В Интернете много сайтов, использующих различные мошеннические методы для выманивания у пользователей денег либо личных данных. Порой мы сами вводим логин/ пароль от своих аккаунтов в социальных сетях в формы на подозрительных (сами того не зная) ресурсах, чем предоставляем третьим лицам доступ к важной информации. Но разработчики ПО не стоят на месте и постоянно создают различные средства защиты от вредоносных сайтов – это актуальные версии антивирусных программ и специальные утилиты. И сегодня речь пойдет об одной из этих утилит. Я расскажу о Web Companion – что это за программа и как она способна защитить нас от посещения мошеннических ресурсов.

Adaware Web Companion

Данная утилита Adaware Web Companion, разработанная компанией Lavasoft, появляется в операционной системе в двух случаях:

вместе с инсталляцией другого софта;
в результате скачивания с официального сайта и установки на ПК с целью защиты от вредоносных ресурсов.

Рассмотрим первый вариант появления Web Companion. Многие утилиты мало того что непопулярны у пользователей, так многие еще ничего и не знают о их существовании. Поэтому разработчики придумали такой шаг широкого распространения своего ПО – внедрять его в какой-либо известный софт, который юзеры скачивают достаточно часто. И мы, устанавливая полезные приложения на компьютер, сталкиваемся с тем, что вместе с инсталлируемой программой нам предлагается скачать дополнительное бесплатное ПО. Далее, я расскажу о том, что это такое Web Companion.

Во втором варианте мы специально скачиваем Web Companion с официального сайта http://webcompanion.com/, чтобы защитить свой компьютер. К слову, при моей попытке установить данную утилиту на ПК появилась одна проблема. В правом верхнем углу браузера, где находятся загрузки, вместо значка скачанной программы появился красный треугольник с восклицательным знаком, при наведении на который появилась предупреждающая надпись.

Предупреждение Яндекса

То есть браузер Yandex даже не хочет ее устанавливать. Причем Google Chrome установку разрешил.

Файл скачался в Google Chrome

Что это такое Adaware Web Companion?

Если разбирать цели утилиты Web Companion и выяснять, что это за приложение, то выявляются некоторые интересные вещи. Многие пользователи, которые устанавливали себе на компьютер данный софт, сообщают, что программа на самом деле предлагает сменить поисковик и домашнюю страницу, хотя разработчики утверждают обратное.

Они позиционируют Web Companion как защиту от:

фишинговых веб-сайтов;
вирусных кодов;
программ, предлагающих изменить домашнюю страницу браузера и поисковую систему (утилита должна выдавать сообщение о подобных попытках).

То есть изначально в целях программы заложена именно блокировка подозрительных сайтов или предупреждение пользователя об опасности их посещения.

Установка и функционал программы

Итак, при помощи Google Chrome получилось скачать файл WCInstaller себе на компьютер.

WCInstaller в папке «Загрузки»

После запуска установки вылезло сообщение об ошибке сценария на данной странице. Все же попробуем продолжить и нажмем “Да, продолжить выполнение сценариев на данной странице”.

Ошибка сценария на данной странице

Снова выскакивает ошибка сценария, и снова я нажимаю “Да, продолжить”. Затем меню мастера установки предлагает изменить домашнюю страницу и поисковую систему (о чем и говорилось выше) на Bing, Yahoo либо Yandex. Можно оставить текущие настройки, выбрав пункт Keep my current settings.

Оставить мои текущие настройки

Почему-то дальше этого меню установки у меня дело не пошло. Кнопка “Установить” не нажимается. Пользователи, которые инсталлировали Web Companion на свой ПК, сообщают, что утилита сворачивается в трее справа на панели задач и, чтобы войти в настройки, нужно нажать на маленький значок с ее изображением. В настройках можно произвести следующие действия:

убрать или установить автозапуск вместе с Windows (галочка в квадратике “Запускать при старте системы”);
выбрать светлую или темную тему для интерфейса;
сообщить разработчикам о проблеме в работе утилиты либо оставить свои предложения/ отзывы.

Интерфейс программы очень прост: это включенный курсор веб-защиты и строчки с указаниями о том, какую домашнюю страницу и поисковую систему мы будем использовать в своем браузере.

Интерфейс Web Companion

Если эта программа Web Companion не нужна или в ее работе наблюдаются некоторые проблемы (как, например, в моем случае), то ее можно удалить. Делается это обычными методами: либо через панель управления, либо, для полной очистки от всех хвостов – при помощи особого софта (Revo Uninstaller и подобные).

В общем и целом мнения пользователей о программе Adaware Web Companion неоднозначны. С одной стороны, утилита обладает простым удобным интерфейсом и служит конкретным целям по обеспечению безопасности операционной системы. С другой стороны, ее функционал достаточно уязвим для хакерских атак. Имеются бреши, из-за которых утилита не способна вовремя обнаружить вредоносные сайты, с которыми установленный на ПК антивирус справляется гораздо быстрее. К тому же многие юзеры сообщают, что эта программа Web Companion сильно тормозит работу компьютера, потребляя много ресурсов. Будем надеяться, что разработчики устранят недоделки и представят нам софт, обладающий действительно мощной защитой от различных сетевых угроз.

Вконтакте

Even if something is written on the website front page, it does not mean that it’s true. Web Companion developers offers us to “Surf the Web more safely and conveniently than ever before” , even with the Anti-Phishing Protection, Real-Time Web Protection and Multi Browser Compatible solution, but all this are a lie. In fact, Web Companion is classified by security experts as an adware application, and all words in the world can’t change its inwardness.

Instead of all promised good stuff, Web Companion adware will give you:

useless advertisement and malicious redirects;
your computer’s work slowdown;
more unwanted programs in your system;
headache.

If you have not installed Web Companion willfully and racking your brain on how this add-on managed to penetrate into your system, I can give an answer. Adware applications are usually spreading in a “bundles” with some popular freeware, so you might install something for free by default at the nearest time. To avoid malicious infection in the future, please always read EULAs and choose a custom mode to see what’s exactly installing on your PC.

There are two ways to remove annoying Web Companion completely and effectively. If you are an advanced user and strongly believe in yourself, you can try to follow our manual removal guide. It is much harder and takes your time, but you will be proud of feeling yourself a real security buddy. But to be honest it is not a trivial task, so if you don’t want to waste this beautiful day racking your brain, please take advantage of the automatic removal tool which we recommend for this adware effectively elimination.

Web Companion adware manual removal steps:

Step 1. Delete Web Companion from the system.

To delete Web Companion application from your PC, you should use “Uninstall the program” tool depending on your operation system.

Windows XP: Start —> Control Panel ––> Add/Remove Programs. Choose the “Web Companion” in the list of installed programs by a right-click and press “Remove”.

Windows 7: Start ––> Control Panel ––> Uninstall a program. Just the same actions: right-click on the “Web Companion” in a software list and press “Uninstall”.

Windows 8/8.1: Right-click on Start ––> Quick Access Menu ––> Control Panel ––> Uninstall a program. Choose a “Web Companion” among a listed here programs, right-click on it and then press “Uninstall”.

Step 2. Reset your browser settings.

It is necessary to reset browser settings after the deletion of the program from the list of software installed on your PC. For this, use the following tips depending on what browser are you currently using:

Google Chrome Browser: Settings —> Show advanced settings. Click on “Reset settings” in the bottom of the page.
Mozilla Firefox: press “Refresh Firefox” button in the right top corner.
Opera: delete “Operapref.ini file” in folder “C:\Users\user_name\AppData\Roaming\Opera\Opera\” on your computer.
Internet Explorer: Tools —> Internet options —> click on the “Advanced” button and then press “Reset”.

Web Companion adware automatic removal guide

If something went wrong or you just want to see the fast result, please use the help of professional malware eliminator – GridinSoft Trojan Killer . Moreover, even you have managed to remove Web Companion from your computer and browser, we recommend you to download this tool and use it as a free antimalware scanner to see whether any other malicious program has penetrated into your system. Please note, that Trojan Killer is a shareware program with a 15-days trial period with limitation of the threats number. If it find more than two infected items in your system, they can be removed only when you upgrade the program to the full registred version.

Download free antimalware scanner:

After downloading is completed, please install it and run the full scan . Yeah, it will take a time, but security experts always recommend to choose a full scan as your first scan, especially if you suspect that your PC could be infected. Take a look at the screenshots below: it will help you understand what’s going on.

Step 1. Run a full scan of your system

Trojan Killer allows you to choose the type of scan

…and go drink coffee until the end of it! 🙂

Here you see the list of the detected items, which can be harmful

At the end of the scan, the program will offer you to move all malicious items to the quarantine. Just do it clicking on the “Apply” button and set your system free from the Web Companion infection!

Step 2. Reset your browser settings using an appropriate tool:

Find button on the Trojan Killer tools tab
Check all browser boxes, which might be infected with the Web Companion, on a settings tab:

On this tab you can specify what exactly you need to reset

Then just press the “Reset” button. Voila! It is a good idea to restart your computer after all this manipulation and check if these annoying Web Companion pop-up ads leave you in peace:

Don’t hesitate to contact GridinSoft Trojan Killer developers if you have any problem regarding your system security – you can always reach them submitting a ticket .

Step 3. Celebrate your victory!

Either you choose the manual or the automatic removal solution, congratulations! You won this battle with unfair malware developers. Your computer is clean now, so you should be proud and do something nice for yourself as a gift. Red velvet cake or can of beer? It’s up to you! 😉

How does Ad-Aware Web Companion protect me?

Powered by Lavasoft Malware URL Blocker technology, Ad-Aware Web Companion proactively protects you against malicious websites by identifying the bad guys before you ever visit them. When you visit a website that contains malware, Ad-Aware Web Companion will instantly alert you of the threat and block the malicious website.

What does Ad-Aware Web Companion protect me from?

Ad-Aware Web Companion protects you from malicious website or fraudulent websites that deliver malware infections, phishing attacks, exploits, malicious or unauthorized redirections and browser hijacks.

How do I know if I"m visiting a malicious site?

When Ad-Aware Web Companion is running, you are protected against malicious websites. If you visit a malicious website, Ad-Aware Web Companion will instantly notify you with a warning page. From this page, you can choose to continue to the site or return back to safety.

When you visit a malicious website, Ad-Aware Web Companion alerts you with a warning page.

Home page settings don"t work. What should I do?

While the Web Protection function is available for every web browser, you can only change the default home page of browsers currently supported by Ad-Aware Web Companion, which are Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox. If you are using Google Chrome, you can click on the "Enable" option in the greyed-out "Browser Homepage" section of the Web Companion main menu to be taken to the one-click switch webpage that will help you switch to a supported browser in a hassle-free way.

If you are already using either Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox and are still experiencing problems with the Homepage settings, please send us a message from within the Web Companion program, along with a snapshot of your system info. To learn how to do that, click .

Search settings don"t work. What should I do?

While the Web Protection function is available for every web browser, you can only change the default search engine of browsers currently supported by Ad-Aware Web Companion, which are Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox. If you are using Google Chrome, you can click on the "Enable" option in the greyed-out "Default Search Engine" section of the Web Companion main menu to be taken to the one-click switch webpage that will help you switch to a supported browser in a hassle-free way.

If you are already using either Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox and are still experiencing problems with the Default Search Engine settings, please send us a message from within the Web Companion program, along with a snapshot of your system info. To learn how to do that, click .

Is Ad-Aware Web Companion compatible with other antivirus products?

Yes. Because Ad-Aware Web Companion is not an antivirus product, it is compatible with all other antiviruses on the market.

Do I still need an antivirus if I use Ad-Aware Web Companion?

Even if Ad-Aware Web Companion protects you from visiting dangerous sites, it does not replace an antivirus. Ad-Aware Web Companion provides protection during your web experience, it does not monitor background processes nor does it analyze files on your computer or external drives.

This is why it is strongly recommended to always use an antivirus along with Ad-Aware Web Companion.

What are Ad-Aware Web Companion system requirements?

You may install the Ad-Aware Web Companion only on computers running the following operating systems:

Windows XP with Service Pack 3 (32-bit) (*not recommended)
- Windows Vista with Service Pack 2 (32- & 64-bit)
- Windows 7 with Service Pack 1 (32- & 64-bit)
- Windows 8, 8.1 (32- & 64-bit)

Note. 4.5 or higher version of Microsoft Windows Installer is required for installation of Ad-Aware Web Companion.

* Your computer must meet the following system requirements in order to run the application effectively.
Minimum system requirements:
- 1.8 GB available free hard disk space (at least 800 MB on the system drive)
- 800 MHz processor
- 1 GB of memory (RAM)

Recommended system requirements:
- 2.8 GB available free hard disk space (at least 800 MB on the system drive)
- Intel CORE Duo (1.66 GHz) or equivalent processor
- Memory (RAM): 1 GB for Windows XP and 1.5 GB for Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8

What browsers does Ad-Aware Web Companion support?

Microsoft Internet Explorer
- Mozilla Firefox

Other browsers can still benefit from the Malicious URL Web Protection, but unfortunately cannot be protected from homepage and/or search hijacking.

I did not ask to Install Web Companion. How did it get on my PC?

Web Companion is most commonly distributed within another software product that you or someone who uses your PC has elected to install. This is known as "bundled software distribution" and is a practice widely used by software makers worldwide to make money while delivering free software to their end-users. Most software vendors simply don"t make enough money through paid licensing to continue their operations.

Lavasoft goes to great lengths to associate itself with only reputable software vendors, and also to ensure that the consent screen is clear and accurate. Despite these efforts, many users will inadvertently (due to no fault of their own) accept to install Web Companion and wonder how it ended up on their PC. Web Companion exists to protect users from this exact outcome, so we make sure the uninstallation process is as simple as possible and that any modifications of the configuration of the user"s PC are simple to revert.

The installation/update seems to be stuck, and is not progressing. What should I do?

Web Companion uses Microsoft"s MSI technology to install software on Windows PCs. One of the prerequisites for installing a product via MSI is that there is no other program currently being installed or uninstalled. It can often happen that another program is silently installing or uninstalling itself (e.g. Windows Updates) or that the locking system to protect against concurrent installs is stuck. In either case, Web Companion"s installer will appear to hang. When this happens, we recommend rebooting the PC to complete any ongoing installations and reset the state of the installation locking mechanism, and try again.

Web Companion did not uninstall the program that sets my homepage and search. What should I do?

Web Companion is effective at detecting the presence of a number of unwanted products that alter your search or homepage settings, and prompts you to remove the offending program. This process identifies and invokes the uninstaller at which point the user must follow the instructions presented by the program. These uninstallers intentionally ask you to select the components to uninstall. Failure to do so, does not uninstall the product. This is referred to as "opt-in" uninstallation, and is considered a somewhat malicious practice.

The Web Companion team is hard at work to resolve these problems using a number of mechanisms (which we cannot divulge since this would tip off the malware makers). Future versions of Web Companion will make this process smoother. In the interim, we recommend:
* Carefully read each uninstallation screen and follow instructions.
* Verify the installed browser extensions and remove any that are not recognized. Note: For Chrome, this can only be done within the browser, and not by an external program.

If that doesn"t work, we recommend reporting the problem to Lavasoft by sending us your feedback from within the Web Companion program via "Report a problem" and a snapshot of your system information (an option which will be clearly presented to you upon submission). For steps on how to do this, click .

Why does Web Companion keep telling me that my search engine or homepage has been modified?

Web Companion is periodically checking for changes to your homepage and search engine across all your installed browsers. It notifies you when it detects a difference between those settings and what is configured in Web Companion, and prompts you to accept the change or revert to what is set in Web Companion. It will do this 3 times before giving up.

If you accept the change, Web Companion"s settings will be set accordingly. If you revert, Web Companion will attempt to change your browser"s settings to what you have requested in the Web Companion UI. This action might fail for one of several reasons (eliciting another cycle of prompts):
* Web Companion does not detect a specific program installed on your PC that is changing your browser settings. New programs (and versions) are released all the time, so this can be quite common.
* Web Companion has detected the offending program, but the uninstallation process was unsuccessful. The program will still be present and will block changes to the settings.

The browser has recently implemented additional security measures to prevent external programs from tampering with the settings. These measures affect both malware and security programs such as Web Companion.

In all cases, we recommend that you report the situation to Lavasoft by sending us a snapshot of your system info (via the Web Companion UI) so that we can analyze the system and create a solution to the problem. Once resolved in house, we would roll it out to our user base in a subsequent product release or malware definition update.

Lavasoft is currently working on techniques to make this process stronger and easier to follow.

Why doesn"t Web Companion work with Chrome? The options in the Web Companion UI are disabled.

As of Chrome 34, Google has independently decided to prevent any program from changing the homepage and search settings. This unfortunately prevents security products like Web Companion from performing its function, namely protecting the user and offering a simple/unified user experience across all major browsers.

The Web Companion team is currently working on a solution that does not interfere with the Chrome application or process in a malicious or unsupported way. In the interim, Lavasoft recommends using Microsoft Internet Explorer which offers significantly better security and performance than Google Chrome. Alternatively, users can visit Google"s support page to learn how to set the homepage and search in Chrome:
https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/95314?hl=en

Does Web Companion work with Opera, Safari, Yandex, etc?

Web Companion is only compatible with Internet Explorer and Firefox. The Web Companion team is currently working on a solution that will be independent of the browser application, at which point support for virtually all versions of all browsers will be provided.

After installing Web Companion, my applications can"t access the internet. Why?

Web Companion installs proprietary security technology that can sometimes interfere with running programs such as Microsoft Outlook, Skype, or your web browser, preventing them from accessing the internet to perform their function.

The underlying technology is complex, and every system is different due to the variety of configurations and programs installed. It only takes a bug in one running program to elicit this issue.

Fortunately, the workaround in most cases is simply to restart all running applications or restart the PC.

My antivirus program is flagging Web Companion as malware (or a virus). Why?

Antivirus programs use a combination of sophisticated signatures and heuristics to assess whether or not a file is safe. Large teams of malware engineers build and update these detection databases and algorithms worldwide. The task is so daunting that competing antivirus vendors will share their detection databases with each other to increase protection.

If a file is deemed a risk, it"s "flagged" to the user and potentially removed automatically. If your antivirus has flagged one or more of Web Companion"s files, one of the following is likely the cause:
* False positive detection - The antivirus has accidentally (and incorrectly) flagged Web Companion. This often happens when one of Web Companion"s file signatures accidentally matches another file that has been flagged.
* Behavioural detection - The antivirus has detected a behaviour of Web Companion that it deems unsafe. Security products (like Web Companion) and malware often use similar techniques, so this can be a common occurrence.
* Policy detection - Some antivirus products will automatically flag any file provided by a specific company (which it can do easily from the code signing certificate used to identify executable files). Sometimes this policy is merited, while other times it"s used as a competitive tactic.

In all cases, the correct course of action is to notify Lavasoft of the incident, and we will press to have the flag removed as quickly as possible. (Lavasoft routinely monitors flags on its own products, but a few get through on occasion.)

To see process in the Task Manager is a sign of infection. Your current anti-virus may not detect this process as malicious and previously allow installation of the application despite it is potentially unwanted to be on the computer.

WebCompanion.exe adware

Your Task Manager can show you Web Companion folder interconnected with the malware. Sadly, but to delete it once and forever is impossible and the process will only continue its activity. You need an anti-malware scanner and eliminate this computer threat.

WebCompanion.exe adware

To predict the WebCompanion.exe penetration and make sure that everything is okay with your PC, scan the system right now. There should not be any symptoms of the malware infection. You have detected the loss or modification of files or folders. Your browser behaves inadequately. That is all the sign of the troubles with the system which need your urgent reaction.

Pay attention to the situation with your current defense tools, they must be up to date all the time as well as scanning process that goes on the regular basis. Follow the information in the steps provided in the rest of the article to make your computer clean and malware-free.

WebCompanion.exe – how dangerous is it?

It doesn`t matter if malicious or not, if program is considered as potentially unwanted it may cause a lot of problems for you and your computer. Some programs are able to add many various extensions to most popular browsers such as Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge and so on. This way may store some information on its users – for example, search queries, to show thousands of ads based on these preferences, though they are not relevant. Also, this behavior can provide other malicious programs and viruses a way inside of your computer. Moreover, may generate adverts and pop-ups that will annoy you a lot!

Such programs can be installed along with other programs, so probably the would lead a lot of unwanted guests on your PC – malicious programs, adware, CoinMiners or even Ransomware!

Don’t waste your time and wait for your computer`s death – follow the simple removal guide below and get rid of this adware in a few minutes!

WebCompanion.exe automatic remover:
Loaris Trojan Remover aids in the removal of various malicious and unwanted stuff – Trojan Horses, Worms, Adware, Spyware, Malware, Ransomware Traces – when standard anti-virus software either fails to detect them or fails to effectively eliminate them. Standard anti-virus programs may be good at detecting threats like WebCompanion.exe, but not always good at effectively removing it… Also, Loaris Trojan Remover can be considered as a simple cleaner – it removes not only infected files, but also other junk files that were brought by viruses and unwanted programs.
NOTE: Loaris Trojan Remover is absolutely free! You can use it for 30 days without any restrictions! Follow the removal guide below to know how to get the key.

If you see process in the Task Manager, that means there is a malicious component in the system that takes resources of your PC for suspected needs without your permission. The process like that is malicious despite the fact that your current anti-virus may not detect it as a computer threat. That is why it is mandatory to scan your computer and track a Web Companion folder.

The main purpose of creating the software is malicious, it will harm the infected PC and disturb the privacy of its owner. It goes without saying that such malicious activity depicts negatively on the computer efficiency. Check Task Manager and right-click on the process if you see it, choose option to open the Web Companion folder where the process is located.

When it is the first time you meet WebCompanion.exe malware, it will be interesting for you to know how it could appear in the system. And, of course, meet the signs of such penetration: bad performance, overloading of the computer to maximum, stealing CPU power, losing private information are the main symptoms of this potentially unwanted object. You can omit all these troubles in the future and decrease the risks of hijacking. Forget about mindless installation on the random resources with cost-free utilities, they often contain malware samples attached as bundled tools. Fortunately, you can add the anti-virus software to increase your security.

Keep your defense tools updated, it may help you against the WebCompanion.exe process. Add a special program that has been created to track and delete computer threats. Meet program that will solve the problem with such threats like you already have.

How to remove it?

If you detect and want to eliminate it as quickly as possible, then you can follow the removal instructions given below. We wrote full manuals how to delete WebCompanion.exeautomatically and manually . Of course, you can choose a manual technique to remove this unpleasant program. But, we must warn that manual removal may be complex and difficult task for novice users. If you do not have considerable experience in dealing with such software, it is better is you select an automatic removal tool.

Automatic removal tool for

It is a perfect tool both for home and corporate usage. Developed specifically for automatic removal of viruses, bots, spyware, keyloggers, trojans, shareware and rootkits without the need to manually edit system files or registry, additionally fixes system modifications that were introduced by malware and which, regretfully, are often ignored by some popular antivirus scanners. Also, GridinSoft Anti-Malware is quite easy to install and to use due to its intuitive interface. We strongly recommend you to start protecting your computer with this antimalware tool. Thousands of users have already tested GridinSoft Anti-Malware on their PCs, which means that you have nothing to worry about. Moreover, the program may Reset Browser Settings FREE . You can download it by clicking the link below.