Traffic Exchange Removal Guide

Do you know what Traffic Exchange is?

Traffic Exchange is classified as a potentially unwanted program, and there are several reasons why this is so. For one, this PUP is often installed onto computers without their owners’ knowledge and permission. If a piece of software is installed onto your computer without your notice, you should immediately identify it as a potential threat. Sure, it is possible that you might have downloaded software without noticing it, but you must stay alerted. Do not ignore software that runs without your permission. Instead, do your research or install a trusted malware scanner to figure out whether or not this software is dangerous and malicious. Needless to say, if you discover a serious threat, you need to focus on deleting it. In this report, we address the removal of Traffic Exchange because we believe that this potentially unwanted program deserves elimination even if it was installed with your permission.

According to our research, the website linked to Traffic Exchange is online.io. At the moment, this site only displays a contact form, using which you can leave a message. The “coming soon” notification suggests that the website has not been launched yet, and that becomes even more probable as you discover that the social media profiles (Facebook, Twitter, Google +, and Pinterest) have yet to be set up as well. Maybe this website will be used for the distribution of Traffic Exchange in the future, but right now, we see it spreading via software bundles. Unfortunately, the installers spreading this PUP can be malicious, which means that dangerous malware could be spread along with it. Do not ignore the fact that malware could be active on your PC. We advise running a full system scan immediately to figure out what your next step should be. Obviously, if you discover more dangerous threats, you need to remove them first.Traffic Exchange Removal GuideTraffic Exchange screenshot
Scroll down for full removal instructions

It was discovered that Traffic Exchange is represented by Microleaves Limited, a company that sells proxy and provides its customers with automated CAPTCHA services. According to our research, it is possible that this company is using the PUP to set proxy on unsuspecting users and then sell proxy services. We have learned about the connection between Microleaves and Traffic Exchange once we started analyzing the Privacy Policy available at online.io/legal/privacy.html. This document reveals that Cookies, Pixel Tags, Web Beacons, and Log Data are used for the collection of data. It is also revealed that information can be shared with third-parties, who, of course, are undisclosed. There is also information about “premium services,” which is very strange. If you are asked to pay money for the services associated with the PUP, refuse all offers and delete the program immediately.

When downloading Traffic Exchange, you might have been informed that this program is downloaded to C:\Program Files (x86)\Microleaves\Online Application Installer\. Our research has revealed that this is not the real location of the hijacker, which means that someone is trying to confuse you, and, possibly, make it harder for you to remove undesirable software. Unfortunately, you will not delete Traffic Exchange by uninstalling it as well. If this is the removal method you choose, you will discover that there are plenty of leftovers that also require removal. The instructions below might seem a little complicated at first, but it displays all of the steps that you need to perform to get rid of the PUP. Note that you can also install an anti-malware tool. If you do, it will take care of the PUP and other unreliable programs, and your operating system will be protected reliably so that malware could not attack in the future.

Remove Traffic Exchange

  1. Simultaneously tap keys Win+E to launch Windows Explorer.
  2. Type %PROGRAMFILES% (or %PROGRAMFILES(x86)% depending on the Windows version) into the address bar at the top and tap Enter.
  3. Right-click and Delete the folder called Microleaves.
  4. Type %WINDIR%/Installer into the bar at the top and tap Enter.
  5. Delete the folder named {438465C5-D78D-4958-B31D-60374B5042F4}.
  6. Type %WINDIR%\Tasks\ (or %WINDIR%\System32\Tasks\) into the bar at the top and tap Enter.
  7. Delete the folder named Traffic Exchange[random characters].
  8. Type %ALLUSERSPROFILE% into the bar at the top and tap Enter.
  9. Delete the folder named Microleaves.
  10. Type %ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Application Data\ into the bar at the top and tap Enter.
  11. Delete the folder named Microleaves.
  12. Simultaneously tap Win+R keys to launch RUN.
  13. Type regedit.exe into the dialog box and click OK to launch Registry Editor.
  14. Navigate to HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microleaves\ (also check HKLM\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microleaves\).
  15. Delete the keys named Traffic Exchange and Online Application Installer.
  16. Navigate to HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microleaves\.
  17. Delete the key named Traffic Exchange.
  18. Navigate to HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\.
  19. Delete the key named {438465C5-D78D-4958-B31D-60374B5042F4}.

In non-techie terms:

Whatever you might be promised to gain by installing Traffic Exchange, we can assure you that it is not worth it. In fact, you might not be introduced to this potentially unwanted program at all if it slithers into your PC without your permission. According to our research team, this PUP can slither in without your notice, collect and share information about you, and assist unreliable companies in an unpredictable manner. Although the manual removal of Traffic Exchange is not extremely complicated, you will have to spend a little of your time following the instructions shown above. If you are unable to erase the PUP along with other potentially active threats or unwanted programs, we advise using anti-malware software.