How do i get rid of Claro-Search taking over NEW TAB function?

Question

Claro-Search took over our Firefox settings when opening NEW TAB.
I already took back the general internet search Navigation Bar and default sign on page. But I cannot find out how Claro-Search.com is using the New Tab.

Answer 1

Hi Calrosearch (typo?), it's curious that the images on that page are hosted on babylon.com. Is there a family relationship between Claro search and the often discussed Babylon software?
The video only covers one of the steps on the removal page, so that certainly could be improved.
I noticed in the instructions on this separate page that users might also need to remove a toolbar (using the Firefox Add-ons > Extensions page): http://www.claro-search.com/uninstall.htm
I'm not sure it's fair to characterize the cleanup as "easy." Allow me to summarize:
''On Windows''
(0) Use the Control Panel Add/Remove Programs or Programs and Settings to uninstall the "Browser Manager" program.
''In Firefox''
(1) Check for any unwanted/unknown Extension (e.g., "Claro Toolbar" or "Browser Manager") here and remove it:
(WIN) orange Firefox button ''or'' classic Tools menu > Add-ons > Extensions<br>
(MAC)(LINUX) Tools > Add-ons > Extensions
(2) To remove any unwanted search engine plugin, click the icon at the left of the search bar and use Manage Search Engines. Then choose your preferred default search engine on the drop-down list.
(3) To reset your home page, use the "Restore to Default" button (if you want the built-in Firefox home page) here:
(WIN) orange Firefox button ''or'' classic Tools menu > Options > General tab<br>
(MAC) Firefox > Preferences > General tab<br>
(LINUX) Edit > Preferences > General tab
If you prefer a different home page, you can paste the URL there or if you are viewing the page(s) you want, you can click the Use Current Pages button to store all tabs in the current window as your home page(s). More info: [[How to set the home page]].
(4) To reset the behavior of the "new tab" you can use these steps:
(A) In a new tab, type or paste '''about:config''' in the address bar and press Enter. Click the button promising to be careful.
(B) In the filter box, type or paste '''newtab''' and pause while the list is filtered
(C) Double-click the '''browser.newtab.url''' preference and enter the desired value:
''(i) Page thumbnails (default)''
browser.newtab.url = about:newtab
''(ii) Blank tab''
browser.newtab.url = about:blank
''(iii) Built-in Firefox home page''
browser.newtab.url = about:home
''(iv) Any other page''
browser.newtab.url = full URL to the page
(5) While you have the about:config tab open, you can filter on '''claro''' and adjust any other relevant settings back to your preferred setting.
(6) If your changes are reverted after your next restart of Firefox, you may also need to edit or delete a settings file in your personal Firefox settings folder (AKA Firefox profile folder).
To access the folder, use:
Help > Troubleshooting Information > "Show Folder" button.
Switch back to Firefox and Exit
Pause while Firefox finishes its cleanup, then rename '''user.js''' to something like user.old (or just delete it).
Restart Firefox and repeat steps (3) - (5) if needed. Hopefully for the last time.
That's a lot to expect from a user who may not even have realized they were installing the product and if they did what that would mean for their browsing experience. I'm sure if this happened to you unexpectedly, you would be aggravated, too.