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Firefox - search engine changed to Yahoo - I want Google back!


Arjay

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In the last few days when I do a search in Firefox it defaults to Yahoo, although I've deleted Yahoo from my search engines and only have Google ticked off as my default.

I've searched for a fix but can't find one. I don't want to mess up my computer but can anyone help me with a solution. Evidently this has happened to many people but fixing it is another issue.

Help, please.

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Not sure what to tell you. I use Firefox exclusively and don't have this issue. I don't use Google search however, because they are evil and useless, storing and sharing your search data while at the same time filtering your search results so that you only see what they want you to see. If you ask me, you're much better off. You'd be even better off using my search engine, Ixquick or something similar.

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In Firefox from the main menu at the top click on Tools, then Options>Search and choose the search engine you prefer.

and from there you can delete any you don't want the option of using. There is a 'remove' button below the box showing the search engines.

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Firefox has changed its default search engine from Google to Yahoo, so each time a new version of Firefox is installed I think you have to clear a check box to prevent the search engine you have previously selected from being changed to Yahoo.

This is probably the reason the OP's search engine changed rather than due to a virus or malware.

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Yes, what rjkveton said. And so far, Yahoo has not implemented the very sneaky, very dirty concept of hijacking your search engine without telling you... except when Mozilla decides that's the way it will be. (NOTE that anytime you install Google Chrome, they include ASK as one of the search engines. ASK is known far and wide as one of the biggest perpetrators of spyware-related links in the known universe. They must be paying Google a LOT of money for this... especially since Google is its own search engine to begin with.)

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Left click on the magnifying glass in the "Search" box on the top bar. Left click on "Change Search Settings." Now you can change search settings.

I don't see a magnifying glass in version 36.x of Firefox. The only magnifier I know of must be added with the Customize tool, and it is used for searching within the web page you are on.

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I don't see a magnifying glass in version 36.x of Firefox. The only magnifier I know of must be added with the Customize tool, and it is used for searching within the web page you are on.

I'm talking about the "Search" box located immediately to the right of the url.

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Sorry, ComputerGuy, but I have to disagree with you about Google Chrome. My default search engine is Google, not Ask. I have done checks often, and I have no malware installed by anyone. I have NEVER had any problems or issues with Google Chrome, unlike Firefox and Safari!

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and from there you can delete any you don't want the option of using. There is a 'remove' button below the box showing the search engines.

I've done all that, removed Yahoo and ticked off only Google. But it still defaults to Yahoo.

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Arjay, when I used Firefox the same thing happened to me on several occasions. When it happened to me, my default search engine became ASK. It was just as Computer Guy said: full of malware, full of bugs.

Unfortunately, you now have some sort of malware bug on your computer--your search function has been hijacked. I was able to find a 'fix' for the malware, but it has been so long since I used Firefox that I no longer remember what I used to delete the bug.

You can either Google to find the fix or you can get a tech to help you find it. It is a royal PITA to have this problem.

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I'm talking about the "Search" box located immediately to the right of the url.

Alex, thanks for pointing that out. Absolutely right, of course. I never noticed... I go into the Tools > Options to make that change, because I guess I never actually clicked on the magnifier.

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Sorry, ComputerGuy, but I have to disagree with you about Google Chrome. My default search engine is Google, not Ask. I have done checks often, and I have no malware installed by anyone. I have NEVER had any problems or issues with Google Chrome, unlike Firefox and Safari!

No, it doesn't install as your default search engine (I said they include it as one of them), but it does install as an alternative. You can see it by going into the Options and checking your search engines settings. And trust me, just because you haven't had any problems with Chrome, doesn't mean they don't exist. If you count up the number of people I see every week, you get a much broader picture of what goes on out there.

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I've done all that, removed Yahoo and ticked off only Google. But it still defaults to Yahoo.

Unfortunately, that's just one place to check. You must make sure that Google is selected as the Engine in the first field, and then delete the others by using the Delete button in the same dialog box. That makes sure. BUT you also have to check and change your home page. Then you have to look for spyware installed on your PC: one, by checking the AddOns under Tools, and two, by looking in the Programs and Features list in the Control Panel. Then you have to make sure the shortcuts to Firefox have not been compromised.And so on.

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