What is this: https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl

User Help for Mozilla Firefox
Post Reply
tommyk
Posts: 138
Joined: July 7th, 2005, 11:03 am

What is this: https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl

Post by tommyk »

Just today (Aug.28) I've gotten https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl on my search bar when using Google. It takes me to a completely different search engine (http://searchguide.tds.net/index.php?or ... //help/&r=) I have Google as my search engine and I can get to Google Indexes but when I use the navigation bar (the "thing" at the top of the computer I get the other search engine.

What's going on?
User avatar
LIMPET235
Moderator
Posts: 39936
Joined: October 19th, 2007, 1:53 am
Location: The South Coast of N.S.W. Oz.

Re: What is this: https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl

Post by LIMPET235 »

Hi,
A very quick Google brought a couple of hits.
ref; > https://forums.malwarebytes.org/index.p ... gws-rdssl/
& > https://productforums.google.com/forum/ ... Toplm6lXPQ

Moving to Firefox Support...
[Ancient Amateur Astronomer.]
Win-10-H/64 bit/500G SSD/16 Gig Ram/450Watt PSU/350WattUPS/Firefox-115.0.2/T-bird-115.3.2./SnagIt-v10.0.1/MWP-7.12.125.

(Always choose the "Custom" Install.)
User avatar
JayhawksRock
Posts: 10433
Joined: October 24th, 2010, 8:51 am

Re: What is this: https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl

Post by JayhawksRock »

If the problem also appears when using IE and/or Chrome, your searches may have been Hijacked by malware.... probably installed along with some Freeware you downloaded and installed.
If that is the case, this may help > http://malwaretips.com/blogs/websearch- ... o-removal/
"The trouble with quotes on the internet is you never know if they are genuine" ...Abraham Lincoln
tommyk
Posts: 138
Joined: July 7th, 2005, 11:03 am

Re: What is this: https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl

Post by tommyk »

I did as recommended and I'm still getting redirected to a search engine I don't want. This is what I get when I enter a search in the navigation bar:

http://searchguide.tds.net/

PS: I forget to add that I just installed a new router and that was when the problem started. In addition the redirect to searchguide.tds.net/ is also the name of my internet provider: TDS! A coincidence?!

I want Google Search not tds.net or anything else. What to do?
User avatar
patrickjdempsey
Posts: 23686
Joined: October 23rd, 2008, 11:43 am
Location: Asheville NC
Contact:

Re: What is this: https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl

Post by patrickjdempsey »

Sounds like your service provider is hijacking your DNS. What jerks.
Tip of the day: If it has "toolbar" in the name, it's crap.
What my avatar is about: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/seamonkey/addon/sea-fox/
User avatar
the-edmeister
Posts: 32249
Joined: February 25th, 2003, 12:51 am
Location: Chicago, IL, USA

Re: What is this: https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl

Post by the-edmeister »

http://searchguide.tds.net/faq.php
Why am I here?
The TDS redirection service has been enabled to provide helpful searches from web address errors. You entered an unknown name that the TDS service used to present site suggestions which you may find useful. Clicking any of these suggestions provides you with Yahoo! search results, which may include relevant sponsored links.


Did you read this?
https://productforums.google.com/forum/ ... Toplm6lXPQ
Nothing to be concerned about. It's normal. (I think it reads as: google web server having redirected to google using SSL, i.e. HTTPS)

Sounds to me that TDS is doing a DNS search redirect for failed or incomplete searches. Many broadband providers do that, and most provide a way to Opt Out of that "service".


.
A mind is a terrible thing to waste. Mine has wandered off and I'm out looking for it.
User avatar
makaiguy
Posts: 16878
Joined: November 18th, 2002, 6:44 pm
Location: Somewhere in SE USA
Contact:

Re: What is this: https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl

Post by makaiguy »

Your current DNS provider (usually your ISP) is intercepting DNS lookup failures and presenting their own search page. You can switch from the DNS service provided by your ISP to one provided by a different service to avoid this garbage.

If you don't know what I'm talking about, this article may be of interest:
http://pcsupport.about.com/od/tipstrick ... ervers.htm
Doug Wilson
Win10 64bit: FF 115.0.02 64bit, TB 102.12.0 32-bit ║ Android 13/10: FF 115.2.0/115.0.1 ║ No TB for Android available, dammit!
What a fool believes he sees, no wise man has the power to reason away - Doobie Brothers
tommyk
Posts: 138
Joined: July 7th, 2005, 11:03 am

Re: What is this: https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl

Post by tommyk »

Makaiguy:

I think you are right. This all happened after I added a router to my computer to give access to my wife's laptop. What a crappy thing to do! However, what's involved with changing my DNS service? I followed the link you provided and am not sure if this is what I want or if in fact it's easy to do. What will change if I do this?
User avatar
makaiguy
Posts: 16878
Joined: November 18th, 2002, 6:44 pm
Location: Somewhere in SE USA
Contact:

Re: What is this: https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl

Post by makaiguy »

Your computer doesn't know how to go to a website by its web address name (e.g. mozillazine.com). When you click a link, your browser asks your operating system to query look up the IP (internet protocol) number for that address. Your operating system goes to the DNS (Dynamic Name System) server it's configured to use to do the lookup. The DNS server looks up the domain name and returns the IP number assigned to that domain name (e.g. for mozillazine.com, it would return an IP of 216.55.178.173) to your operating system. Your web request for the link you clicked is then sent off to that IP number. This DNS lookup activity is all done behind the scenes, so the user generally is not aware any of it is happening. If all goes well, it is fast enough that there is no noticeable lag time introduced by the process.

If you change the DNS server your system uses, nothing is different from a user viewpoint, as it's all taken care of in the background by your operating system. If the DNS lookup fails, you'd now get a "Site not found" or similar error instead of being redirected to your ISP's error handling search page as you are now.

My ISPs DNS servers used to be under-sized for the amount of traffic they received such that lookups during busy times of day often failed and I'd have to click links multiple times before getting through. I switched to the DNS servers at a local college and browsing performance was immediately improved. Eventually the college shut off access when not physically connected to their network, but by then my ISP had fixed its problem, so I'm back using their DNS servers again.

The article I referred you to has a "How Do I Change DNS Servers?" link. Or do a web search for Change DNS and your Router model or your operating system.
Doug Wilson
Win10 64bit: FF 115.0.02 64bit, TB 102.12.0 32-bit ║ Android 13/10: FF 115.2.0/115.0.1 ║ No TB for Android available, dammit!
What a fool believes he sees, no wise man has the power to reason away - Doobie Brothers
prem21
New Member
Posts: 1
Joined: October 29th, 2017, 10:43 pm

Re: What is this: https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl

Post by prem21 »

This webpage seems to have a good answer to that one, taken from RamDynamo, the title is "Google gfe_rd=cr&ei= URL Mystery Revealed", here's the link:

http://ramdynamo.blogspot.com/2014/03/g ... ealed.html

The information requested above is summarised on the page as:

"Here in ?gfe_rd=cr&ei= gfe means Google Front-End, rd means Redirect, cr means Country. (till this you can find in all websites) And the final ei means Engine Id and also some random combination of numbers and letters is a cookie sent to our desktop.."

Hope that helps.


Apart from this to get REMOVE the REDIRECTION and TRACKING this video is helpful

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cosSi1-W55c
User avatar
RobertJ
Moderator
Posts: 10880
Joined: October 15th, 2003, 7:40 pm
Location: Chicago IL/Oconomowoc WI

Re: What is this: https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl

Post by RobertJ »

.
Once figure out how to change your DNS server, the OpenDNS servers are good and secure.

In my case my DNS setting are in the router on my network and I have them set for

208.67.222.222
208.67.220.220

which are the OpenDNS IP's

.
FF 92.0 - TB 78.13 - Mac OSX 10.13.6
Post Reply