GlobalQuestSearch

GlobalQuestSearch may advertise itself as a useful application but the truth is that its only goal is to monetize its presence on the user's Mac computer through dubious and questionable means. At the same time, it relies on deceptive marketing techniques to ensure its distribution as few users are likely to download it intentionally. The use of bundling or hiding inside fake software installers classify GlobalQuestSearch as a PUP (Potentially Unwanted Program).

Once installed on the user's computer, GlobalQuestSearch will proceed to act as typical adware and initiate an intrusive advertising campaign. The unwanted advertisements could take numerous forms - pop-ups, banners, surveys, in-text links and more. They could start to cover the content viewed by the user. However, the delivered advertisements are more than an annoyance, as they could redirect o unsafe third-party websites. Users may be taken to domains promoting additional PUPs or running phishing and technical support tactics. 

Apart from its adware functionality, GlobalQuestSearch also possesses browser hijacker characteristics. The application will establish control over specific browser settings and use them to promote and drive artificial traffic towards a sponsored address. Most browser hijackers are used as vehicles for fake search engines. Users may find that their homepage, new tab page, and the default search engine have all been set to open a new strange address. Fake search engines cannot deliver any results on their own. Instead, they take the search query of the user and redirect it either to a legitimate search engine immediately or initiate a redirect chain that visits several dubious websites before reaching the legitimate engine. 

It is not recommended to keep any PUPs on your system, browser hijackers especially, as most of them are known for having data-harvesting abilities. The collected data may include the entire browsing and search histories, clicked URLs, geolocation, IP address and more.