Remove Addoncrop virus extension (addoncrop.com Youtube Video Downloader)

The free YouTube video downloader called Addoncrop can be a mixed blessing because it often comes bundled with adware and irritating browser hijackers.

1. What is Addoncrop?
2. Automated removal of Addoncrop adware
3. Addoncrop popups and redirects removal for Android
4. Restore web browser settings to their original defaults

What is Addoncrop?

Addoncrop is a collection of browser plugins that allow users to download multimedia content from streaming platforms. At the time of writing, it supports this feature for such immensely popular services as YouTube, SoundCloud, and Dailymotion. Moreover, there are quite a few different video quality parameters, formats, and conversion bitrates to choose from. It’s worth mentioning separately that this functionality actually works and fills the void for numerous users who wish to store these materials locally. So much for the good part. People who rush headlong into enhancing their media experience with Addoncrop bump into several caveats. First of all, downloading copyright-protected materials off of the likes of YouTube is prohibited by law. This is clearly at odds with the provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). In case the content is both stored on hardware media and redistributed, the upshot can be double trouble and the penalties can range from a huge fine all the way to a jail sentence.

The legal facet of this matter is definitely on the minus side of services like Addoncrop, and therefore users should think twice before opting in. This, however, doesn’t keep such tools from gaining traction among video and music fans around the world; moreover, they aren’t being taken down or otherwise disrupted, no matter how counterintuitive this might sound. Whilst the regulation-related controversy is obvious, this isn’t the only pitfall regarding Addoncrop. Another element of its flip side is that it often arrives with potentially unwanted components that behave much like your garden-variety adware. The scheme that backs this foul play is known as bundling. It denotes a logic where a harmless product is distributed alongside extras the user is unaware of. Most of the time, this hoax relies on the default (express, recommended) installation option lure. It’s supposed to make the software setup faster and easier, but chances are that it conceals malicious items under its hood.

The dubious programs that often accompany Addoncrop gain a foothold in the user’s web browser without their express consent. They may forcibly modify the web navigation preferences such as the search engine, homepage, and new tab page. This trick entails incessant redirecting to sketchy resources via auxiliary URLs such as xfreeservice.com or adrail.com. These inconspicuous “touches” of the traffic during the Internet surfing help malware authors rake in profits as these hits count in an online monetization scheme. Regular users will be most likely ending on the intended sites in the long run, but it will take the browser more time to load them because of the “paddings” inserted in between without permission.

To top it off, this activity tends to be associated with privacy encroachments down the road. The adware monitors the victims’ traffic patterns to profile them and align subsequent malicious advertising (malvertising) with these unique peculiarities. This is exactly what allows disreputable data aggregates to stay afloat, the major nuance being that unsuspecting users’ personally identifiable information (PII) is collected and processed behind their backs. Many users who added the Addoncrop plugin to their browsers start experiencing recurrent popups being opened on their own in new tabs or in the form of full-page adverts. These landing pages typically reflect some information the victims have recently looked up on a search engine or explored by visiting certain sites. This, gain, is a giveaway of questionable data harvesting implemented by the service under scrutiny.

There is one more thing that may raise a red flag. When users actually want to embed Addoncrop into, say, Google Chrome to download videos from streaming portals, they cannot install it via the browser’s official marketplace. It’s simply not listed there. Instead, the official website of this tool forwards people to a page for a third-party service called CrossPilot. Another option is to go for a “developer mode install”, which appears somewhat suspicious as well. The vendor might be using these workarounds to avoid bans or suchlike hindrance from the authorities or legit providers, and it’s also something to consider for those who keep Addoncrop on their wish list. If this extension is already running on a PC and its emergence has co-occurred with dodgy browser redirects and numerous ads appearing where they don’t belong, the following steps will help get rid of the malicious interference.

Automated removal of Addoncrop adware

Owing to an up-to-date database of malware signatures and intelligent behavioral detection, the recommended software can quickly locate the infection, eradicate it and remediate all harmful changes. So go ahead and do the following:

1. Download and install the antimalware tool. Open the solution and have it check your PC for PUPs and other types of malicious software by clicking the Start Computer Scan button

Download Addoncrop adware remover

2. Rest assured the scan report will list all items that may harm your operating system. Select the detected entries and click Fix Threats to get the troubleshooting completed.

Use Control Panel to get rid of the Addoncrop PUA

• Open up the Control Panel from your Start menu in Windows. Depending on the OS build, select Uninstall a program (Windows 10, 7 and Vista) or Add or Remove Programs (Windows 8)

• To facilitate the process of locating the threat, sort the programs list by date to get the latest ones displayed at the very top. Find an unfamiliar, suspicious entry under the Name column, click Uninstall and follow further directions to get the removal done

Addoncrop popups and redirects removal for Android

Here’s a walkthrough to sort out the Addoncrop malware issue on an Android device, which might also be a target in this malvertising campaign. Keep in mind, though, that uninstall attempts in regular mode may be futile due to the mechanics of this persistent infection. Therefore, you need to perform the procedure in safe mode. Go ahead and do the following:

• Press and hold the Power button. Then, tap and hold the Power off option on the screen. Doing so will boot your device into safe mode

• Android will ask you to confirm that you’d like to enter safe mode. Tap OK on the dialog

• You will now see the Safe mode inscription at the bottom left of your screen. Go to Settings and choose Apps

• Scroll down the list of applications, focusing on the ones that were installed recently. Find Addoncrop or a sketchy entry with a different name that could as well be the culprit

• Select the misbehaving app and tap Uninstall

• Confirm removal on the relevant dialog box and reboot your device. By default, Android will get you back into regular mode. You should now be good to go – the Addoncrop adware won’t be triggering any redirects or irritating popups anymore.

Restore web browser settings to their original defaults

In the circumstances of a complex browser hijack like this, executing a reset makes the most sense despite a few obvious downsides. Customizations such as saved passwords, bookmarked pages etc. will be gone, but so will all the changes made by the potentially unwanted program. The instructions below address the workflow for the web browsers most targeted by the Addoncrop popup virus.

Reset Google Chrome

• Open Chrome, expand the Customize and control Google Chrome menu and choose Settings

• Scroll down the settings screen and click Advanced down at the bottom

• Move on to the Reset and clean up sub-section and select the option that says Restore settings to their original defaults

• Finally, confirm the restoration by clicking Reset settings on the warning message

• Restart Chrome.

Reset Mozilla Firefox

• Open Firefox, type about:support in the URL area and press Enter. Alternatively, you can click on the Open menu icon in the top right-hand part of the browser window, then select the Help option and proceed to Troubleshooting Information

• On the Troubleshooting Information screen, spot the Refresh Firefox button and click on it

• Follow subsequent directions to reset Firefox to its original settings

• Restart the browser.

Reset Internet Explorer

• Select Internet options under IE’s Tools (Alt+X)

• Proceed by clicking on Advanced tab, then select Reset

• To confirm the intended changes, click Reset on the Reset Internet Explorer Settings screen after ascertaining that the Delete personal settings checkbox is enabled

• Reboot the machine to fully implement the fix.

Reset Safari

• Go to the Safari menu and select Preferences

• When on the Preferences screen, select the Privacy tab and hit the Remove All Website Data button if you are up to erasing all website data stored on your Mac. Otherwise, you can use a site-specific removal option described below

• A dialog will appear, asking you to validate your choice. Click the Remove Now button if you are sure. Be advised this will log you out of online services and undo personalized web browser settings such as saved passwords, etc.

• Safari also allows deleting data for specific sites rather than all sites in general. To use this option, click the Details button under Privacy tab

• Select the websites for which you would like to erase data and click the Remove button

• Click the Done button to confirm and exit. You can also select the Remove All option to remove all data stored by the listed websites.

Revise your security status

Post-factum assessment of the accuracy component in malware removal scenarios is a great habit that prevents the comeback of harmful code or replication of its unattended fractions. Make sure you are good to go by running an additional safety checkup.

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