TestForSpeed Toolbar Removal Guide

Do you know what TestForSpeed Toolbar is?

You might want to test your Internet speed from time to time, but we must advise you against TestForSpeed Toolbar because it is a browser extension that may present to you virtual security risks. According to our researchers, this application is a newcomer from the infamous Mindspark toolbar family. If you have any of the free products from this family on board, you should know that your virtual security may be in danger. It is quite possible that this toolbar was not even installed knowingly, i.e., you did not realize that it was a part of a software package. This is how most people infect their computers actually. There are some ways to prevent bundles packed with malware infections from entering your operating system. If you want to learn how you can do that and what kind of risks this toolbar may hold, please read our full article. In the end we will also give you solutions to remove TestForSpeed Toolbar to stop this threat source from operating.

Research shows that there are mainly two ways in which this bad toolbar can be installed officially: First, from its promotional page at free.testforspeed.com and second, from the Chrome web store at chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/testforspeed/nmlmfgdnbmpmdodlnfddhoeoepdbhkdg. The statistics on the web store installation window clearly show that this extension is far from being popular among computer users. As a matter of fact, the numbers show merely one download through the store. Somehow users stay away from this worthless tool. One reason may be that it is possible to run a web search on this extension. It is worth mentioning that you can always check extensions if you figure out their Chrome IDs. Each extension gets a unique ID string from Chrome, which looks like a random string of characters at first sight. In this case it is nmlmfgdnbmpmdodlnfddhoeoepdbhkdg, which you can find in the web store URL. But you can also reveal it from the Google Chrome browser extension list, if you select the Developer mode at the top. If you Google this ID, you may find some answers with regard to the reliability of your extension. But, even if you do not have this code at your disposal for some reason, you should always double-check on the application you are about to install onto your computer. The sad truth is that either way you will find articles suggesting that you should remove TestForSpeed Toolbar as a malware infection. Knowing this before installing this extension could have saved you some headaches.

But obviously this is not the only way for this bad toolbar to appear on your computer. According to our researchers it can also spread in software bundles. Although originally bundles are legitimate software packages that distribute additional free tools and applications with an authentic free application, unfortunately, this same method is also used by schemers to spread malware infections over the web. These malicious bundles can be downloaded if you click on unsafe third-party ads generated by an adware infection on your computer, or from questionable websites, including freeware and torrent sites, if you click on practically any content while visiting them. Therefore, we suggest that you keep away from such sites and use only trustworthy and reputable websites for downloading software. If you want to know for sure what the malware situation is on your computer, we advise you to delete TestForSpeed Toolbar and then run a malware scanner to identify all possible threats to your system.TestForSpeed Toolbar Removal GuideTestForSpeed Toolbar screenshot
Scroll down for full removal instructions

Our researchers have found that this bad toolbar is host on 74.113.233.180 IP address, which gives home to lots of other useless Mindspark domains, including allin1convert.com, convertanyfile.com, and gardeningenthusiast.com. While this extension is installed, it creates lots of CLSIDs (e.g., {14dcedf1-c390-4bf4-89c3-23d5e54769db} and {16E4D9B0-2441-41AD-A716-38396738A85C}) and registry keys (e.g., [HKLM|HKCU]\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID and [HKLM|HKCU]\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Browser Helper Objects) in the Windows Registry. Therefore, if you do not remove TestForSpeed Toolbar properly, it may leave a lot of leftovers and mess on your system.

This bad toolbar does not only display a pseudo toolbar at the top of your browser page with easy-access links to Internet speed related third-party websites, but it also has a search tool. As a matter of fact, our researchers say that Mindspark products have changed their functioning. This toolbar also used to use ask.com as a third-party search engine and used to change the default search engine settings in your browsers, but currently it seems that this extension only changes the home page and new tab page settings and now it uses int.search.myway.com. As you can see, these applications may change from time to time. But it does not necessarily mean that they become more reliable.

You should not trust this bad toolbar because it can collect information about you and use this for promoting third parties to you. It is possible that it can inject third-party ads into the third-party websites it offers and the search results as well. Finding yourself on a manipulated search results page is like walking on a landmine field with eyes closed; you never know when you click on an unsafe ad or link that will take you to a malicious website. Therefore, we advise you to eliminate this threat source as soon as you can.

And fortunately, you can. Even though Mindspark applications operate by the use of a lot of files and registry entries, they always have a working uninstaller that takes care of most of these. However, we have found that this uninstaller may not take care of the browser setting changes in all of the browsers. That is why it is safer to reset all of them on a “just in case” basis. Please use our guide below if you need assistance with these steps. Also, remember that you can always download and install a professional security tool for perfect protection unless you want to keep hunting for malware infections manually.

TestForSpeed Toolbar Removal from Windows

Windows XP

  1. Click the Start button and pick Control Panel.
  2. Open Add or Remove Programs.
  3. Click on the application and click Remove.

Windows Vista and Windows 7

  1. Access the Start menu and go to Control Panel.
  2. Pick Uninstall a program.
  3. Click on the application and click Uninstall.

Windows8, Windows 8.1, and Windows 10

  1. Press Win+X and choose Programs and Features.
  2. Click on the application and click Uninstall.

Reset the Browsers

Google Chrome

  1. Tap Alt+F and choose Settings.
  2. Scroll down and click Show advanced settings.
  3. Scroll down and click Reset settings.
  4. Click Reset in the pop-up.

Mozilla Firefox

  1. Tap Alt+H and select Troubleshooting Information.
  2. Press Refresh Firefox. In the pop-up, press Refresh Firefox again.
  3. Click Finish.

Internet Explorer

  1. Tap Alt+T and open Internet Options.
  2. On the Advanced tab, click Reset.
  3. Tick Delete personal settings and click Reset.
  4. Press Close.

In non-techie terms:

TestForSpeed Toolbar is yet another useless and potentially unreliable browser extension from the Mindspark family. If you have this toolbar in your browsers, you may be exposed to unsafe third-party content through the services this extension provides you. This bad toolbar may also slither onto your computer along with other malware programs; therefore, failing to act in time may put your computer at risk. We recommend that you remove TestForSpeed Toolbar and run a full-system malware scan to detect all other potential threat sources. Your computer will not be secure until you hunt down all malware infections. If you are looking for an efficient way to fight these invaders, we suggest that you install a trustworthy malware removal application.