Safari won't let me change search engine

[Ginna Phillips]

I keep trying to change back to google since I seems to have turned to bing and all my pages open with a yahoo search. I may have done this after watching 60 Minutes but I'm hating this search engine. I can't seem to research a question without a billion links to online store sites and nothing at all relevant to my query. AND when I try to change it in preference it won't let me click on any other options.

And every time I look for advice on this I get an elementary stroll to the radio button where they patiently click on the google (or whatever), like I'm my mother or something. It isn't working! It won't allow me to change. Is there a secret way to change this or do I just have to make Chrome my default?

Oh, one other thing I have turned off my extensions already but that didn't help.

 

[honestone]

What Mac OS are you running? If you are running Sierra or High Sierra, the newest (and recently released) version of Safari is V12.0.1.

Also, do you have this issue with other browsers, like Firefox or Opera (I suspect Google Chrome already has Google as its default search engine). I use Google Chrome, and never have issues. It is the fastest of all the browsers available for Macs.

Update: As I mentioned, I use Google Chrome, and in fact rarely, if ever, use Safari. But I went ahead and tested Safari. I am running OS 10.13.6 (latest version of High Sierra), and initially had V11.0.2 of Safari. Selecting Preferences from the menu under the Safari heading (the one just to the right of the black Apple icon in the menu bar), and selecting Search, the first choice on that screen is "Search engine", along with an Up-Down Blue arrow to the right. When you click on that arrow, it shows you a list of 4 Search Engine choices: Google, Yahoo, Bing, and DuckDuckGo. You can just choose any of those, and your default search engine will change immediately to that choice. It's the same with V12.0.1 of Safari, which I did download from the AppStore.

 

[Allen Davis]

I keep trying to change back to google since I seems to have turned to bing and all my pages open with a yahoo search. I may have done this after watching 60 Minutes but I'm hating this search engine. I can't seem to research a question without a billion links to online store sites and nothing at all relevant to my query. AND when I try to change it in preference it won't let me click on any other options.

And every time I look for advice on this I get an elementary stroll to the radio button where they patiently click on the google (or whatever), like I'm my mother or something. It isn't working! It won't allow me to change. Is there a secret way to change this or do I just have to make Chrome my default?

Oh, one other thing I have turned off my extensions already but that didn't help.

I made a reference to a 60 Minutes segment I watched on Sunday, November 11 concerning data privacy, so I'm assuming you saw the same one.

I abandoned Google as a search engine almost three years ago in favor of DuckDuckGo (www.duckduckgo.com). Appearance-wise, it looks very much like Google. It's very, very fast. And it seems to be every bit as good as Google in turning up results.

Best of all, it doesn't track you around like a bloodhound the way Google does. I heartily recommend you take it for a test drive for a few days. I think you will be pleased with it.

I posted a couple of rants concerning online privacy and data security elsewhere which addresses my concerns about this subject.

 

[Ginna Phillips]

First of all, thank you for taking the time to answer. I apparently didn't make myself clear.If I WANT to use google or anything else I want to be able to switch to it and, as I said in my post I've already tried the easy steps. They are not working. It will not allow me to change the radio button. I click on it and nothing happens. It is stuck on bing. I'm looking for someone to tell me how to fix it.

 

[honestone]

OK, some basic questions:

1. What exact Mac OS are you running?

2. What version of Safari do you have?

3. Try another browser and see what happens when you try to change search engines.

4. Have you ever done any disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs, from a software perspective? You can actually do quite a lot of disk cleanup on your own, and there are some excellent products available (both free and commercial) that can help you with that.

5. Are you making backups to an external device? That task is so, so critical. If you are doing that, what software do you use for that task?

 

[indago]

I keep trying to change back to google since I seems to have turned to bing and all my pages open with a yahoo search. I may have done this after watching 60 Minutes but I'm hating this search engine. I can't seem to research a question without a billion links to online store sites and nothing at all relevant to my query. AND when I try to change it in preference it won't let me click on any other options.

And every time I look for advice on this I get an elementary stroll to the radio button where they patiently click on the google (or whatever), like I'm my mother or something. It isn't working! It won't allow me to change. Is there a secret way to change this or do I just have to make Chrome my default?

Oh, one other thing I have turned off my extensions already but that didn't help.

I am using a MacBook Pro Silver and just downloaded SeaMonkey and am using it to post here.

In Safari, bring down Safari Preferences, and click on Search. There should be a selection of Search Engines there, I show four, Google being one of them.

 

[honestone]

In Safari, bring down Safari Preferences, and click on Search. There should be a selection of Search Engines there, I show four, Google being one of them.

I already mentioned that above (see the post I made last Thursday), but the op is still having issues trying to do that. Hence my questions above, and the suggestion to try another browser. If he can change the search engine with another browser, that says there are issues with the version of Safari he is using. If not, then it would indicate other software issues.

 

[Ginna Phillips]

OK, some basic questions:

1. What exact Mac OS are you running?

2. What version of Safari do you have?

3. Try another browser and see what happens when you try to change search engines.

4. Have you ever done any disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs, from a software perspective? You can actually do quite a lot of disk cleanup on your own, and there are some excellent products available (both free and commercial) that can help you with that.

5. Are you making backups to an external device? That task is so, so critical. If you are doing that, what software do you use for that task?

 

[Ginna Phillips]

Version 12.0.1 Sarfari
Mac OS Version 12.0.1 (I can go no further with this iMac.)

Yes my other browser is Chrome (Version 12.0.1). Obviously Chrome will let me use Google as a search engine. The question is how to change it in Safari.

I've been using Backup my PC (I will need to change to another backup since it doesn't support 64 bit encryption I just read.) I just upgraded to High Sierra last week but not being able to switch back to Google search engine issue predates that upgrade and continues after.

What would you recommend as back-up when I change? (Would Apple do? Most of my work is being saved to the cloud by default now). Also what would you do for a manual cleanup and what software is best. Cleanup my pc seems to have been inadvertently downloaded in the last few months. I thought I had tossed it but like a bad penny... I read on this forum that it causes more problems than it solves but that may be one participant's opinion (though I seem to recall he had a level of expertise).

As for using google, I don't use it all that much for commerce, mostly research. I don't think they "hound you" so much if you are fact checking something you heard in the news or the like because there isn't THAT much money it it, though I guess where ads are placed makes a difference.

Thank you for your time and expertise.

 

[honestone]

Version 12.0.1 Sarfari
Mac OS Version 12.0.1
Yes my other browser is Chrome (Version 12.0.1). Obviously Chrome will let me use Google as a search engine. The question is how to change it in Safari.

Again, can you change the search engine in Google Chrome? For Google Chrome, select Preferences from the Chrome Menu, then scroll down to where it says "Search Engine", and then click on "Manage Search Engines". You can then pick another one there.

For Safari, I already provided the instructions above. But here they are again:

Launch Safari. Then selecting Preferences from the menu under the Safari heading (the one just to the right of the black Apple icon in the menu bar), and selecting Search, the first choice on that screen is "Search engine", along with an Up-Down Blue arrow to the right. When you click on that arrow, it shows you a list of 4 Search Engine choices: Google, Yahoo, Bing, and DuckDuckGo. You can just choose any of those, and your default search engine will change immediately to that choice

 

[Ginna Phillips]

NO! I've said this 3 times now! IT WILL NOT LET ME CHANGE! I'm not stupid. As for search engine in Chrome, why on earth would they use anything but google. I never changed from that in the first place. It's just Safari that seems stuck on bing. No other button will work, not how many times I click on it.

 

[Allen Davis]

I keep trying to change back to google since I seems to have turned to bing and all my pages open with a yahoo search. I may have done this after watching 60 Minutes but I'm hating this search engine. I can't seem to research a question without a billion links to online store sites and nothing at all relevant to my query. AND when I try to change it in preference it won't let me click on any other options.

And every time I look for advice on this I get an elementary stroll to the radio button where they patiently click on the google (or whatever), like I'm my mother or something. It isn't working! It won't allow me to change. Is there a secret way to change this or do I just have to make Chrome my default?

Oh, one other thing I have turned off my extensions already but that didn't help.

In Safari, go to preferences and click the Search icon near the top of the window.

The first option you should see is a pop-up menu showing your active default search engine. Click on that and choose another option. In my particular browser window, I can see Google, Bing, Yahoo and DuckDuckGo as my options. Choose Google if that's the one you want.

Close your preferences window and you should be good to go.

 

[honestone]

NO! I've said this 3 times now! IT WILL NOT LET ME CHANGE! I'm not stupid. As for search engine in Chrome, why on earth would they use anything but google. I never changed from that in the first place. It's just Safari that seems stuck on bing. No other button will work, not how many times I click on it.

NO REASON TO SHOUT! Allen above states the EXACT same steps I did.

Also, you still have not tried to change the search engine in Google Chrome. It's NOT that you are bing asked to change it permanently, but to see IF you can change it. If you can, you can always change it back, and that would also say there is an issue with Safari. If you can't change it in Chrome, then there are, most likely, other software issues.

WE are trying to help you. And that takes cooperation.

One other basic question I asked above, but still no answer: Are you making backups to an external device? That task is so, so critical. If you are doing that, what software do you use for that task? The reason for that is in case there are more serious software issues, it then might be best to do a clean installation of the Mac OS you are using, and then migrate/copy needed stuff from the back up.

 

[indago]

NO! I've said this 3 times now! IT WILL NOT LET ME CHANGE! I'm not stupid. As for search engine in Chrome, why on earth would they use anything but google. I never changed from that in the first place. It's just Safari that seems stuck on bing. No other button will work, not how many times I click on it.

While you're in Safari, put Google in your search and start using it for searching and see if it asks you if you want to make it your default search. If so, check YES, and begin using it. Maybe it will embed itself into your Safari.

 

[Ginna Phillips]

Okay sorry for shouting but I keep saying that I've gone to preferences and to search and the options and it will not let me highlight anything BUT bing. I could click all day it won't change to google, yahoo or duck duck go. And then people tell me to do what I've repeatedly said I can't do. My expertise in these matters is limited but I can usually make changes in preferences.

By the way, I changed my homepage to google.com. It opens in google but STILL searches in Bing. It's maddening! It doesn't ask if I want to change to google as a search engine, just as a browser.

As for changing my search engine in the google browser, I can't find how you would do that in the preferences. Even the advanced preferences. Maybe you can tell me how (though I can't think of why I would want to change my search to anything but google) in chrome. I guess it would be good to know just in case.

And, yes I actually DID say that I was backing up to an external cloud based drive. I even asked for advice for a newer one to use. I even went back to read my answer to make sure it hadn't been deleted. It hadn't. So I truly appreciate your advice, I'm frustrated that it feels like some of you are not reading what I've written.

 

[Lufbrarunner]

https://www.2-spyware.com/remove-bing-redirect-virus.html

 

[honestone]

Similarly it is frustrating for us that you are not reading what we write. Again, I NEVER said to change the search engine permanently in Google Chrome. If you can change it, then you can change it back. The purpose of doing that is to determine whether or not the problem is confined to Safari.

Again, we are trying to help you, but shouting and making demeaning remarks certainly does not help.

OK, explaining this to you like a 6 year old (not meant to be demeaning; there are times I need things explained to me like I'm a six year old), here is how you do it with Google Chrome:

1. Click on the Chrome menu item, and select Preferences.

2. The first 3 preference "headings" are People, Appearance, and Search Engine. So obviously scroll down to the one entitled "Search Engine".

3. Where it says "Search engine used in the address bar", over to the right it says Google, along with a down arrow. Click on that down arrow, and the choices will be Google, Yahoo, Bing, Ask, and AOL.

I just did that, selected Yahoo, and it worked. And I did a search with Yahoo, and did not get any "garbage" hits with it. Just pertinent ones. (I actually "moved" back to Duck-Duck-Go, based on what Allen Davis recommended. But to do that in Chrome, one needs to "manually" add it by downloading and installing the needed extension, which I did. Works like a charm).

So AGAIN, the purpose of doing that is to see if it works. IF IT DOES, then there is an issue with Safari. If not, then there are other software issues.

 

[honestone]

https://www.2-spyware.com/remove-bing-redirect-virus.html

Hmm, that is definitely informative, and scary!

For the op, it would STILL be wise to try changing the search engine in Google Chrome. Hopefully that will not force it to Bing. Even if that works, though, it will still be necessary to try and get rid of this "virus".

So, as for the suggestion in that link:

"To remove Bing from safari search bar or another browser installed on Mac, you have two options. The first one suggests scanning the system with reputable anti-malware software and resetting affected web browsers. Thus, this option is highly advised for less skilled computer users who have never dealt with such cyber threats."

There are two programs you can download to accomplish this:

1. First, download, install, and run Malwarebyes, available from here:

https://www.malwarebytes.com/mwb-download/

It is a good program, but does not always find everything. Still a good place to start.

2. Next, download, and install the excellent virus program ClamXav, available from here (click where it says "Free Trial"):

https://www.clamxav.com/

When you install it and launch it, select your entire machine to be scanned. (That will be one under the heading "Drives" (make sure you select your primary drive if you have additional ones connected)). It will take some time to complete the scan, but it is definitely an effective program. I have used it at times even when I don't have any issues, and it has, at times, found some obscure "things", but only on one of my Macs!

 

[honestone]

One other thing GP is that if you were hoping for a one button/one click solution, that is not going to happen.

Also, although I suspect it would be the same for earlier versions of Google Chrome, the instructions I provided above for changing the search engine in Chrome are for the latest version of Chrome, V 70.0.3538.110.

 

[honestone]

And, yes I actually DID say that I was backing up to an external cloud based drive. I even asked for advice for a newer one to use. I even went back to read my answer to make sure it hadn't been deleted. It hadn't. So I truly appreciate your advice, I'm frustrated that it feels like some of you are not reading what I've written.

OK, the record needs to be made straight regarding this.

Here is what you said above:

"I've been using Backup my PC (I will need to change to another backup since it doesn't support 64 bit encryption I just read.) I just upgraded to High Sierra last week but not being able to switch back to Google search engine issue predates that upgrade and continues after.

What would you recommend as back-up when I change? (Would Apple do? Most of my work is being saved to the cloud by default now). Also what would you do for a manual cleanup and what software is best. Cleanup my pc seems to have been inadvertently downloaded in the last few months. I thought I had tossed it but like a bad penny... I read on this forum that it causes more problems than it solves but that may be one participant's opinion (though I seem to recall he had a level of expertise)."

First, UNLESS you are using an "emulation" program/method on your Mac, Backup my PC will not work on a Mac. Maybe you need to explain that better.

Secondly, when you say "Most of my work is being saved to the cloud by default now)", I have never used "the cloud" (don't trust it, especially with any private information I have). Maybe there is a way to do that within the Mac OS. So you need to explain that.

Here is a link that discusses SOME ways of backing up a Mac:

https://support.apple.com/mac-backup

Most folks who visit this site use Time Machine for backups, and it is OK. But I (and some others) use SuperDuper!, which creates a bootable backup/clone of your internal drive. That's right, I said bootable (Carbon Copy Cloner is s similar, stellar product). It definitely makes recovery much easier, and also is the way to go when one wants to do a clean, fresh installation of a newer Mac OS. Here is a link for it:

https://shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper/SuperDuperDescription.html

As for cleaning up/maintaining/repairing (from a software perspective) tasks, first you can do quite a lot of clean up on your own. Also, there are some excellent products available (both free and commercial) that can help you with those tasks.

Two other questions:

1. What Mac OS were you using prior to High Sierra?

2. How did you "upgrade" to High Sierra? Did you just do it "in place", ie, basically let High Sierra over write what was on your system already?

It would be best to first get rid of this "Bing-related" virus, and I already provided the steps in a post above to do that. Then, choose which Mac software you want to use for backups, preferably to an external device. Then we can discuss/recommend software for disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs.