You may have accidentally downloaded the Ask toolbar to your computer. The Ask toolbar is a search engine and web toolbar that can be obtained through other free programs such as Java or during an Adobe update. Then Ask will replace your chosen search engine and your home page will be search.ask.com. To remove this toolbar from Chrome, you can try removing it through Chrome's settings, but you may need to use another method to remove it. Read the steps below to find out how to remove the Ask toolbar from Chrome.
Step
Part 1 of 4: Removing Ask Toolbar from Google Chrome
Step 1. Click the Chrome menu button on the browser's toolbar, select "Tools" then click "Extensions
”
Step 2. Select the "Extensions" tab
Step 3. Remove the Ask Toolbar by clicking on the little trash icon next to it
Step 4. Click the Chrome menu button again
Step 5. Click “Settings
”
Step 6. Click “Manage search engines
” (This is in the Search section.)
Step 7. Assign Chrome's default search engine to google.com by clicking the “Make Default” button and selecting “Google
Step 8. Look for Ask.com in the Search Engine list, and delete it by clicking "X
Part 2 of 4: Removing Ask Toolbar if Above Method doesn't Work
Step 1. See if you get this message on the Extensions page
“This extension is managed and cannot be removed or disabled.”
Step 2. Close Chrome
Step 3. Right click on an empty part of the task bar
Step 4. Select “Start Task Manager
”
Step 5. Click the "Processes" tab
See if chrome.exe*32 is still running and choose if it is.
Step 6. Click "End process
"
Step 7. Open Control Panel
Step 8. Select “Programs and Features” or “Add or Remove Programs” or “Programs” (depending on your operating system
) For Windows 8 users, right-click in the lower-left corner and select "Control panel." Then select “Uninstall a program.”
Step 9. Remove Ask toolbar and Ask Toolbar Updater
Step 10. Restart your computer
Step 11. Open "disk cleanup
" You can search for it in the search box by clicking the Windows Start button.
Step 12. Select your hard drive (maybe C)
Step 13. Click "OK" to clean the drive
Wait for it to finish.
Step 14. Click the Chrome menu
Step 15. Select “Settings
”
Step 16. Click “Show advanced settings
”
Step 17. Click “Content Settings
” It's in the “Privacy” section.
Step 18. Delete cookies in the “All Cookies and site data” section
Step 19. If the above doesn't work, click the chrome menu and go to "settings"
Under "On start up", click "set pages". Delete ask.com and specify the page you want.
Part 3 of 4: Running a Scan with an Anti-Malware Program
Step 1. Download Malwarebytes for free at malwarebytes.org/products/malwarebytes_free/ to ensure that no malware remains on your computer
Step 2. Double click to install the program
Step 3. Follow the on-screen steps to install it
Step 4. Click “Finish
”
Step 5. Select “Hyper Scan” to perform a quick check of your system for active threats
Step 6. Click “Scan
”
Step 7. Wait for the scan to complete
Step 8. Pay attention to the malware results found, select all and click “Apply Actions
”
Part 4 of 4: Removing Ask Toolbar with Tools from Ask.com
Step 1. Download the tool from Ask.com
apnmedia.ask.com/media/toolbar/utilities/ToolbarRemover.exe
Step 2. Close Chrome browser
Step 3. Run the removal tool you downloaded
Step 4. Restart Chrome
Step 5. Notice that the Ask extension is gone now
Tips
- Ask toolbar is bundled with Java. You must be very careful during the installation process so that you avoid installing it when you install or update Java.
- Make sure you never choose to install the Ask Toolbar.
