Browser Hijackers Redirect to the Questionable Search Engine Nearbyme.io
Nearbyme.io is a sketchy search engine that is currently associated with a browser hijacker. At its core, most browser hijackers can take over your web browser’s default settings to redirect you to sponsored ads, as well as collect non-identifiable personal data that includes browsing history, among other browsing details about the user.
The Nearbyme.io search engine is “enhanced by Google” even though the search giant Google is not in any way related to the questionable search engine that makes changes to your default browser settings. With these changes implemented, the user is redirected to see Nearbyme.io’s page whenever they open a new browser tab. The user will generally be redirected tonearbyme.io or m.nearbyme.com as a result of these changes. What’s more, the search engine may also bombard users with a flurry of unsolicited advertisements.
Because Nearbyme.io sports a simplistic and benign appearance, initially, it may not raise any suspicion. During this period of deceptive calm, the search engine will collect possible marketable information on users that include: their conducted searches, their operating system type, their IP address, and their geographic location. This information is collected to tailor sponsored ads based on the user’s preferences. Some of the ads that are then displayed to users may be for unreliable websites and products, scams, or may redirect users to sites that may attempt to download malware on their computer.
How Do I Remove Browser Hijackers?
It is highly recommended that computer users employ a trusted and reliable malware remediation tool to regularly scan for and remove nuisances like browser hijackers, adware and PUPs that redirect to Nearbyme.io.
