Remove PCaPro (PC Accelerate Pro) virus

PCaPro.exe scareware, or PC Accelerate Pro, is an extreme nuisance because it displays false positives and hijacks web browsers on an infected computer.

1. What is PCaPro malware?
2. Automated removal of PCaPro virus
3. Use Control Panel to get rid of the PCaPro scareware
4. Restore web browser settings to their original defaults

What is PCaPro (PC Accelerate Pro) virus?

Ideally, system tune-up should be a permanent process as computers get crammed up with junk all the time. Redundant files, browser cache, cookies, application leftovers, broken registry entries, duplicate files – these are merely a few categories of data that inundate disk space, cause slowdowns, and can be safely wiped. It seems registry cleaners and optimization utilities address the issue, which is true as long as they are genuine. That’s the problem – there are programs that only pretend to be helpful in order to earn their authors dirty revenue. PC Accelerate Pro is one of these dodgy apps that don’t belong inside a healthy computer. The infected users often refer to it as PCaPro, because that’s the executable name it uses. The rogue tool deliberately reports imaginary memory hogs and unnecessary files to encourage the victim to pay for fixing the issue.

Just like any other garden-variety PUA (potentially unwanted application), PCaPro would never end up inside computers if it weren’t for the stratagem called bundling. This is a software distribution method that’s not necessarily malicious in itself but has gained notoriety for disseminating harmful programs. Bundling works by making it look as if the installation process were restricted to one application, while in fact there are extra programs tailgating with the main one. The game-changer is the custom setup option versus default, because the former displays the list of the accompanying items otherwise concealed underneath the “recommended” mode. The takeaway is to always explore the setup wizards, especially if you are up to installing freeware.

Right after the trespass event, PC Accelerate Pro drops its core components into multiple system paths, including Windows registry. The main perpetrating element among them is a binary named PCaPro.exe, which administers the bad behavior and gets configured to run at startup by taking off from the list of startup entries. The first occurrence that the scareware makes itself felt is through its GUI popping up and reflecting the scan progress, which suggests that the tool is sort of checking the machine for bugs. This is an imitation rather than real checkup, though. The scan results pane will display the number of performance issues purportedly detected, additionally emphasizing how many optimization tweaks are available and what the disk space increasing potential is. According to the program’s claims, the most effective way to get rid of these snags is to activate its license, which is a matter of paying the registration fee.

Another serious caveat regarding the PCaPro virus is that its shady functionality is typically extended by an additional malware entity called Instant Support. This is a tech support scam tool that tries to dupe the user into contacting a pseudo technician over the telephone. These irritating popups constantly interrupt whatever the victim is doing and report missing drivers, OS configuration failures and other phony problems. If the fraud works out and the user actually gives those villains a phone call, the person on the other end will offer remote system repair service for a certain amount of money. Since there is nothing to rectify except PC Accelerate Pro and Instant Support viruses in the first place, sticking with the crooks’ recommendations is a bad idea.

There is an additional sketchy facet of this malware combo that acts on the victims’ nerves. It’s about a browser hijack, where the preferences in Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer and Safari are skewed big time. As a result, the browser of choice will be redirecting the traffic to pcacceleratepro.com, spywaremaid.com or another fishy site over and over. This iterative chain of noxious popups, bogus scans and browser rerouting predicaments eventually becomes unbearable and requires immediate troubleshooting. The sections below are intended to help get rid of the PCaPro (PC Accelerate Pro) and Instant Support nasty tandem.

Automated removal of PCaPro malware

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 PCaPro virus 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 PCaPro virus

• Open up the Control Panel from your Start menu in Windows XP/Vista/7/8/8.1/10 and select Uninstall a program

• 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 PC Accelerate Pro, Instant Support, or another unfamiliar, suspicious entry under the Name column, click Uninstall and follow further directions to get the removal done.

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 PCaPro virus.

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 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 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.

Download PCaPro (PC Accelerate Pro) malware removal tool