A “redirect virus” is the everyday name for anything that makes Chrome jump to pages you didn’t click: ad sites, fake prize pages or an unfamiliar search page. Google lists this as a sign of unwanted software: “Your browsing is hijacked, and redirects to unfamiliar pages or ads” (Remove unwanted ads, pop-ups & malware). The cause is one of three things, and you can usually stop it in a few minutes:
- A website that is allowed to use pop-ups and redirects, or to send you notifications.
- An extension that rewrites the pages or searches you open.
- A program on your computer that keeps changing Chrome.
First, find out where it comes from
- Only on one site? That site is doing it. Block its pop-ups and redirects (below) and avoid it.
- On every site? Open an Incognito window (Ctrl + Shift + N on Windows and Linux, ⌘ + Shift + N on a Mac) and browse there. Extensions don’t run in Incognito unless you have turned on Allow in incognito for them. If the redirects stop in Incognito, an extension is the likely cause.
- Your search results come from a site you don’t know? Something has changed your search engine. See how to fix a search engine that keeps changing.
Block pop-ups and redirects
By default Chrome blocks pop-ups, but the setting can be changed, and sites you once allowed keep that permission. Google’s steps (Block or allow pop-ups in Chrome):
- Open Chrome and select More (the three dots at the top right) > Settings.
- Select Privacy and security > Site settings > Pop-ups and redirects. You can also paste
chrome://settings/content/popupsinto the address bar. - Choose Don’t allow sites to send pop-ups or use redirects.
- Under Allowed to send pop-ups and use redirects, find any site you don’t trust, select More next to it and choose Block.
To block a site that isn’t listed, select Add next to Not allowed to send pop-ups or use redirects and enter its address. Google suggests the pattern [*.]example.com to cover the whole site.
Turn off notifications from the site
If a site still reaches you after you block its pop-ups, Google says you may be subscribed to its notifications. Go to the site, select View site information (the icon to the left of the web address) and set Notifications to Block. To review every site at once, open chrome://settings/content/notifications. More help: stop Chrome notifications that won’t go away.
Remove the extension behind it
- Paste
chrome://extensionsinto the address bar, or select More > Extensions > Manage extensions. - Turn off every extension, then check whether the redirects stop.
- Turn them back on one at a time to find the one causing it.
- On that extension, and on any you don’t recognize, select Remove and confirm (Google’s extension help).
Still redirecting on every site?
Then a program on your computer is probably involved. Google says an installed program can keep changing Chrome’s settings. Work through the full clean-up in how to remove a browser hijacker from Chrome: uninstall unknown programs, run a full antivirus scan, check whether Chrome says Managed by your organization, then reset Chrome’s settings.
If you are on an Android phone, Google’s advice is different: restart the phone in Safe mode and remove recently installed apps one at a time until the redirects stop. The steps are at the end of the hijacker guide linked above.