the window that opens, enter “webalta” in the search bar and then press “ENTER”;
- wait until the scanning is completed and delete all objects related to the intrusive service.
3. Clean the registry.
- In the Start panel, type “regedit”;
- Click the LAN button on the utility shortcut that appears from the “Programs” list;
- open the editor submenu “Edit” and select the “Find...” option;
- in the “Find:” line, write “webalta” and click “Find next”;
- all found entries that contain the name of the advertising search engine must be deleted.
4. Analyze the properties of the shortcuts of all browsers that are in the system for third-party entries in the “Object” field.
- hover the cursor over the shortcut, click the right mouse button;
- in the menu, select the “Properties” option;
- analyze the entry in the “Object” line: you must remove all third-party links (if any).
5. Go to the settings menu of each browser and set in the “Home page” option a link to the search engine in which you prefer to work.
- Firefox: “Tools” >> “Options” >> “General” tab;
- Google Chrome: “Customize and manage...” (icon in the form of three stripes) >> “Settings” >> section “Initial group” option “add” / section “Appearance” option “edit”;
- Internet Explorer: “Tools” >> “Internet Options” >> “General”;
- Opera: main menu (browser symbol) >> “Settings” >> “General...” >> “General” tab >> “Home:” setting.
Attention! These five steps may be enough to completely remove Webalta from your system. Restart your PC and check your browsers. If everything is good, that’s fine! And if not, then the miracle search engine is back on the screen - follow the second part of the instructions: it is intended for especially difficult cases.
6. Scan the program code of individual Internet browser files for the presence of Webalt links (for each browser, various ways cleaning).
Mozilla Firefox:
- Open the “Help” section of the main menu.
- Select "Information for solution...".
Click the Show Folder button.
Find the sessionstore.js file in the FF directory and open it using Notepad or AkelPad (you can use the system one, but it’s not so convenient to work with).
- Activate the search function (Ctrl + F).
- Write in the “Find:” line the name of the service - “webalta”.
- Start scanning (the “Find everything in the current...” button).
Go to the line where the malicious link was found: it must be deleted, and instead, enter a link to a search engine acceptable to you.
Edit carefully without breaking the code syntax: useful link must be enclosed in quotation marks.
Save the file (otherwise the changes will not take effect!).
Find the prefs.js file and do the same things in it as in sessionstore.js.
Google Chrome:
- configure Windows so that hidden folders and files are visible (Start >> Control Panel >> Folder Options);
- Click on the “Users” folder in the system partition (drive C);
- go to your profile (“Username”);
- follow the path AppData >> Local >> Google >> Chrome >> User Data >> Default to the browser directory;
- find the “Preferences” file and open it in notepad;
- use the search function to find and remove malicious tricks of webalta. Don’t forget to include a link to the “correct” search engine instead.
- save the file.
Opera:
- in the Start menu bar write %WINDIR%;
- in the window that opens, enter operaprefs in the search (option at the top right);
- start scanning ("ENTER" key);
- All files found by the system with the word “operaprefs” (as a rule, they have the .ini extension), also open in Notepad and scan for any mention of Webalta. All records found must be deleted accordingly.
Now, after global cleaning and “surgical intervention” in the program code, you need to restart Windows and launch each browser one by one. If all the above steps were performed correctly, the self-installed harmful search engine will disappear. Out of sight and out of the system too!
If everything is “OK!”, breathe a sigh of relief, dear user - after all, your PC is healthy. Continue to be careful when installing programs and surfing the Internet.
The article fell into the “Viruses” category, otherwise it is difficult to call the actions of this PS search engine. Although. It didn’t end up on our computer on its own, but most likely after installing some utility downloaded, most likely from a source with a dubious reputation. Therefore, there is no one to scold here. You just need to try to download everything from official sites and enter the advanced program installation settings, giving yourself a chance not to install any nonsense. Let's start removing Webalta from your computer.
The first thing you need to do to remove the Webalta search engine is to uninstall its toolbar. If he exists of course. Go to > Control Panel. Select the program category and in it Uninstall programs
We go in and look through the list of installed programs for Webalta Toolbar. If we find it, we delete it. This may not go away right away. Therefore, we restart the computer and again look through the list of installed programs to see if there are any mentions of the Webalta search engine. If you find something, delete it as well. When deleting, you must check the box Remove toolbars from browsers for more effective elimination. It is recommended to use special program to remove other programs. For example . After it, you may not even have to clean the registry and files of your .
Vladimir wrote an important point in the comments.
The Webalta search engine in the (Programs and Features) folder can change its name, as for example I had ((Twilignt Pretty Search)).
Therefore, look and delete this thing as well. Thank you, Vladimir.
Cleaning the registry
After the software has been removed, you can begin cleaning the registry of your computer. The program copes with this very well. You can, of course, clean it with it, but it’s better to do it manually. The ideal way would probably be to do it first with CCleaner and then manually.
Let's consider the manual method.
Go to and click Run. The fastest way to find the Run utility is by . We write regedit and click OK
Opens. Expand the Edit menu and select Find... or press CTRL+F
A Search window will open in which you write webalta and click Find Next
Everything found must be deleted. Right-click on the found registry entry and select Delete
Press F3 and search until you find nothing. That is, you have deleted everything related to this search engine from the registry.
This completes the registry cleaning.
Cleaning up files
After we have removed the Webalta toolbars and cleaned the registry, it’s time to delete any remaining files that may have remained on our computers. To do this, open the main page and in the upper right corner (under the “Close window” button) in the search field write webalta and press Enter
You need to wait a little. You delete everything you find.
Replacing browser shortcuts
The Webalta search engine also registers itself in the properties of your shortcuts. And even if you did all of the above, it will still load. The easiest way to stop this is to delete old shortcuts for all browsers and create new ones. Typically installed along the path C:\Program Files (x86)\Mozilla Firefox - example for Fire Fox. Go to the above path, find the file firefox.exe which is an application, right-click on it, select Send to > Desktop (create shortcut). Transfer the created shortcut to comfortable spot, To the taskbar in the Quick Launch area for example.
If you don’t want to delete shortcuts, you can edit the old ones. To do this, right-click on the shortcut. In the window that opens, on the 2nd item from the bottom, also right-click and select Properties
If you have a browser shortcut located on your desktop, then simply right-click on it and select Properties. We get to the Shortcut tab. We are interested in the Object field. There should be nothing in quotes after the path to the application file
Remove everything unnecessary and click OK.
Therefore, you need to check all the browser shortcuts on your computer.
If the above steps did not help for the Mozilla Firefox browser
If all of the above did not give any result for the Fire Fox browser, then the easiest way is to reinstall it, after saving all the bookmarks. After deleting, you need to delete the folder in Application Data which can be reached along the path
C:\Users\Anton\AppData\Roaming
You are substituting your user. There are configuration files there that may remain when the browser is removed.
How to remove webalta if after installing any program the utility appears in the browser?
The secrets to cleaning your computer from unnecessary programs are further in the article.
What is Webalta and what is it for?
Webalta search is a full-fledged virus program, which is presented simultaneously in several modifications: as a toolbar of all browsers installed on the computer, as a search engine and as a browser start page.
The search engine was created as an analogue to the services of Yandex and Google, the project was launched in 2005.
However, the website webalta.ru did not receive the expected popularity among users, and the developers decided to turn the system into viral content - a program that is installed into the operating system along with any other utility without the user’s consent.
The malware may not be removed and Webalta may be installed on your computer again.
If your antivirus software discovered on personal computer adware.webalta element, quarantine it immediately.
This method allows you to permanently delete the service page from your browser.
How to erase Windows XP
Repeat all the steps that were described in the process of removing the service from the Windows 7 operating system.
You should also add a few more steps that need to be performed due to the nature of the operating system.
Go to the My Computer window and use the search field to find the user.js file and delete it. Also look for the file prefs.js.
It may not be on the system, but if you find it, open the file using the standard Notepad utility and go to line 50-60 of the document.
There will be text in the area of these lines browser.startup.homepage or _http// webalta .ru. Remove both options and save the file. Now restart your computer for the changes to take effect.
Also try searching for the file operaprefs_fixed.ini. Delete all files found for this request.
By following all the instructions above, you will remove the virus from the operating system directories, however, the search engine may remain in browsers, so you need to clean all Webalta components from each browser installed on your computer.
Removing a virus from a browser
For IE (Internet Explorer) follow these instructions:
- Turn on the main Start menu and go to the Run window or the combination Win + R;
- Enter the regedit command in the window that opens
- Open the registry search as described in the instructions above;
- Enter webalta.ru into the search bar and delete all elements. Repeat the action several times.
For Opera you need to do the following:
- Go to the main directory of the system called C:\Windows\System32;
- In this package, find the file operaprefs_default.ini and open the files using notepad;
- The file contains harmful code that prevents Webalta from being removed from the browser. If you find the line Home URL=http://webalta.ru, change the address to the search engine you need and save the changes. Only then launch the browser;
Advice! If you open the browser and nothing has changed, clean the registry.
It is quite difficult to remove a service from this browser. Follow the instructions below:
- Launch your browser and find the Help menu. Open it;
- Now enable the troubleshooting information field and go to the browser's main directory. In this folder, find the user.js and/or prefs.js files;
- Typically, in these files, the virus changes the text to become the main page in the browser. Open each of the found files using notepad and look for lines that mention the name webalta.
Searching a document is done using the keyboard shortcut CTRL +F. Then enter the word or phrase you want to search into the text box.
After completing the above steps, clean the registry as described in the previous instructions in the article.
Google Chrome
- First, go to your browser settings and remove Webalta from the browser start page field.
