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How to get rid of: ACCUWEATHER It's an unwanted pest!

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ACCUWEATHER just won't go away. It's UNWANTED on my desktop and it even added an additional version of it just to make me smile! (not!). I've read all the information I can stand and it seems that ACCUWEATHER is something that many people just give up on deleting it. I like a clean desktop and ACCUWEATHER is like a pest that refused to be deleted; I never asked for it and it has now added one more version to my desktop just to make me smile. Any help? I think most people just seem to ignore it instead of giving us A WAY to get rid of ACCUWEATHER. My temperature is rising! I'm being held hostage by ACCUWEATHER in all it's forms. Help!!!

ACCUWEATHER just won't go away. It's UNWANTED on my desktop and it even added an additional version of it just to make me smile! (not!). I've read all the information I can stand and it seems that ACCUWEATHER is something that many people just give up on deleting it. I like a clean desktop and ACCUWEATHER is like a pest that refused to be deleted; I never asked for it and it has now added one more version to my desktop just to make me smile. Any help? I think most people just seem to ignore it instead of giving us A WAY to get rid of ACCUWEATHER. My temperature is rising! I'm being held hostage by ACCUWEATHER in all it's forms. Help!!!

Chosen solution

Could you describe what you see on your desktop in more detail? For example, is it a shortcut to the AccuWeather website, or is it a shortcut that starts a program on your system? Or do you have one of each?


Here's my is my suggested procedure for tracking down and cleaning up bad add-ons and other hijackers. I know it seems long, but it's really not that bad.

(For Windows Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, 10; XP is somewhat different)

(1) Open the Windows Control Panel, Uninstall a Program. After the list loads, click the "Installed on" column heading to group the infections, I mean, additions, by date. This can help in smoking out undisclosed bundle items that snuck in with some software you agreed to install. Be suspicious of everything you do not recognize/remember, as malware often uses important or innocent sounding names to discourage you from removing it. Take out as much trash as possible here.

(2) Open Firefox's Add-ons page using either:

  • Ctrl+Shift+a
  • "3-bar" menu button (or Tools menu) > Add-ons
  • in the Windows "Run" dialog, type or paste
    firefox.exe "about:addons"

In the left column, click Plugins. Set nonessential and unrecognized plugins to "Never Activate".

In the left column, click Extensions. Then, if in doubt, disable (or Remove, if possible) unrecognized and unwanted extensions. All extensions are optional; none come with Firefox.

Often a link will appear above at least one disabled extension to restart Firefox. You can complete your work on the tab and click one of the links as the last step.

Any improvement?

(3) You can search for remaining issues with the scanning/cleaning tools listed in our support article: Troubleshoot Firefox issues caused by malware. These on-demand scanners are free and take considerable time to run. If they finish quickly and especially if they require payment, you may have a serious infection. I suggest the specialized forums listed in the article in that case.

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Any help appreciated!

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Chosen Solution

Could you describe what you see on your desktop in more detail? For example, is it a shortcut to the AccuWeather website, or is it a shortcut that starts a program on your system? Or do you have one of each?


Here's my is my suggested procedure for tracking down and cleaning up bad add-ons and other hijackers. I know it seems long, but it's really not that bad.

(For Windows Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, 10; XP is somewhat different)

(1) Open the Windows Control Panel, Uninstall a Program. After the list loads, click the "Installed on" column heading to group the infections, I mean, additions, by date. This can help in smoking out undisclosed bundle items that snuck in with some software you agreed to install. Be suspicious of everything you do not recognize/remember, as malware often uses important or innocent sounding names to discourage you from removing it. Take out as much trash as possible here.

(2) Open Firefox's Add-ons page using either:

  • Ctrl+Shift+a
  • "3-bar" menu button (or Tools menu) > Add-ons
  • in the Windows "Run" dialog, type or paste
    firefox.exe "about:addons"

In the left column, click Plugins. Set nonessential and unrecognized plugins to "Never Activate".

In the left column, click Extensions. Then, if in doubt, disable (or Remove, if possible) unrecognized and unwanted extensions. All extensions are optional; none come with Firefox.

Often a link will appear above at least one disabled extension to restart Firefox. You can complete your work on the tab and click one of the links as the last step.

Any improvement?

(3) You can search for remaining issues with the scanning/cleaning tools listed in our support article: Troubleshoot Firefox issues caused by malware. These on-demand scanners are free and take considerable time to run. If they finish quickly and especially if they require payment, you may have a serious infection. I suggest the specialized forums listed in the article in that case.