Start.mysearchdial.com

Start.mysearchdial.com Image

Start.mysearchdial.com is a website associated with a browser hijacker that presents itself as a Web browser toolbar. This toolbar, named MySearchDial, causes redirects to the Start.mysearchdial.com website as well as other unwanted symptoms on the infected computer. There are several types of browser hijackers, some more malicious than others. Fortunately, Start.mysearchdial.com redirects can usually be stopped by simply removing the MySearchDial toolbar from your Web browser. However, ESG security researchers advise using a reliable anti-malware program to scan your computer to ensure that Start.mysearchdial.com has not caused more dangerous malware to enter your computer.

Browser hijackers are simple to understand. Basically, this technique involves taking over a computer user's Web browser in order to force it to visit a particular website (in this case Start.mysearchdial.com) or to perform certain actions that can benefit a third party such as displaying advertisements or sponsored search results. Browser hijackers associated with Start.mysearchdial.com cause the victim's homepage to become Start.mysearchdial.com, exposing the computer user to this website as soon as they launch their Web browser. Browser hijackers associated with Start.mysearchdial.com also alter search results on legitimate search engines like Google or Yahoo. Instead of displaying legitimate search results, the victim's search is redirected to the Start.mysearchdial.com website, where sponsored search results are displayed. These kinds of search results are unreliable at best and will often lead the computer user to more malicious online content. Other symptoms associated with Start.mysearchdial.com redirects include pop-up advertisements and suspicious error messages. One particular problem with these kinds of infections is that they will often contain components that track computer users' online activities, compromising their security in order to allow unscrupulous marketers to display targeted advertisements on the victim's computer.

How the Toolbar Associated with Start.mysearchdial.com is Installed

There are several ways in which the browser hijacker associated with Start.mysearchdial.com is installed on the victim's computer. Often, the toolbar is installed when the victim visits an attack website, directed there through social engineering, java-based Trojans or malicious embedded links. In most cases, though, the toolbar associated with Start.mysearchdial.com is installed by computer users themselves while trying to install popular freeware programs. It is a common practice to bundle these kinds of Web browser extensions with legitimate freeware programs hosted on third party websites. Unaware of the nature of these toolbars, Computer users will then install them thinking that they are part of the freeware application or useful in some other way.