Deceiving domain - search.friendlysocket.com

Search.friendlysocket.com is an unreliable search engine that comes as a symptom of a browser hijacker. The PUP can appear on any type of web browser, including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, and Safari. If you have been infected with this app, you are likely to experience unexpected changes in the default search provider, homepage, and new tab URL bar of your web browser. However, you are also likely to receive direct search results from a legitimate search engine Yahoo while using search.friendlysocket.com search services.

Furthermore, search.friendlysocket.com might initiate a big variety of activities such as advertising during browsing sessions and promoting various questionable offers and deals. Continuously, the app can start collecting non-personal information that is related to your browsing sessions if the browser hijacker plants flash cookies or tracking pixels into your web browsers. Afterward, the collected data can be transferred to other parties for income. Nevertheless, Friendly socket can redirect you to sponsored websites some of which have a risk of being potentially infectious.

Name	search.friendlysocket.com
Type/category	Browser hijacker/PUP
Targeted browsers	The suspicious app can hijack web browsers such as Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, and Safari
Activities	You are likely to experience browser changes in the default search engine, homepage, and new tab URL bar sections. Continuously, the app can load unwanted advertisements, redirect you to questionable domains, and record browsing-related information

search.friendlysocket.com violations

2CR-015: The suspicious search engine has been recognized as a browser hijacker and a potentially unwanted program by several security researchers

2CR-004: The browser hijacker affects major browser settings such as the default search provider, homepage, and new tab URL bar