Trouble removing malware/popups

[Terje]

Hi.

I am searching for help to get rid of some sort of malware/virus etc that is affecting all my three browsers safari, chrome and firefox. When surfing in 80% of the time i go to a different adress/link a new tab opens taking me to different sites/ads. No freezing of browsers, popups infront of windows etc. Just this tabs opening taking me to offers. Happens in all three browsers.

And guys: YES, I know this is to blame on me. I am totally aware that this is from downloading stuff free. I do not need your comments on how foolish etc. If so just move on. I have already gotten those in other forums. I`m not here to complain. Just fix it. Sorry for stating this but it saves us lots of time.

Here is what I have done:

Checked program folder for unknow software
Reset all the homepages for browsers and reset/removed unwanted searchbars
Run Malwarebytes Anti malvare without results.
Reset all browsers and all their settings
Run a couple of Antivirus programs nothing found.

Do any of you out there have any advice on where to look?

Thanks for you attention.

Terjemk

 

[honestone]

It looks like you have done quite a lot. And just because you downloaded free stuff does not necessarily mean bad things. I download a lot of free stuff on my own, and I rarely, if ever, had the issue you are encountering. Heck, Firefox and Google Chrome (as well as another excellent browser Opera) are free. And the excellent program Onyx (for doing some disk cleanup and maintenance) is free also. Yet, they are fine. I will say one thing, though, that I do: I always go to the developer's/company's site to download just about all of my stuff, free or not. I avoid going through a third party to obtain the program.

Are you making backups to an external device? That could help with a suggestion I have.

Also, have you ever done any disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs, from a software perspective? Even if you have, there is a possibility that would not help much with this particular issue.

So, maybe the thing you need to do is to Erase and Format your internal drive, then do a fresh, clean, "virgin" installation of the Mac OS you want. From there, it could be somewhat time consuming regarding restoring your apps. I actually don't know how to do that selectively from a backup, but for Firefox and Google Chrome, those you could just download the most recent versions and install each of them.

By the way, what Mac OS are you using, and what exact Mac model do you have?

 

[Terje]

Hey and thank you for your reply and tips.

I have run all the verify/repair/cleanups of the system and disk. Both with the osx tools and also used CleanMyMac that automates that prosess. I do have backups but at this point I think doing a full clean reinstall is a bit overload. I mean in the end, if nothing else helps I would consider it but as of now I think I am gonna look for another solution. I mean, the problem seems not that harmful. It is not that my computer is taken over by someone or made unusable. Just the fact that these tabs keeps popping up on a various basis.

My mac is a Mac Book Air mid 2012. OSX 10.12.5

Again, thanks for our tips and answer.

Terjemk

 

[honestone]

Onyx is a very good tool, but CleanMyMac can cause issues. A product like TechTool Pro is much, much better.

Maybe try the following:

1. Download and install the excellent freeware program AppCleaner, available from here:

https://freemacsoft.net/appcleaner/

2. Delete either Firefox or Google Chrome using AppCleaner. That should get rid of just about all files associated with that browser.

3. Do a clean re-installation of the browser you deleted. Don't import any Bookmarks into it.

See what happens. If it works, maybe the "original" Bookmarks file (or files) was infected.

 

[brucehopper]

I'm having a similar problem. Running OSX 10.9.5 Safari 7.1 and having constant adware, pop ups and redirection to sales sites.
In App Store it says that Safari 9.1.3 has been installed July 2 2017 but cannot find the download to upgrade from Safari 7.1 which might solve the problem.
I've deleted all extensions, cleared cash and history and disabled pop ups
I want to uninstall Safari 7.1 but cannot find a way to reinstall other than App Store and as said above, cannot find the upgrade is stored to Safari 9.1.3
Any suggestions please

 

[dennisfcampbell]

late 2015, 21 imac 3.7ghz
Terjemk , this seems to be common, the code inserts itself into the browsers dosent matter which one you are running and some will download automatically,
" but WILL NOT open" with out your authorization. I had problems with unsolicited adverts coming from my service provider and they would not stop so i had to find a way block the code After trying almost every ad block i hit on U BLOCK which completely blocked the adverts....I found app cleaner to be a little lite weight for my needs and the app that i got was disk aid from the app store to clean all the garbage, worked great. "Easy Find" will be able to locate traces of deleted items that may be a problem.
Bruce,
you can always reset safari: library>safari>bookmark plst to desk top>delete safari> restart from dock>reload bookmark plst back into library> safari ( or redo book marks in case the problem is there as was suggested earlier).....that should clear and give you a clean operating browser

 

[brucehopper]

I think I have solved the pop up, adware, re-direction and Amazon/eBay "Best Buy" pop ups
I opened CleanMyMac, there are other apps that will do the job, and completely uninstalled MacKeeper and Advanced Mac Clean including all preferences and files related to the 2 malware apps. To get rid of Amazon and eBay popups I used Malwarebytes. So far all is well.

 

[dennisfcampbell]

good glad to hear it this just confirms that mac keeper is the giver rather than the remover
d.

 

[honestone]

good glad to hear it this just confirms that mac keeper is the giver rather than the remover
d.

Yeah, MacKeeper is definitely not a "keeper". It for sure causes more grief than good. Also, some folks here do not recommend CleanMyMac either, although I have no personal experience with it. I rely on my own disk cleanup efforts, along with using Onyx and TechTool Pro. And I also have Malwarebytes Anti-Malware, but it has not detected any issues on either of my Macs for quite some time.

As for getting rid of all "pieces" associated with an app, I use AppCleaner, and then EasyFind, for that process. Such a combination seems to work well.

 

[honestone]

I'm having a similar problem. Running OSX 10.9.5 Safari 7.1 and having constant adware, pop ups and redirection to sales sites.
In App Store it says that Safari 9.1.3 has been installed July 2 2017 but cannot find the download to upgrade from Safari 7.1 which might solve the problem.
I've deleted all extensions, cleared cash and history and disabled pop ups
I want to uninstall Safari 7.1 but cannot find a way to reinstall other than App Store and as said above, cannot find the upgrade is stored to Safari 9.1.3
Any suggestions please

This link describes how to obtain Safari V9.0:

http://osxdaily.com/2015/09/30/safari-9-for-os-x-yosemite-os-x-mavericks-released/

I then suspect that you'll be able to upgrade to V9.1.3.

But first, you should follow the advice above about getting rid of unnecessary/bad stuff from your machine. Also, after doing that, try using another browser, like:

Google Chrome: https://www.google.com/chrome/brows...SFfgodjqIDCg&dclid=CML-gdeQ69QCFRF3Ygoda-8DgA

Opera: http://www.opera.com/?gclid=CLj3vOaQ69QCFQ5rfgodzf4KfQ

Firefox: https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firef...gclid=CIKqxvGQ69QCFVKDfgodgTULuA&gclsrc=aw.ds

Google Chrome is definitely the fastest, and Opera is a somewhat close "second" in terms of speed. I use Chrome about 98% of the time, but I also like Opera. Firefox used to be my browser of choice, but it is just too slow, as is Safari.