How To Remove VidSquare Adware (Virus Help Guide)

VidSquare is an adware program that displays pop-up ads and unwanted advertisements on web pages that you visit. These advertisements will be shown as boxes containing coupons, as underlined keywords (in-text ads), pop-up ads or advertising banners.

This article contains:

What is VidSquare?

VidSquare is advertised as a “DNS service you can easily access Geo restricted content you like from around the world and unblock websites and Streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, BBC iPlayer or Pandora“. Though this may sound like a useful service, the VidSquare program can be intrusive and will display advertisements whether you want them to or not.

The VidSquare advertisements may have a different text under the pop-up: “Powered by VidSquare“, “Brought to you by VidSquare“, “RocketTab powered by VidSquare“, “Ads by VidSquare“, X by Vidsquare or “Ads powered by VidSquare“.

These ads are aimed to promote the installation of additional questionable content including web browser toolbars, optimization utilities and other products, all so the VidSquare publisher can generate pay-per-click revenue.

VidSquare changes your computer’s DNS servers to 82.163.143.174 and 82.163.142.176. This allows them to not only monitor what sites you are visiting, but to also replace requests from legitimate ad servers with their own ad servers.
These DNS servers are one of the main reasons that people find it difficult to disable VidSquare ads from displaying on their browser. This is because if you uninstall the VidSquare program, but do not disable their DNS servers, they will continue to hijack ads and display ones of their own choosing.

When your machine is infected with the VidSquare adware, other common symptoms include:

Advertising banners are injected with the web pages that you are visiting.
Random web page text is turned into hyperlinks.
Browser popups appear which recommend fake updates or other software.
Other unwanted adware programs might get installed without the user’s knowledge.

To make matters worse, you will also find that VidSquare will cause your computer to act more sluggish or for your web browser to freeze.

How did VidSquare get on my computer?

VidSquare is commonly bundled with other free programs that you download off of the Internet. Unfortunately, some free downloads do not adequately disclose that other software will also be installed and you may find that you have installed VidSquare without your knowledge.

You should always pay attention when installing software because often, a software installer includes optional installs. Be very careful what you agree to install.
Always opt for the custom installation and deselect anything that is not familiar, especially optional software that you never wanted to download and install in the first place. It goes without saying that you should not install software that you don’t trust.

The below instructions are for Windows users, however we also have an Android guide and a Mac OS guide which should help clean up your device.

How to remove Ads by VidSquare pop-ups (Virus Removal Guide)

This malware removal guide may appear overwhelming due to the amount of the steps and numerous programs that are being used. We have only written it this way to provide clear, detailed, and easy to understand instructions that anyone can use to remove malware for free.
Please perform all the steps in the correct order. If you have any questions or doubt at any point, STOP and ask for our assistance.

To remove the VidSquare adware, follow these steps:

STEP 1: Uninstall the malicious programs from Windows
STEP 2: Use Malwarebytes to remove “Ads by VidSquare” adware
STEP 3: Use Zemana AntiMalware Free to scan for malware and unwanted programs
STEP 4: Double-check for malicious programs with HitmanPro
(OPTIONAL) STEP 5: Reset your browser settings to default

STEP 1: Uninstall the malicious programs from Windows

In this first step, we will try to identify and remove any malicious program that might be installed on your PC.

Go to the uninstall menu.
Windows 10 or Windows 8.1
1. To uninstall a program on Windows 10 or Windows 8, right-click on the Windows Start button and choose “Control Panel” from the pop-up menu.
2. When the “Control Panel” window opens click on the “Uninstall a program” option under “Programs” category.
Windows 7
1. If you are using Windows XP, Windows Vista or Windows 7, click the “Start” button, then click on the “Control Panel” menu option.
2. When the “Control Panel” window opens click on the “Uninstall a program” option under “Programs” category.
When the “Programs and Features” screen is displayed, scroll through the list of currently installed programs and uninstall any unwanted programs.
Known malicious programs: Search Babylon, Search Protect, Protected Search, TakeSave, DNS Unlocker, Cinema Plus, Price Minus, SalesPlus, New Player, MediaVideosPlayers, Browsers_Apps_Pro, PriceLEess, Pic Enhance, Sm23mS, Salus, Network System Driver, SS8, Save Daily Deals, Word Proser, Desktop Temperature Monitor, CloudScout Parental Control, Savefier, Savepass, HostSecurePlugin, CheckMeUp or HD-V2.2.

The malicious program may have a different name on your computer. To view the most recently installed programs, you can click on the “Installed On” column to sort your program by the installation date. Scroll through the list, and uninstall any unwanted or unknown programs.

If you cannot find any unwanted programs on your computer, you can proceed with the next step.

If you are having issues while trying to uninstall a program, you can use Revo Uninstaller to completely remove this unwanted program from Windows.

STEP 2: Use Malwarebytes to remove “Ads by VidSquare” adware

Malwarebytes is a powerful on-demand scanner which will remove the VidSquare adware from your PC. It is important to note that Malwarebytes will run alongside antivirus software without conflicts.

You can download download Malwarebytes from the below link.
MALWAREBYTES DOWNLOAD LINK (This link open a new page from where you can download “Malwarebytes”)
When Malwarebytes has finished downloading, double-click on the “mb3-setup-consumer” file to install Malwarebytes on your computer.

You may be presented with an User Account Control pop-up asking if you want to allow Malwarebytes to make changes to your device. If this happens, you should click “Yes” to continue with the installation.
When the Malwarebytes installation begins, you will see the Malwarebytes Setup Wizard which will guide you through the installation process.

To install Malwarebytes on your machine, keep following the prompts by clicking the “Next” button.
Once installed, Malwarebytes will automatically start and update the antivirus database. To start a system scan you can click on the “Scan Now” button.
Malwarebytes will now start scanning your computer for malicious programs.
This process can take a few minutes, so we suggest you do something else and periodically check on the status of the scan to see when it is finished.
When the scan has completed, you will be presented with a screen showing the malware infections that Malwarebytes has detected.
To remove the malicious programs that Malwarebytes has found, click on the “Quarantine Selected” button.
Malwarebytes will now quarantine all the malicious files and registry keys that it has found.
To complete the malware removal process, Malwarebytes may ask you to restart your computer.

When the malware removal process is complete, you can close Malwarebytes and continue with the rest of the instructions.

STEP 3: Use Zemana AntiMalware Free to scan for Malware and Unwanted Programs

Zemana AntiMalware is a free malware scanner which can detect malicious programs that your antivirus has failed to find.

You can download Zemana AntiMalware Free from the below link:
ZEMANA ANTIMALWARE FREE DOWNLOAD LINK (This link open a new webpage from where you can download “Zemana AntiMalware Free”)
Double-click on the file named “Zemana.AntiMalware.Setup.exe” to start the installation of Zemana AntiMalware.

You may be presented with a User Account Control dialog asking you if you want to run this file. If this happens, you should click “Yes” to continue with the installation.
Click on the “Next” button, to install Zemana AntiMalware on your computer.

When you reach the “Select Additional Tasks” screen, you can opt-out the “Enable Real Time Protection” option, then click on the “Next” button.
When Zemana AntiMalware will start, click on the “Scan” button.
Zemana AntiMalware will now scan computer for malicious files. This process can take up to 10 minutes.
When Zemana AntiMalware has finished it will display a list of all the malware that the program found. Click on the “Next” button, to remove the malicious files from your computer.

Zemana AntiMalware will now start to remove all the malicious programs from your computer. When the process is complete, you may need to restart your computer.

STEP 4: Double-check for malicious programs with HitmanPro

HitmanPro finds and removes malware, adware, bots, and other threats that even the best antivirus suite can oftentimes miss. It’s designed to run alongside your antivirus suite, firewall, and other security tools.

You can download HitmanPro from the below link:
HITMANPRO DOWNLOAD LINK (This link will open a new web page from where you can download “HitmanPro”)
When HitmanPro has finished downloading, double-click on the “hitmanpro” file to install this program on your computer.

You may be presented with an User Account Control pop-up asking if you want to allow HitmanPro to make changes to your device. If this happens, you should click “Yes” to continue with the installation.
When the program starts you will be presented with the start screen as shown below. Now click on the Next button to continue with the scan process.
HitmanPro will now begin to scan your computer for malware.
When it has finished it will display a list of all the malware that the program found as shown in the image below. Click on the “Next” button, to remove malware.
Click on the “Activate free license” button to begin the free 30 days trial, and remove all the malicious files from your computer.

When the process is complete, you can close HitmanPro and continue with the rest of the instructions.

(Optional) STEP 5: Reset your browser to the default settings

If you are still experiencing issues with the VidSquare adware in Internet Explorer, Firefox or Chrome, we will need to reset your browser to its default settings.
This step needs to be performed only if your issues have not been solved by the previous steps.

Google Chrome

Google Chrome has an option that will reset itself to its default settings. Resetting your browser settings will reset the unwanted changes caused by installing other programs. However, your saved bookmarks and passwords will not be cleared or changed.

Click on Chrome’s main menu button, represented by three horizontal lines. When the drop-down menu appears, select the option labeled Settings.
Chrome’s Settings should now be displayed in a new tab or window, depending on your configuration. Next, scroll to the bottom of the page and click on the Advanced link (as seen in the below example).
Chrome’s advanced Settings should now be displayed. Scroll down until the Reset browser settings section is visible, as shown in the example below. Next, click on the Reset settings button.
A confirmation dialog should now be displayed, detailing the components that will be restored to their default state should you continue on with the reset process. To complete the restoration process, click on the Reset button.

Internet Explorer

You can reset Internet Explorer settings to return them to the state they were in when Internet Explorer was first installed on your PC.

Open Internet Explorer, click on the “gear icon” in the upper right part of your browser, then click again on Internet Options.
In the “Internet Options” dialog box, click on the “Advanced” tab, then click on the “Reset” button.
In the “Reset Internet Explorer settings” section, select the “Delete personal settings” check box, then click on “Reset” button.
When Internet Explorer has completed its task, click on the “Close” button in the confirmation dialogue box. You will now need to close your browser, and then you can open Internet Explorer again.

Mozilla Firefox

If you’re having problems with Firefox, resetting it can help. The reset feature fixes many issues by restoring Firefox to its factory default state while saving your essential information like bookmarks, passwords, web form auto-fill information, browsing history and open tabs.

In the upper-right corner of the Firefox window, click the Firefox menu button (), then click on the “Help” () button.
From the Help menu, choose Troubleshooting Information.
If you’re unable to access the Help menu, type about:support in your address bar to bring up the Troubleshooting information page.
Click the “Refresh Firefox” button in the upper-right corner of the “Troubleshooting Information” page.
To continue, click on the “Refresh Firefox” button in the new confirmation window that opens.
Firefox will close itself and will revert to its default settings. When it’s done, a window will list the information that was imported. Click on the “Finish“.

Your old Firefox profile will be placed on your desktop in a folder named “Old Firefox Data“. If the reset didn’t fix your problem you can restore some of the information not saved by copying files to the new profile that was created. If you don’t need this folder any longer, you should delete it as it contains sensitive information.

Your web browser should now be free of the VidSquare adware.
If you are still experiencing problems while trying to remove VidSquare adware from your PC, please do one of the following:

Run a system scan with Emsisoft Emergency Kit
Ask for help in our Malware Removal Assistance for Windows forum.

Here are 10 basic security tips to help you avoid malware and protect your device:

To avoid potential dangers on the internet, it's important to follow these 10 basic safety rules. By doing so, you can protect yourself from many of the unpleasant surprises that can arise when using the web.