How To Remove "IST Cleaner Pro" (Uninstall Guide)

IST Cleaner Pro is a system optimizer utility, which is promoted via other free downloads, and once installed it claims that several issues were been detected on your computer.
However, if you try to fix these issues, IST Cleaner Pro will state that you need to buy its full version before being able to do so.

IST Cleaner Pro is a paid system optimizer program that is typically added when you install another free software (video recording/streaming, download-managers or PDF creators) that had bundled into their installation this program. Very often users have no idea where did it come from, so it’s not surprising at all that most of them assume that IST Cleaner Pro is a virus. This program is also bundled within the custom installer on many reputable download sites, so if you have downloaded a software from these websites, chances are that IST Cleaner Pro was installed during the software setup process.

IST Cleaner Pro it’s technically not a virus, but it does exhibit plenty of malicious traits, such as rootkit capabilities to hook deep into the operating system, browser hijacking, and in general just interfering with the user experience. The industry generally refers to it as a “PUP,” or potentially unwanted program.
Some examples of the interface, fake alerts, fake scanning results, and pop-ups displayed by IST Cleaner Pro are shown below:

The Windows registry is a database that Windows and its applications store their settings in. It contains hundreds of thousands of entries. Some of the entries may be slightly outdated — maybe you’ve uninstalled a program and it left a key or two behind, or maybe a there’s a file extension with no associated application.
IST Cleaner Pro scan your registry for these outdated entries and offer to remove them. Because there are so many registry entries to go through, this program may sometimes also remove useful registry entries, causing you problems. The Web is full of stories from people who have run a registry cleaner and encountered problems. In a best case scenario, IST Cleaner Pro will remove a few hundred unnecessary entries and reduce the size of your registry by a few kilobytes. This makes no different in perceptible performance.
If you must use a registry cleaner, you don’t have to pay anything. Using a free registry cleaner, such as the registry cleaner included with the respected CCleaner utility, is good enough.

You should always pay attention when installing software because often, a software installer includes optional installs, such as this IST Cleaner Pro. 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.

How to remove IST Cleaner Pro (Virus Removal Guide)

This page is a comprehensive guide, which will remove IST Cleaner Pro pop-ups from your computer, and any other adware program that may have been installed during the setup process.
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.
STEP 1: Uninstall IST Cleaner Pro program from your computer
STEP 2: Remove IST Cleaner Pro adware with AdwCleaner
STEP 3: Remove IST Cleaner Pro virus with Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Free
STEP 4: Double-check for the IST Cleaner Pro infection with HitmanPro

STEP 1 : Uninstall IST Cleaner Pro programs from your computer

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

To uninstall the IST Cleaner Pro program from Windows XP, Windows Vista or Windows 7, click the Start button, then click on the Control Panel menu option.

If you are using Windows 8, simply drag your mouse pointer to the right edge of the screen, select Search from the list and search for “control panel” .Or you can right-click on a bottom left hot corner (formerly known as the Start button) and select Control Panel from there.
When the Control Panel window opens click on the Uninstall a program option under Programs category. This option is shown by the arrow in the image below. If you are using the Classic View of the Control Panel, then you would double-click on the Programs and Features icon instead.
When the Programs and Features or the Uninstall a Program screen is displayed, scroll through the list of currently installed programs and uninstall ISTCleaner Pro and any other recently installed or unknown programs from 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 though the list, and uninstall any unwanted or unknown programs.

If you are having issues while trying to uninstall the IST Cleaner Pro program, you can use Revo Uninstaller to completly remove the unwated programs from your machine.

STEP 2: Remove IST Cleaner Pro adware from your computer with AdwCleaner

The AdwCleaner utility will scan your computer and web browser for the IST Cleaner Pro malicious files, browser extensions and registry keys, that may have been installed on your computer without your knowledge.

You can download AdwCleaner utility from the below link.
ADWCLEANER DOWNLOAD LINK (This link will automatically download AdwCleaner on your computer)
Before starting AdwCleaner, close all open programs and internet browsers, then double-click on the AdwCleaner icon.

If Windows prompts you as to whether or not you wish to run AdwCleaner, please allow it to run.
When the AdwCleaner program will open, click on the Scan button as shown below.

AdwCleaner will now start to search for the IST Cleaner Pro malicious files that may be installed on your computer.
To remove the IST Cleaner Pro malicious files that were detected in the previous step, please click on the Clean button.
AdwCleaner will now prompt you to save any open files or data as the program will need to reboot the computer. Please do so and then click on the OK button. AdwCleaner will now delete all detected adware from your computer. When it is done it will display an alert that explains what PUPs (Potentially Unwanted Programs) and Adware are. Please read through this information and then press the OK button. You will now be presented with an alert that states AdwCleaner needs to reboot your computer.
Please click on the OK button to allow AdwCleaner reboot your computer.

STEP 3: Remove IST Cleaner Pro virus with Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Free

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Free uses industry-leading technology to detect and remove all traces of malware, including worms, Trojans, rootkits, rogues, dialers, spyware, and more.
It is important to note that Malwarebytes Anti-Malware works well and should run alongside antivirus software without conflicts.

You can download Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Free from the below link, then double-click on the icon named mbam-setup.exe to install this program.
MALWAREBYTES ANTI-MALWARE DOWNLOAD LINK(This link will open a download page in a new window from where you can download Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Free)
When the installation begins, keep following the prompts in order to continue with the setup process, then at the last screen click on the Finish button.
On the Scanner tab, select Perform quick scan, and then click on the Scan button to start searching for the IST Cleaner Pro malicious files.
Malwarebytes’ Anti-Malware will now start scanning your computer for IST Cleaner Pro as shown below.
When the Malwarebytes Anti-Malware scan has finished, click on the Show Results button.
You will now be presented with a screen showing you the computer infections that Malwarebytes Anti-Malware has detected. Make sure that everything is Checked (ticked), then click on the Remove Selected button.

STEP 4: Double-check for the IST Cleaner Pro infection with HitmanPro

HitmanPro is a second opinion scanner, designed to rescue your computer from malware (viruses, trojans, rootkits, etc.) that have infected your computer despite all the security measures you have taken (such as anti virus software, firewalls, etc.). HitmanPro is designed to work alongside existing security programs without any conflicts. It scans the computer quickly (less than 5 minutes) and does not slow down the computer.

You can download HitmanPro from the below link:
HITMANPRO DOWNLOAD LINK (This link will open a web page from where you can download HitmanPro)
Double-click on the file named HitmanPro.exe (for 32-bit versions of Windows) or HitmanPro_x64.exe (for 64-bit versions of Windows). When the program starts you will be presented with the start screen as shown below.

Click on the Next button, to install HitmanPro on your computer.
HitmanPro will now begin to scan your computer for IST Cleaner Pro malicious files.
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 IST Cleaner Pro adware.
Click on the Activate free license button to begin the free 30 days trial, and remove all the malicious files from your computer.

Your computer should now be free of the IST Cleaner Pro infection. If your current anti-virus solution let this infection through, you may want to consider purchasing the PRO version of Malwarebytes Anti-Malware to protect against these types of threats in the future, and perform regular computer scans with HitmanPro.
If you are still experiencing problems while trying to remove IST Cleaner Pro virus from your machine, please start a new thread in our Malware Removal Assistance

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.