A fake Chrome and Firefox extension for a very popular program has been downloaded more than 200,000 times. It is actually “adware” that we recommend you remove from your web browser immediately.
If you don’t want your computer to be invaded by advertisements and spyware of all kinds, you should check now that you don’t have the extension Internet Download Manager installed in your web browser.
Fake extension for popular software
If this name is unfamiliar to you, it is because it is a completely legitimate program published by the company. tonic Which you can download from the publisher’s website or from 01net. Internet Download Manager Accelerates the downloads you make from the web. The program in question offers an extension for web browsers, but the latter is called “IDM Integration Module” and has more than 20 million downloads on Chrome.
The publisher specifies in the FAQ on their site that “All other IDM extensions that can be found in the Chrome Web Store are fake and should not be used”. And in this particular breach, the extension was swallowed Internet Download Manager Which you can download from the Google Play Store and from a website called « Puupnewsapp ». The latter alleges that the program in question “Increase your download speed by up to 500%”What is download? Large files in minutes.
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The extension has been around since June 2019 in Chrome if the first user reviews are to be believed. Fake reviews seem to have kept the extension’s rating high enough that it has been downloaded over 200,000 times since its release. But negative reviews managed to surface and the extension was recently reported to Google, which eventually removed it from its App Store.
Do you want some publicity again?
during the installation, Internet Download Manager Asks you to run an executable file from the website “puup news app” In addition to downloading a zip file called “Windows patch”. If the executable appears to be a legitimate version of tonicThe latter does not implement JavaScript code to adjust Chrome and Firefox registry settings.
As you can imagine, the result is not very satisfactory. Installing the extension changes the default search engine to make way for « Smart web browser[.]com”. The user is then sent unsolicited emails via pop-ups that regularly prompt the user to install plugins that open third-party sites in the browser. Take a look at your browser extensions and Remove the extension immediately Internet Download Manager If you already have it installed.
program editor tonic Talk about it, to alert users:
“This is a fake extension and should be avoided. Also, it may contain spyware and adware. We reported it to Google, but it reappears in no time.»
font :
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