There exist only a few reasons why you’d want to remove DuckDuckGo from your computer. It could be that browser hijackers somehow found a way of making it your default search engine which now lays the precedent for you to misconstrue it to be a virus.

It could also be that you installed it in your machine or mobile phone yourself but due to reasons best known to you, you just want to get rid of it but doesn’t know how to go about it. Whichever it is, be rest assured that in this article, the necessary steps to follow, so as to get rid of it will be explained.

It is also important to state explicitly that DuckDuckGo is not a virus, though the company makes use of active advertisement strategies so as to promote their product. Having DuckDuckGo as your default search engine or browser homepage could be as a result of an adware from a freeware. To avoid such, always make sure to take your time when installing softwares on your machine. Uncheck boxes that will allow unnecessary follow-up apps to also be installed.

The best way to get rid of DuckDuckGo is to manually remove it from the system or employ the service of a third-party cleanup software.

How to get rid of DuckDuckGo from Windows systems

In order to manually remove DuckDuckGo from your Windows computer, you need to do the following:

As a prerequisite, start by removing anything that is related to the DuckDuckGo company

1. Move your mouse pointer to the lower left corner of the screen where you have the start button and right click on it.
2. From the displayed list, select “Programs and Features” (if you are Windows 7 user, click on start button, select “control panel” and click on “Programs and Features”). From the list of programs displayed, look for DuckDuckGo or any other recently installed suspicious programs.
3. If you’ve found them, uninstall them and click OK to save these changes. To uninstall a program, simply right click on the desired suspicious software and select ‘Uninstall’.

See Also: How to Make DuckDuckGo Default Search Engine in Google Chrome and Firefox Browser

HOW TO GET RID OF DUCKDUCKGO FROM SPECIFIC WEB BROWSERS IN WINDOWS

Get Rid of DuckDuckGo from Mozilla Firefox

Removing DuckDuckGo from Mozilla Firefox can be achieved either by removing the add-ons that are related to DuckDuckGo or by resetting the browser.

To delete unwanted extensions from Mozilla Firefox, do the following:

1. Open Mozilla Firefox and click on the menu icon which is located at the top right corner of the menu bar; select Add-ons from the displayed options, followed by Extensions.
2. From the list of extensions, select DuckDuckGo and other malicious-looking plugins present and then click Remove to delete these entries.
3. If the homepage of your browser was altered and you want to restore it back to its original form, just continue with these simple steps below:
4. Click on the menu icon which is located at the top right corner of the menu bar and choose Options then click General. Here, delete all malicious URLs and then enter your preferable website or better yet, click Restore to default.
5. Finally, click OK to save these changes.

If you want to reset Mozilla Firefox at once, just do the following:

1. Click on the menu icon which is located at the top right corner of the menu bar and click on the question mark. After that, choose Troubleshooting Information.
2. You will see Reset Firefox to its default state message with Reset Firefox button. Click this button for a couple of times and then complete DuckDuckGo removal.

How to Get Rid Of DuckDuckGo from Microsoft Edge

Removing DuckDuckGo from Microsoft edge is quite simple and can be achieved either by removing the add-ons that are related to DuckDuckGo or by resetting the browser.

To delete unwanted extensions from Microsoft Edge, do the following:

1. Select the three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window which serves as the Menu and click on Extensions.
2. A list will be displayed; from the displayed list, select the DuckDuckGo-related extension and click on the Gear icon.
3. Finally, click on Uninstall at the bottom.

One more thing you can do is to clear cookies and other data stored in the browser. To do this, follow the steps below.

1. Click on the Menu and select Privacy & security.
2. Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear. Now, you want to select everything except your stored passwords unless you’re comfortable with wiping them off, and then click on Clear.

Another thing you can also do, though a little bit extreme, would be to reset MS Edge once and for all, that’s if the above actions failed to effect the desired result. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Press on Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager.
2. Now, click on the More details arrow which is at the bottom of the window.
3. Select Details tab and then scroll down till you locate every entry with Microsoft Edge name in it. Upon achieving that, right-click on each of them and select End Task to stop MS Edge from running.

How to get rid of DuckDuckGo from Mac OS X system

To get rid of DuckDuckGo from Mac OS, proceed as follows:

1. From the menu bar, select Go followed by Applications.
2. In the Applications folder, look for DuckDuckGo-related entries. Once you’ve found it, click on the app and drag it to Trash (or right-click and pick Move to Trash)

In order to fully remove DuckDuckGo, you will have to access Application Support, LaunchAgents, LaunchDaemons folders and then delete all relevant files:

1. Once again, Select Go followed by Go to Folder.
2. Enter /Library/Application Support and then click on Go or just press Enter.
3. In the Application Support folder, look for any malicious entries related to DuckDuckGo and then delete them.
4. Finally, enter /Library/LaunchAgents and /Library/LaunchDaemons folders the same way and terminate all the DuckDuckGo-related entries.

Delete DuckDuckGo from Safari

Removing DuckDuckGo from Safari browser is quite simple and just like others, can be achieved either by removing the add-ons that are related to DuckDuckGo or by resetting the browser.

This is how you remove unwanted extensions from Safari:

1. Open Safari web browser and click on Safari in menu at the top left of the screen. Proceed to select Preferences.
2. Select Extensions and look for DuckDuckGo or other malicious entries. Click the Uninstall button in order to get rid of each of them.

To Reset Safari, do the following:

1. Open Safari browser and click on Safari in menu section at the top left of the screen and then proceed to select Reset Safari.
2. A detailed dialog window filled with reset options will appear. All options are usually checked, but you can specify which of them you want to reset. Finally, just click on the Reset button so as to complete the DuckDuckGo removal process.

How to Get Rid Of DuckDuckGo from Android and IOS

This can simply be done by uninstalling the DuckDuckGo app from the device or by making another search engine the default search engine.

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Author: Simon RobertEasyInfoBlog is a multi-author blog. We have experts and professionals in various fields who share their ideas and expert knowledge to help you with your daily information needs. Thanks for reading!