Should I remove hitgrab Toolbar?

What percent of users and experts removed it?

74% remove it26% keep it

Overall Sentiment

Bad

What do people think about it?

(click star to rate)

How common is it?

Reach <0.001%

Versions

Version	Distribution
6.2.2.4	100.00%

Other programs by Conduit

hitgrab Toolbar

from Conduit Ltd.

Remove hitgrab Toolbar by Conduit

What is hitgrab Toolbar? (from Conduit)

When you install and use the Software & Services, we automatically generate an anonymous, non-personally identifiable internal user ID, which is assigned to your use of the Software & Services (the "User ID") and may be combined with any of the above information.
While it is not our intention to collect any personal... Read more

Overview

hitgrab Toolbar is a program developed by Conduit. It adds a background controller service that is set to automatically run. Delaying the start of this service is possible through the service manager. The program adds a toolbar to Microsoft Internet Explorer. A scheduled task is added to Windows Task Scheduler in order to launch the program at various scheduled times (the schedule varies depending on the version). The software is designed to connect to the Internet and adds a Windows Firewall exception in order to do so without being interfered with. The main program executable is hitgrabToolbarHelper.exe. Typically most users end up uninstalling this just after a few days. It also bundles additional software in the form of the Conduit Engine, which installs a potentially unwanted toolbar, and makes homepage and default search engine changes to a user's web browser. The software installer includes 3 files and is usually about 3.93 MB (4,125,205 bytes). A majority of the PCs this is running on, most OS versions are Windows Vista (SP2). While about 83% of users of hitgrab Toolbar come from the United States, it is also popular in Canada.

Possible malware installed by this program
Loads into the web browser
Built on and distributed using the Conduit toolbar
Installs a Windows Service
The wisdom of the crowd agrees, you should remove it!

Warning, multiple anti-virus scanners have detected possible malware in hitgrab Toolbar.

hitgrabToolbarHelper.exe (a320df2b47cfcaf98d06eb59cd72084c) has been flagged by the following 5 scanners:
Anti-Virus software	Version	Detection
Bkav FE	1.3.0.6379	W32.HfsAdware
Dr.Web	9.0.0.0103	Adware.Conduit.300
G Data	14.11.25	Win32.Adware.Conduit
IKARUS anti.virus	t3scan.1.6.1.0	PUA.ClientConnect
Panda Antivirus	14.01.11.10	PUP/Conduit.A
tbhitg.dll (e4cc410bd005958125cd87c5f6e66371) has been flagged by the following 4 scanners:
Anti-Virus software	Software version	Detection
Bkav FE	1.3.0.4246	HW32.Stranact.yycu
ESET-NOD32	9577	a variant of Win32/Toolbar.Conduit.B
Panda Antivirus	10.0.3.5	PUP/Conduit.A
VIPRE Antivirus	27650	Conduit (fs)

Program details

Displayed publisher: hitgrab

URL: hitgrab.OurToolbar.com

Help link: hitgrab.OurToolbar.com/help

Installation folder: C:\Program Files\hitgrab

Uninstaller: C:\Program Files2\hitgrab\UNWISE.EXE /U C:\Program Files2\hitgrab\INSTALL.LOG

(Wise Installer is used for installing and uninstalling this software.)

Estimated size: 3.93 MB

This is a Community Toolbar by Conduit, what does that mean?

Conduit is a toolbar monetization platform for software publishers. It provides a utility for developers to create branded generic web browser toolbars. Publishers can bundle these toolbars with their software programs or provide access to download them separately through hitgrab.OurToolbar.com. Once installed, the toolbar modifies the browser's home page and search settings in order to redirect searches through the Conduit portal (which utilizes Bing or Yahoo! Search engines). Read more...

Files installed by hitgrab Toolbar

Program executable:	hitgrabToolbarHelper.exe (Malware detected)
Path:	C:\Program Files\hitgrab\hitgrabToolbarHelper.exe
MD5:	a320df2b47cfcaf98d06eb59cd72084c

Additional files:

(Malware detected) tbhitg.dll - Conduit Toolbar
(Malware detected) hitgrabToolbarHelper.exe
UNWISE.EXE

Behaviors exhibited

Internet Explorer BHO

tbhitg.dll is installed in Internet Explorer as a BHO (Browser Helper Object) under the name 'MessengerPlusLive TB Toolbar' with the class of {d8fb4583-db9d-4c7b-85be-294c13a3e5c4}.

Internet Explorer Bar

tbhitg.dll installs an Explorer Bar in Internet Explorer called 'Softonic France FF Findbar' with a class of {EC99436A-C0E6-4FFA-915D-132E669B3936}.

Internet Explorer Toolbar

tbhitg.dll is loaded as Internet Explorer Toolbar with the name 'MessengerPlusLive TB Toolbar' with the class of {d8fb4583-db9d-4c7b-85be-294c13a3e5c4}.

Internet Explorer URL Search Hook

tbhitg.dll loads into IE as a URL Search Hook named 'MessengerPlusLive TB Toolbar' with a class of {d8fb4583-db9d-4c7b-85be-294c13a3e5c4} in order to redirect unknown URL searches.

Internet Explorer Web Browser

tbhitg.dll installs an IE Web Browser in Internet Explorer named 'MessengerPlusLive TB Toolbar' with a class of {D8FB4583-DB9D-4C7B-85BE-294C13A3E5C4}.

2 Scheduled Tasks

UNWISE.EXE is scheduled as a task with the class '{F71A9918-1861-4EFE-AE94-530BDDE46DD4}' (runs on registration).
hitgrabToolbarHelper.exe is scheduled as a task with the class '{B8E8E278-F25D-478A-BAB2-24A5EDB01F6C}' (runs on registration).

Service

UNWISE.EXE runs as a service named 'Browser System Enahncer' (671c50b0).

Windows Firewall Allowed Program

UNWISE.EXE is added as a firewall exception for 'C:\Program Files1\Yahoo!\MESSEN~1\UNWISE.EXE'.

How do I remove hitgrab Toolbar?

You can uninstall hitgrab Toolbar from your computer by using the Add/Remove Program feature in the Window's Control Panel.

On the Start menu (for Windows 8, right-click the screen's bottom-left corner), click Control Panel, and then, under Programs, do one of the following:

Windows Vista/7/8/10: Click Uninstall a Program.
Windows XP: Click Add or Remove Programs.

When you find the program hitgrab Toolbar, click it, and then do one of the following:

Windows Vista/7/8/10: Click Uninstall.
Windows XP: Click the Remove or Change/Remove tab (to the right of the program).

Follow the prompts. A progress bar shows you how long it will take to remove hitgrab Toolbar.
If for some reason uninstallation fails, please install Microsoft's uninstall fixer utility which will help fix problems with programs that can't be uninstalled at support.microsoft.com.