Search Support

Avoid support scams. We will never ask you to call or text a phone number or share personal information. Please report suspicious activity using the “Report Abuse” option.

Learn More

Google home page has spurious characters in address line. Why?

  • 8 replies
  • 2 have this problem
  • 2 views
  • Last reply by finitarry

more options

I have recently rebooted my machine after getting some issues with it.I reset the home page to Google after hopefully fixing it. There is now an issue with the home page address:

https://www.google.co.uk/?gfe_rd=cr&ei=qZ7jVJfvLNCq8wf-jIDwCw&gws_rd=ssl - what are teh surious characters after Google.co.uk?

How can they be removed? I reset homepgae and search engines but nothing happened

Thank you Regards Simon

I have recently rebooted my machine after getting some issues with it.I reset the home page to Google after hopefully fixing it. There is now an issue with the home page address: https://www.google.co.uk/?gfe_rd=cr&ei=qZ7jVJfvLNCq8wf-jIDwCw&gws_rd=ssl - what are teh surious characters after Google.co.uk? How can they be removed? I reset homepgae and search engines but nothing happened Thank you Regards Simon

All Replies (8)

more options

Can you attach a screenshot?

  • Use a compressed image type like PNG or JPG to save the screenshot
  • Make sure that you do not exceed the maximum size of 1 MB

The McAfee SiteAdvisor extension has been reported to cause issues with text Chinese (CJK) characters appearing on tabs, so you can disable this extension until McAfee releases an update to address this issue.

See also these SUMO threads:

more options

Did you bookmark only google.co.uk? If I try that hostname, I get: https://www.google.co.uk/?gws_rd=ssl That stuff after ".uk/" refers to the page being encrypted, but I have no idea what the rest is in your link.

more options

Shax658 said

I have recently rebooted my machine after getting some issues with it.I reset the home page to Google after hopefully fixing it. There is now an issue with the home page address: https://www.google.co.uk/?gfe_rd=cr&ei=qZ7jVJfvLNCq8wf-jIDwCw&gws_rd=ssl - what are teh surious characters after Google.co.uk? How can they be removed? I reset homepgae and search engines but nothing happened Thank you Regards Simon

Here is home page screenshot.

more options

I have attached s ceen shot - showing the spurious characters. Further assistance would be appreciated

Thank you Simon

more options

I see no spurious characters in that screenshot. The text all looks normal to me. I have never seen an image like that on a Google page, though.

more options

I have never seen an image like that on a Google page

See:

more options

Hi Finitarry and Corel The spurious characyers are in teh web address line - Its normally justy Google.co.uk or Google.com

As for the image, Google vary itdepending on an anniversary or natabale date

more options

I see no spurious characters in the address line either. They all look normal, unless you refer to the fact that everything but the domain name and suffix is semitransparent. That is the default way Firefox displays addresses now (WHY?? - it is an awkward way to emphasize something). The strange-looking code is probably specifying the doodle you are using, in addition to specifying that the page is encrypted.