As a rule, when installing a browser, a user can set a start page – it can be a favorite search engine, a social network, or just a blank page that does not require loading any sites. In the latter case, About: blank is displayed in the address bar.
But if after some time the page starts to load, we can confidently say that your Internet browser is affected by a malicious cord. It can manifest itself in different ways – from a harmless redirect to an advertising page to the use of computer resources for the purpose of cyber fraudsters. That is why it is recommended that, immediately after identifying the problem, start taking actions aimed at eliminating it.
Of course, we will list all the popular ways to remove the About: blank virus, but before that, it is worth describing more specifically how it gets to the computer and how to properly diagnose the infection.
Where does the About: blank virus come from
The ways malicious code penetrates a computer can be various:
- most often, infection is the result of downloading content from the Internet, in the code of which a virus is embedded. It is activated when you start the software responsible for displaying content, be it an exe file, document or video;
- just as common is infection by opening sites, the code of which has also been attacked by a virus. Most often, sites with questionable content are infected;
- often, a virus enters the browser through an extension downloaded from untrustworthy sources;
- malware can get onto a PC from a flash drive or other portable media.
In any case, the appearance of the About: blank inscription in the address bar, followed by redirection, indicates that your browser has been infected. What kind of virus is hidden behind this can only be determined by an antivirus program. The degree of danger to the computer depends on this.
What is the threat of a virus infection About: blank
If the inscription appears for a short time, and then the opening of a site with advertising follows, this is, one might say, the most harmless option. That being said, ads are usually shown based on user preferences, based on their recent visits to commercial sites, so at first such sites can be perceived positively. But in the end, such redirects become boring, so there is a natural desire to get rid of them.
Another thing is when the opening of a blank page is not accompanied by a redirect to other sites. In such cases, the virus acts covertly, making changes to the system registry and startup. Its specific actions can be different, and pose a threat both to the computer (or rather, to the components of the operating system) and to the user, provided that his commercial and other activity on the network is monitored (stealing passwords, credit card numbers, etc.).
Interestingly, setting any other site as the start page will not produce the expected results, and the firewall protection may be ineffective.
Some viruses target specific browsers, others can infect any internet browser present on the system. For this reason, there is no single recipe for combating the About: blank virus, it is advisable to use comprehensive countermeasures, which we will now talk about.
When it comes to diagnosing malicious code, it is best to rely on antivirus software that can recognize any modification of the virus. It will not be superfluous to inspect the startup list for the appearance of incomprehensible programs in it. The appearance of the svhost.exe process in the Task Manager is also evidence of infection (it may well be confused with the svchost system process).
How to remove About: blank virus from Windows OS
Using anti-virus protection is the most reliable and time-tested way to protect your computer, including against threats like About: blank. True, not all and not always respond adequately to the emergence of a new type of virus. In second place in popularity are specialized utilities targeted specifically at this virus. But they are not sinless either. As we noted, countermeasures must be comprehensive and used in the order they are listed. If one method does not help, proceed to another, in the end the problem is solved. Our task is to achieve this with little blood.
Remove About: blank by antivirus
As practice shows, the following free antivirus complexes show the best results:
- Avast;
- Kaspersky Anti-Virus;
- Web.
If antivirus software is not yet installed on your computer, download any of the listed programs and install it.
The next step is to launch a full scan (it can also be called deep or intelligent). If there are many programs installed on the PC and there are a large number of different files, the verification procedure may take several hours – this is a completely adequate price for your safety.
If the antivirus detects malicious code, it will report it and offer one of several options for action. Quarantine is an undesirable measure, it is better to immediately remove the virus or Trojan and then restart the computer. If the problem persists, you can try changing your antivirus software. But this is not the best option – such software can be difficult to uninstall / disable (a prime example is Avast), and it is not a fact that it will not leave traces behind.
Special utilities
This is an alternative way to remove the malicious code About: blank in Windows 10/8/7. Since such programs specialize in a specific family of viruses, they often do their job better than antiviruses. In addition, they are small in size and do not require constant work – their use is justified in case of identifying threats. The mentality of the Russian-speaking PC user is such that he prefers free software, so we will consider just such programs.
Spy hunter 4
The utility, which is an exe file, does not require installation. Due to its compact size, the program is stable and does not cause a critical load on computer resources. In addition, it is compatible with almost all versions of Windows. The utility just needs to be launched, in the future its functioning will be carried out in automatic mode. If you wish, you can also install antivirus software from this developer, but we do not recommend doing this if you are already using the services of a well-known antivirus complex (several simultaneously running antiviruses will inevitably conflict with each other, moreover, this is an exorbitant load on the RAM and the PC processor) …
However, the principle of operation of this antivirus is not much different from the operation of similar programs – it prevents malicious programs from entering the user’s computer by tracking all suspicious actions related to disk write operations.
How to use the utility:
- download the program from the official website of the developer;
- install it by running the installation file;
- close open internet browsers;
- launch the utility by clicking on its icon on the desktop;
- press the big Scan button, thereby starting a PC scan;
- after the scan of the disk and memory is completed (it takes several minutes), the utility will display a list of detected viruses – you need to remove them;
- restart the PC, run the program again and re-scan – no threats should be found as a result;
- we check how efficiently the program worked by launching the browser – its work should begin by visiting the standard start page.
A similar algorithm should be used every time a computer infection is suspected.
Security stronghold
Another utility that demonstrates excellent results in detecting this type of threat.
The principle of operation is similar to that described above, only instead of the Scan button, you need to click Scan Your System. To permanently remove the viruses detected by the utility, press the Remove button. Checking the effectiveness of the response is carried out in the same way: by restarting the computer and re-scanning, as well as directly in the browser. A feature of the utility is the ability to selectively remove viruses and Trojans. It is also possible to restore detected and “disinfected” malicious files (using the Restore button), but we do not recommend doing this, since the normal functioning of the browser is not guaranteed.
ATTENTION. Both utilities considered are not antiviruses. Their purpose is to detect viruses and remove them. Use full-fledged anti-virus systems to prevent infection.
Browser settings
Often, the malicious code About: blank is embedded in the browser not at the code level, but through the settings. In such cases, a factory reset may be more effective than scanning with an antivirus program. Sometimes it helps to re-install the “clean” browser when synchronization is disabled. Of course, different browsers change settings differently.
Google chrome
Today it is one of the most popular browsers, despite the large number of disadvantages. How to get rid of About: blank in this browser:
- launch Chrome;
- click on the three vertical points in the upper right corner;
- select the “Settings” item in the menu;
- a new tab will open with a list of settings, scroll it to the very bottom and click on the “Additional” label;
- again scroll down the page and see the last block “Reset settings”. We select both items in turn – restoring settings and searching for and removing malicious code.
The disadvantage of reset is the loss of saved passwords and data used for auto-filling forms. Bookmarks will not be affected. The problem with passwords is solved if you store them not only in the browser itself, but also on the Google cloud service.
Yandex. Browser
Since it uses an engine similar to Google Chrome, the steps for resetting the settings will be almost identical. The consequences are the same.
Note that if, as a result of your manipulations, the problem with About: blank is solved, you should perform the same actions with other browsers present in the system, since there is a high probability that they are also infected.
Firefox
Technically, the reset algorithm is about the same, but its implementation is different due to the use of a different engine and the features of the browser interface:
- start Firefox;
- on the right in the address bar, click on the button represented by three parallel stripes;
- select the item “Information for solving problems” in the menu that opens;
- a tab with settings will open;
- look for the “Browser adjustment” option, click on it;
- select the line “Refresh Firefox”;
- a confirmation window will appear – we agree;
- waiting for the end of the procedure, overloading the computer.
If About: blank does not appear after launching the browser, the problem is solved.
Opera
Removing About: blank is much more difficult in Opera browser. Strictly speaking, this operation will have to be performed manually:
- launch the browser;
- in the main menu, click on the item “About the program” (it is the right one in the list);
- the tab that opens will list the paths to the program elements to be removed;
- copy these paths to notepad one by one;
- close the browser and open the Explorer;
- we paste the copied paths one by one into the address bar;
- go inside the directory, double -click on it, select the contents of the folder with the Ctrl + A combination, delete all files with the Del
Such a reset will help if the virus is registered here, and not in the browser itself.
Internet Explorer
Here, the algorithm for returning the settings to the standard ones is as follows:
- launch IE;
- call the settings by clicking on the gear icon (upper right corner of the program);
- select the item “Browser Properties”;
- a window will open in which we select the “Advanced” tab;
- the button “Reset” will appear at the bottom, click on it. In this case, the basic settings of Internet Explorer will take the default values.
Conclusion
Although many users use the antivirus programs we have listed, there are many more, so the choice of these three antivirus software is not limited. The same can be said for specialized utilities. Our readers will be interested to learn about the peculiarities of using other tools designed to fight the About: blank virus. Leave comments, ask questions – they will not go unanswered.
