If ReadingFanatic have become the Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Internet Explorer, Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge internet browser’s new start page or search provider without your say-so, then you’ve a hijacker on your machine. The ReadingFanatic is a potentially unwanted application (PUA) or a web browser extension. It’s has the ability to to replace search engine, home page and some other settings of a browser for the sole purpose of boosting traffic and monetizing traffic.
ReadingFanatic changes browser homepage and search engine
The hijacker, which set the ReadingFanatic as your start page can also set this intrusive web-site as your search engine. You will encounter the fact that the search in the web-browser has become uncomfortable to use, because the search results will consist of tons of ads, links to ad and unwanted webpages and a small amount of regular links, which are obtained from a search in the major search providers. Therefore, look for something using ReadingFanatic web site would be a waste of time.
The ReadingFanatic browser hijacker is not a virus, but the virus behaves similarly. As a rootkit hides in the system, modifies settings of installed web-browsers, and blocks them from modifying. Also this browser hijacker can display lots of unwanted ads and popups. And finally, the ReadingFanatic browser hijacker can be used to collect a wide variety of privacy info like what web pages you are opening, what you are looking for the Internet and so on. This information, in the future, can be transferred third party companies.
In order to get rid of hijacker which cause a reroute to ReadingFanatic webpage from your machine, clean the infected web browsers and restore the Microsoft Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox settings to its default state, please use the ReadingFanatic removal guide below.
Remove ReadingFanatic (removal guide)
The following tutorial will help you to delete ReadingFanatic start page from the IE, Google Chrome, Edge and Mozilla Firefox. Moreover, the few simple steps below will help you to remove malware like potentially unwanted applications, adware and toolbars that your computer may be infected. Please do the tutorial step by step. If you need assist or have any questions, then ask for our assistance or type a comment below. Some of the steps below will require you to close this site. So, please read the tutorial carefully, after that bookmark or print it for later reference.
To remove ReadingFanatic, execute the following steps:
- Manual ReadingFanatic removal
- Scan your PC and delete ReadingFanatic with free utilities
- Block ReadingFanatic and other unwanted web-pages
- How to prevent ReadingFanatic hijacker from getting inside your personal computer
- To sum up
Manual ReadingFanatic removal
The step-by-step guide will help you remove ReadingFanatic home page. These ReadingFanatic removal steps work for the Internet Explorer, Chrome, Edge and Firefox, as well as every version of MS Windows operating system.
Uninstalling the ReadingFanatic, check the list of installed programs first
It is of primary importance to first identify and remove all PUPs, adware software and browser hijackers through ‘Add/Remove Programs’ (MS Windows XP) or ‘Uninstall a program’ (MS Windows 10, 8, 7) section of your MS Windows Control Panel.
Make sure you have closed all browsers and other applications. Next, remove any undesired and suspicious apps from your Control panel.
Windows 10, 8.1, 8
Now, click the Windows button, type “Control panel” in search and press Enter. Choose “Programs and Features”, then “Uninstall a program”.
Look around the entire list of programs installed on your system. Most probably, one of them is the hijacker which changes web-browser settings to replace your default search provider, homepage and new tab page with ReadingFanatic site. Select the questionable program or the application that name is not familiar to you and remove it.
Windows Vista, 7
From the “Start” menu in Microsoft Windows, choose “Control Panel”. Under the “Programs” icon, select “Uninstall a program”.
Select the dubious or any unknown applications, then click “Uninstall/Change” button to remove this undesired program from your PC.
Windows XP
Click the “Start” button, select “Control Panel” option. Click on “Add/Remove Programs”.
Choose an undesired application, then click “Change/Remove” button. Follow the prompts.
Remove ReadingFanatic from Mozilla Firefox by resetting web browser settings
If the Mozilla Firefox web-browser program is hijacked, then resetting its settings can help. The Reset feature is available on all modern version of Firefox. A reset can fix many issues by restoring Mozilla Firefox settings such as search engine by default, new tab and startpage to their original state. Essential information such as bookmarks, browsing history, passwords, cookies, auto-fill data and personal dictionaries will not be removed.
First, open the Mozilla Firefox. Next, click the button in the form of three horizontal stripes (
). It will open the drop-down menu. Next, click the Help button (
).
In the Help menu click the “Troubleshooting Information”. In the upper-right corner of the “Troubleshooting Information” page click on “Refresh Firefox” button like below.
Confirm your action, click the “Refresh Firefox”.
Get rid of ReadingFanatic from Internet Explorer
The IE reset is great if your internet browser is hijacked or you’ve unwanted extensions or toolbars on your browser, which installed by a malicious software.
First, open the IE, then press ‘gear’ icon 
. It will display the Tools drop-down menu on the right part of the web browser, then press the “Internet Options” as displayed on the image below.
In the “Internet Options” screen, select the “Advanced” tab, then click the “Reset” button. The Microsoft Internet Explorer will display the “Reset Internet Explorer settings” dialog box. Further, press the “Delete personal settings” check box to select it. Next, click the “Reset” button as shown below.
When the task is finished, press “Close” button. Close the Internet Explorer and reboot your personal computer for the changes to take effect. This step will help you to restore your web browser’s search engine by default, new tab page and start page to default state.
Delete ReadingFanatic from Chrome
Reset Google Chrome settings to delete ReadingFanatic. If you are still experiencing issues with ReadingFanatic, you need to reset Google Chrome browser to its original settings. This step needs to be performed only if hijacker has not been removed by the previous steps.
First start the Chrome. Next, click the button in the form of three horizontal dots (
).
It will open the Google Chrome menu. Select More Tools, then press Extensions. Carefully browse through the list of installed plugins. If the list has the extension signed with “Installed by enterprise policy” or “Installed by your administrator”, then complete the following guidance: Remove Chrome extensions installed by enterprise policy.
Open the Chrome menu once again. Further, click the option named “Settings”.
The browser will display the settings screen. Another solution to show the Google Chrome’s settings – type chrome://settings in the internet browser adress bar and press Enter
Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click the “Advanced” link. Now scroll down until the “Reset” section is visible, like below and click the “Reset settings to their original defaults” button.
The Google Chrome will display the confirmation dialog box as displayed in the following example.
You need to confirm your action, click the “Reset” button. The internet browser will launch the process of cleaning. After it is complete, the web-browser’s settings including home page, search provider and new tab page back to the values that have been when the Chrome was first installed on your computer.
Scan your PC and delete ReadingFanatic with free utilities
The manual instructions above is tedious to follow and can not always help to completely delete the ReadingFanatic hijacker. Here I am telling you an automatic way to delete this hijacker from your computer completely. Zemana Anti Malware (ZAM), MalwareBytes AntiMalware and Hitman Pro are anti-malware utilities that can scan for and delete all kinds of malware including hijacker that alters internet browser settings to replace your search engine by default, startpage and newtab page with ReadingFanatic web page.
How to get rid of ReadingFanatic with Zemana AntiMalware (ZAM)
We advise you to run the Zemana Free which are completely clean your PC system. Moreover, the tool will help you to remove potentially unwanted programs, malicious software, toolbars and ‘ad supported’ software that your computer can be infected too.
Now you can install and run Zemana Anti Malware (ZAM) to remove ReadingFanatic search from your web browser by following the steps below:
Click the following link to download Zemana AntiMalware (ZAM) install package named Zemana.AntiMalware.Setup on your PC system. Save it on your Desktop.
164113 downloads
Author: Zemana Ltd
Category: Security tools
Update: July 16, 2019
Launch the setup file after it has been downloaded successfully and then follow the prompts to set up this utility on your system.
During install you can change certain settings, but we advise you don’t make any changes to default settings.
When install is complete, this malware removal tool will automatically start and update itself. You will see its main window as shown in the figure below.
Now click the “Scan” button to perform a system scan with this tool for the browser hijacker responsible for redirecting user searches to ReadingFanatic. This process can take quite a while, so please be patient. When a threat is found, the number of the security threats will change accordingly. Wait until the the checking is complete.
When the scan get completed, you will be shown the list of all detected threats on your personal computer. Review the report and then click “Next” button.
The Zemana Free will remove browser hijacker which redirects your internet browser to undesired ReadingFanatic website and move threats to the program’s quarantine. When the task is finished, you may be prompted to reboot your personal computer to make the change take effect.
Delete ReadingFanatic homepage from web browsers with Hitman Pro
HitmanPro is a completely free (30 day trial) tool. You don’t need expensive ways to get rid of hijacker infection responsible for redirecting your internet browser to ReadingFanatic page and other misleading software. Hitman Pro will uninstall all the undesired programs such as ad-supported software and hijackers for free.
Download HitmanPro from the link below. Save it on your MS Windows desktop.
Once the downloading process is finished, open the folder in which you saved it. You will see an icon like below.
Double click the Hitman Pro desktop icon. Once the tool is launched, you will see a screen as displayed below.
Further, press “Next” button . Hitman Pro program will scan through the whole computer for the browser hijacker infection that responsible for web browser redirect to the annoying ReadingFanatic webpage. After Hitman Pro has completed scanning, HitmanPro will produce a list of unwanted applications adware as displayed on the image below.
Review the report and then click “Next” button. It will open a prompt, click the “Activate free license” button.
Run Malwarebytes to remove browser hijacker
We recommend using the Malwarebytes Free. You can download and install Malwarebytes to search for and remove ReadingFanatic homepage from your personal computer. When installed and updated, the free malware remover will automatically scan and detect all threats exist on the PC system.
Please go to the link below to download the latest version of MalwareBytes Anti-Malware (MBAM) for Microsoft Windows. Save it to your Desktop.
326464 downloads
Author: Malwarebytes
Category: Security tools
Update: April 15, 2020
After downloading is finished, run it and follow the prompts. Once installed, the MalwareBytes Anti Malware will try to update itself and when this procedure is done, click the “Scan Now” button . MalwareBytes AntiMalware (MBAM) program will scan through the whole computer for the browser hijacker responsible for ReadingFanatic start page. Depending on your machine, the scan can take anywhere from a few minutes to close to an hour. During the scan MalwareBytes AntiMalware (MBAM) will look for threats present on your computer. You may get rid of threats (move to Quarantine) by simply press “Quarantine Selected” button.
The MalwareBytes Anti Malware (MBAM) is a free application that you can use to remove all detected folders, files, services, registry entries and so on. To learn more about this malicious software removal tool, we recommend you to read and follow the steps or the video guide below.
Block ReadingFanatic and other unwanted web-pages
If you surf the Net, you can’t avoid malvertising. But you can protect your web browser against it. Download and use an adblocker application. AdGuard is an ad-blocker which can filter out a large number of of the malicious advertising, stoping dynamic scripts from loading malicious content.
- Download AdGuard on your Windows Desktop from the link below.
Adguard download
26659 downloads
Version: 6.4
Author: © Adguard
Category: Security tools
Update: November 15, 2018
- After downloading is complete, start the downloaded file. You will see the “Setup Wizard” program window. Follow the prompts.
- After the setup is complete, click “Skip” to close the install application and use the default settings, or click “Get Started” to see an quick tutorial that will allow you get to know AdGuard better.
- In most cases, the default settings are enough and you do not need to change anything. Each time, when you start your computer, AdGuard will start automatically and stop pop-up ads, web-pages like ReadingFanatic, as well as other malicious or misleading websites. For an overview of all the features of the program, or to change its settings you can simply double-click on the icon called AdGuard, that can be found on your desktop.
How to prevent ReadingFanatic hijacker from getting inside your personal computer
The browser hijacker infection usually come bundled with free software that downloaded from the Web. Which means that you need to be proactive and carefully read the Terms of use and the License agreement properly. For the most part, the ReadingFanatic browser hijacker will be clearly described, so take the time to carefully read all the information about the software that you downloaded and want to install on your PC system. In the Setup wizard, you should select the Advanced, Custom or Manual install type to control what components and additional apps to be installed, otherwise you run the risk of infecting your personal computer with an infection like the ReadingFanatic browser hijacker.
To sum up
Now your personal computer should be clean of the hijacker responsible for redirecting your browser to ReadingFanatic webpage. We suggest that you keep AdGuard (to help you stop unwanted advertisements and undesired harmful web-sites) and Zemana Free (to periodically scan your computer for new hijacker infections and other malicious software). Probably you are running an older version of Java or Adobe Flash Player. This can be a security risk, so download and install the latest version right now.
If you are still having problems while trying to remove ReadingFanatic from the IE, Firefox, MS Edge and Google Chrome, then ask for help here here.
