Content

• Steps
• Part 1 of 4: Remove Ask Toolbar from Google Chrome
• Part 2 of 4: Remove the Ask toolbar if the above method did not work
• Part 3 of 4: Scanning with Anti-Spyware
• Part 4 of 4: Removing the Ask Toolbar using the Ask.com utility
• Tips

Have you accidentally installed the Ask toolbar on your computer? The Ask Toolbar is a search engine and toolbar that is installed when you install some free software such as Java or Adobe. It replaces your default search engine and sets up the search.ask.com home page. To remove this toolbar from Chrome, you can try it from the Chrome settings, but you may have to resort to other methods. Read on to learn how to remove Ask Toolbar from Chrome.

Steps

Part 1 of 4: Remove Ask Toolbar from Google Chrome

1. 1 Click the Chrome menu button in the top bar of the program, select "Additional tools" and click the line "Extensions.”
2. 2 Select the Extensions tab.
3. 3 Remove the Ask toolbar by clicking on the icon in the view of the trash can to the right of the name.
4. 4 Click the Chrome menu button again.
5. 5 Click on “Settings.”
6. 6 Select “Manage Search Engines.” (Located in the Search section.)
7. 7 Set your default Chrome search engine to google.com by clicking the “Set Omnibox Search Engine” button and selecting “Google.”
8. 8 Find Ask.com in the list of search engines and delete it by clicking “X.”

Part 2 of 4: Remove the Ask toolbar if the above method did not work

1. 1 Check if you are getting the following message on the Extensions page: "This extension is in use and cannot be removed or disabled."
2. 2 Close Chrome.
3. 3 Right click on the taskbar.
4. 4 Select “Start Task Manager.”
5. 5 Click on the “Processes” tab. Check and if the chrome.exe * 32 process is still running, select it.
6. 6 Click End Process.’
7. 7 Open Control Panel.
8. 8 Select “Programs and Features” or “Add or Remove Programs” or just “Programs” (depending on your OS). If you are a Windows 8 user - click on the lower left corner of the screen and select "Control Panel." Then select "Uninstall a program."
9. 9 Uninstall Toolbar Ask toolbar and Ask Toolbar Updater.
10. 10 Reboot your computer.
11. 11 Go to “Disk Cleanup.” The utility can be found in the search bar by clicking the Windows Start button.
12. 12 Select your hard drive (most likely drive C).
13. 13 Click “OK” to clean up the disk. Wait for the process to complete.
14. 14 Click the Chrome menu.
15. 15 Select “Settings.”
16. 16 Click the link Show advanced settings.”
17. 17 Click on “Content Settings.” The button is located in the "Personal data" section.
18. 18 Delete all cookies by clicking on the “All cookies and site data” button.
19. 19 If that doesn't work, click the Chrome menu button and click the "Settings" line. In the "Starter Group" section, click "Next Pages". Delete ask.com and point to the page you want.

Part 3 of 4: Scanning with Anti-Spyware

1. 1 Download the free Malwarebytes program from the malwarebytes site.org / products / malwarebytes_free / to make sure the computer is not infected with malware.
2. 2 Double click on the downloaded file to install the program.
3. 3 Follow the installation instructions on the screen.
4. 4 Click “Finish.”
5. 5 Select “Hyper Scan”to quickly scan your system for active threats.
6. 6 Click “Scan.”
7. 7 Wait for the scan to complete.
8. 8 Review the scan result and if malware is found, select all and click “Apply Actions.”

Part 4 of 4: Removing the Ask Toolbar using the Ask.com utility

1. 1 Download the utility from the Ask website.com. apnmedia.ask.com/media/toolbar/utilities/ToolbarRemover.exe
2. 2 Close the Chrome browser.
3. 3 Run the downloaded utility.
4. 4 Restart Chrome.
5. 5 Check if the Ask extension has been removed.

Tips

• The Ask toolbar comes bundled with the Java installation. Be very careful when installing or updating Java to avoid installing this toolbar.
• Always uncheck the option to install the Ask Toolbar.