What is Note Mini?
According to computer security experts, Note Mini is a browser extension that falls under the group of Browser hijackers . It affects your device and alters browser settings. Note Mini can take over your browser and force you to use fxsmash.xyz as your default search engine, new tab and start page. When Note Mini in the computer, it can collect personal info such as search queries as well as browsing history. So, if you find this browser extension on your web-browser you need to delete it. The detailed removal guidance will allow you remove Note Mini and protect your computer from more dangerous software.
Being infected by the Note Mini browser hijacker you’ll be forced to use its own search engine. It could seem not to be dangerous, but you still should be very careful, since it may display intrusive and malicious advertisements designed to force you into buying some questionable programs or products, provide search results that may redirect your browser to certain deceptive, misleading or malicious web-pages. We suggest that you use only the reliable search provider like Google, Yahoo or Bing.
As well as unwanted web-browser redirects to fxsmash.xyz, Note Mini can gather your Web surfing activity by recording web-pages visited, IP addresses, browser version and type, Internet Service Provider (ISP), URLs visited and cookie information. Such kind of behavior can lead to serious security problems or user data theft. This is another reason why the browser hijacker that redirects the internet browser to Note Mini should be uninstalled immediately.
To find out how to get rid of Note Mini, we suggest to read the instructions added to this post below. The tutorial was prepared by IT security researchers who discovered a method to delete the browser hijacker out of the computer.
How can a browser hijacker get on your device
Browser hijackers and PUPs such as Note Mini come from internet browser toolbars, web browser extensions, BHOs (browser helper objects) and optional software. In most cases, these items claim itself as programs which improve your experience on the World Wide Web by providing a fast and interactive startpage or a search engine that does not track you. Remember, how to avoid the unwanted programs. Be cautious, run only reputable applications which download from reputable sources. NEVER install an unknown and suspicious program.
Threat Summary
Name | Note Mini |
Type | redirect virus, browser hijacker, startpage hijacker, search engine hijacker, PUP |
Asscociated web-sites | fxsmash.xyz |
Affected Browser Settings | homepage, new tab page URL, search provider |
Distribution | free applications setup files, suspicious pop-up ads, fake software updaters |
Symptoms | Advertising pop ups won’t go away. Every time you perform an Internet search, your browser is redirected to another website. New entries appear in your Programs folder. New web-browser add-ons suddenly installed on your browser. Your web browser home page or search provider keeps changing or is not set to Google anymor. |
Removal | Note Mini removal guide |
How to remove Note Mini browser hijacker
Note Mini is a hijacker that you might have difficulty in removing it from your PC system. Luckily, you’ve found the effective removal guide in this article. Both the manual removal way and the automatic removal method will be provided below and you can just select the one that best for you. If you have any questions or need assist then type a comment below. Some of the steps below will require you to close this web-site. So, please read the tutorial carefully, after that bookmark it or open it on your smartphone for later reference.
To remove Note Mini, use the steps below:
How to manually delete Note Mini
The useful removal guide for the Note Mini hijacker. The detailed procedure can be followed by anyone as it really does take you step-by-step. If you follow this process to remove Note Mini hijacker let us know how you managed by sending us your comments please.
Deleting the Note Mini, check the list of installed programs first
First method for manual hijacker removal is to go into the MS Windows “Control Panel”, then “Uninstall a program” console. Take a look at the list of apps on your computer and see if there are any questionable and unknown apps. If you see any, you need to remove them. Of course, before doing so, you can do an Web search to find details on the program. If it is a potentially unwanted program, adware or malicious software, you will likely find information that says so.
Press Windows button , then press Search . Type “Control panel”and press Enter. If you using Windows XP or Windows 7, then click “Start” and select “Control Panel”. It will display the Windows Control Panel as displayed in the following example.
Further, click “Uninstall a program”
It will show a list of all applications installed on your computer. Scroll through the all list, and remove any suspicious and unknown apps.
Remove Note Mini from Mozilla Firefox by resetting web browser settings
If Firefox home page or search engine are hijacked by Note Mini, your web-browser displays intrusive popup ads, then ‘Reset Mozilla Firefox’ could solve these problems. However, your themes, bookmarks, history, passwords, and web form auto-fill information will not be deleted.
Click the Menu button (looks like three horizontal lines), and click the blue Help icon located at the bottom of the drop down menu as shown in the following example.
A small menu will appear, click the “Troubleshooting Information”. On this page, press “Refresh Firefox” button like below.
Follow the onscreen procedure to restore your Mozilla Firefox internet browser settings to their default values.
Remove Note Mini browser hijacker from Internet Explorer
If you find that Internet Explorer web-browser settings like search provider by default, home page and new tab had been hijacked, then you may revert back your settings, via the reset web browser procedure.
First, open the Microsoft Internet Explorer, click ) button. Next, press “Internet Options” similar to the one below.
In the “Internet Options” screen select the Advanced tab. Next, click Reset button. The Internet Explorer will open the Reset Internet Explorer settings dialog box. Select the “Delete personal settings” check box and click Reset button.
You will now need to restart your PC system for the changes to take effect. It will remove Note Mini browser hijacker, disable malicious and ad-supported web-browser’s extensions and restore the Internet Explorer’s settings like new tab page, start page and default search engine to default state.
Remove Note Mini from Google Chrome
The hijacker can alter your Google Chrome settings without your knowledge. You can see fxsmash.xyz as your search provider or home page, additional addons and toolbars. Reset Chrome web browser will allow you to remove Note Mini and reset the unwanted changes caused by hijacker. However, your saved passwords and bookmarks will not be changed or cleared.
- First launch the Chrome and click Menu button (small button in the form of three dots).
- It will open the Google Chrome main menu. Choose More Tools, then press Extensions.
- You’ll see the list of installed add-ons. If the list has the extension labeled with “Installed by enterprise policy” or “Installed by your administrator”, then complete the following steps: Remove Chrome extensions installed by enterprise policy.
- Now open the Chrome menu once again, press the “Settings” menu.
- You will see the Google Chrome’s settings page. Scroll down and click “Advanced” link.
- Scroll down again and click the “Reset” button.
- The Chrome will open the reset profile settings page as shown on the image above.
- Next click the “Reset” button.
- Once this procedure is done, your internet browser’s search provider, newtab and start page will be restored to their original defaults.
- To learn more, read the post How to reset Chrome settings to default.
Automatic Removal of Note Mini
Is your MS Windows PC hijacked by browser hijacker? Then don’t worry, in the instructions below, we’re sharing best malware removal tools that has the ability to get rid of Note Mini from the Firefox, MS Edge, Google Chrome and Internet Explorer and your PC.
Use Zemana Anti Malware to get rid of Note Mini hijacker
If you need a free utility that can easily look for and remove Note Mini browser hijacker, then use Zemana. This is a very handy program, which is primarily developed to quickly search for and delete adware and malware affecting web browsers and changing their settings.
- Download Zemana Anti-Malware on your device from the link below.
Zemana AntiMalware
164113 downloads
Author: Zemana Ltd
Category: Security tools
Update: July 16, 2019
- At the download page, click on the Download button. Your web browser will open the “Save as” prompt. Please save it onto your Windows desktop.
- After the download is done, please close all software and open windows on your personal computer. Next, run a file named Zemana.AntiMalware.Setup.
- This will start the “Setup wizard” of Zemana Anti Malware onto your computer. Follow the prompts and do not make any changes to default settings.
- When the Setup wizard has finished installing, the Zemana Anti-Malware (ZAM) will start and open the main window.
- Further, click the “Scan” button to begin checking your PC system for the Note Mini hijacker. While the Zemana Anti Malware tool is checking, you can see number of objects it has identified as being infected by malware.
- After Zemana Free has finished scanning your device, you will be displayed the list of all found items on your personal computer.
- Make sure to check mark the items which are unsafe and then press the “Next” button. The utility will delete Note Mini hijacker and move the selected threats to the program’s quarantine. Once that process is complete, you may be prompted to reboot the computer.
- Close the Zemana and continue with the next step.
Run Hitman Pro to remove Note Mini hijacker
HitmanPro is a free portable program that scans your computer for adware, PUPs and hijackers like Note Mini and helps remove them easily. Moreover, it’ll also allow you remove any malicious web browser extensions and add-ons.
First, please go to the following link, then click the ‘Download’ button in order to download the latest version of Hitman Pro.
Once the download is done, open the directory in which you saved it. You will see an icon like below.
Double click the Hitman Pro desktop icon. Once the tool is started, you will see a screen similar to the one below.
Further, click “Next” button to locate Note Mini browser hijacker. Depending on your personal computer, the scan can take anywhere from a few minutes to close to an hour. Once the scan is complete, Hitman Pro will produce a list of unwanted programs and browser hijacker as on the image below.
When you’re ready, click “Next” button. It will open a prompt, click the “Activate free license” button.
How to delete Note Mini with MalwareBytes Free
You can get rid of Note Mini hijacker automatically through the use of MalwareBytes Free. We recommend this free malicious software removal utility because it can easily remove hijacker, adware, potentially unwanted software and toolbars with all their components such as files, folders and registry entries.
Download MalwareBytes Free by clicking on the following link.
326462 downloads
Author: Malwarebytes
Category: Security tools
Update: April 15, 2020
Once the download is finished, close all software and windows on your personal computer. Double-click the set up file called MBSetup. If the “User Account Control” prompt pops up as on the image below, click the “Yes” button.
It will open the Setup wizard that will help you install MalwareBytes on your device. Follow the prompts and don’t make any changes to default settings.
Once install is complete successfully, click “Get Started” button. MalwareBytes will automatically start and you can see its main screen as displayed on the image below.
Now click the “Scan” button to begin checking your computer for the Note Mini hijacker.
Once MalwareBytes Anti Malware completes the scan, MalwareBytes Free will open a scan report. When you’re ready, click “Quarantine” button. The MalwareBytes Free will remove Note Mini browser hijacker. After that process is finished, you may be prompted to restart the device.
We advise you look at the following video, which completely explains the process of using the MalwareBytes Anti Malware (MBAM) to get rid of adware, hijacker and other malicious software.
How to stop Note Mini redirect
By installing an ad blocker program like AdGuard, you’re able to stop Note Mini redirects, block autoplaying video ads and remove tons of distracting and unwanted ads on webpages.
AdGuard can be downloaded from the following link. Save it on your MS Windows desktop or in any other place.
26659 downloads
Version: 6.4
Author: © Adguard
Category: Security tools
Update: November 15, 2018
After downloading it, run the downloaded file. You will see the “Setup Wizard” screen as displayed in the following example.
Follow the prompts. After the setup is done, you will see a window like below.
You can click “Skip” to close the setup program and use the default settings, or press “Get Started” button to see an quick tutorial that will allow you get to know AdGuard better.
In most cases, the default settings are enough and you don’t need to change anything. Each time, when you start your computer, AdGuard will start automatically and stop undesired advertisements, block Note Mini redirects, as well as other harmful or misleading web-pages. For an overview of all the features of the application, or to change its settings you can simply double-click on the AdGuard icon, that can be found on your desktop.
Finish words
Once you have finished the few simple steps above, your personal computer should be clean from this browser hijacker and other malicious software. The Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox and Microsoft Internet Explorer will no longer display the fxsmash.xyz web-site. Unfortunately, if the few simple steps does not help you, then you have caught a new browser hijacker, and then the best way – ask for help.
Please create a new question by using the “Ask Question” button in the Questions and Answers. Try to give us some details about your problems, so we can try to help you more accurately. Wait for one of our trained “Security Team” or Site Administrator to provide you with knowledgeable assistance tailored to your problem with the Note Mini browser hijacker.