Help! My computer is infected???
Hello
I was browising the web and suddenly a window opened saying that my computer was getting infected and askink me to make a scan. I did the scan and a lot of worms and troyans has been found. A window from apple opened saying that I had to " clean " immediatly my computer otherwise I would damage it and lose allthe data.
I was confused because all of this happened very fast and some windows ( I think the scanning one ) were not Apple but Windows windows. I immediatly closed all the applications. Now I opened again and everything seems to function but I am worried. Where should I look to know if the computer is really infected?
This is a bogus website meant to fool PC users into thinking they have a virus (which they most likely do )
You're on a Mac so you should be OK. But if you want, download ClamXav (it's free).
Similar Messages
-
Long story short, unwisely allowed unknown publisher to make changes to my computer (which I thought was related to my anti-virus protection) last night. In the process, seems I allowed malware (called antivirus8). Neither Explorer or Mozilla were available - seemed to have been wiped out by antivirus8 thing. Explorer came back up (with favorites still intact) after doing full scans and a few other things...but Mozilla did not. Uninstalled Mozilla and re-downloaded. Final step of installation asked if I wanted to allow an unknown publisher (and I'm sorry to say I don't remember exactly what it was...something with safe in the name, I think) to make changes to my computer. Clicked NO and still not able to access Mozilla...redid and clicked YES and immediately got message that my computer was infected with malware. Have used Mozilla for years...hate just having Explorer. Anti-virus program is Kaspersky...ran full scan and it did not detect a thing...so I really don't know what happened!
Try running several malware scanners to see if Kaspersky missed anything. It is best to run several as each will pick up things that the others miss. Some scanners you can try are:
* [http://www.malwarebytes.org/mbam.php Malwarebytes]
* [http://www.superantispyware.com/ SUPERAntiSpyware]
* [http://www.lavasoft.com/products/ad_aware_free.php Ad-Aware]
* [http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/defender/default.mspx Windows Defender]
* [http://www.safer-networking.org/en/home/index.html Spybot S&D]
If the above malware scanners do not find any malware or can not clear it, you should consider posting in one of these forums for specialized malware removal help:
* http://forums.spybot.info/
* http://www.spywarewarrior.com/index.php
* http://forum.aumha.org/
* http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/
* http://www.spywareinfoforum.com/ -
my computer is infected with ?malware and it makes the cursor goes crazy. apple support wants to charge me to fix this.
paid more for the apple laptop because it had built in protection. not fair. shame on Apple. can anyone help?Please read this whole message before doing anything. This procedure is a test, not a solution. Don’t be disappointed when you find that nothing has changed after you complete it. Step 1 The purpose of this step is to determine whether the problem is localized to your user account. Enable guest logins* and log in as Guest. For instructions, launch the System Preferences application, select Help from the menu bar, and enter “Set up guest users” (without the quotes) in the search box. Don't use the Safari-only “Guest User” login created by “Find My Mac.” While logged in as Guest, you won’t have access to any of your personal files or settings. Applications will behave as if you were running them for the first time. Don’t be alarmed by this; it’s normal. If you need any passwords or other personal data in order to complete the test, memorize, print, or write them down before you begin. Test while logged in as Guest. Same problem(s)? After testing, log out of the guest account and, in your own account, disable it if you wish. Any files you created in the guest account will be deleted automatically when you log out of it. *Note: If you’ve activated “Find My Mac” or FileVault, then you can’t enable the Guest account. The “Guest User” login created by “Find My Mac” is not the same. Create a new account in which to test, and delete it, including its home folder, after testing. Step 2 The purpose of this step is to determine whether the problem is caused by third-party system modifications that load automatically at startup or login. Disconnect all wired peripherals except those needed for the test, and remove all aftermarket expansion cards. Boot in safe mode* and log in to the account with the problem. The instructions provided by Apple are as follows:
Shut down your computer, wait 30 seconds, and then hold down the shift key while pressing the power button.
When you see the gray Apple logo, release the shift key.
If you are prompted to log in, type your password, and then hold down the shift key again as you click Log in.
Safe mode is much slower to boot and run than normal, and some things won’t work at all, including wireless networking on certain Macs. The login screen appears even if you usually log in automatically. You must know your login password in order to log in. If you’ve forgotten the password, you will need to reset it before you begin. *Note: If FileVault is enabled, or if a firmware password is set, you can’t boot in safe mode. Test while in safe mode. Same problem(s)? After testing, reboot as usual (i.e., not in safe mode) and verify that you still have the problem. Post the results of steps 1 and 2. -
"Warning your computer may infected" on a new tab popped up??
"Warning your computer may infected" on a new tab popped up, and just recently Ive been having many popup tabs with random things on them. When I tried to exit the Warning page, I got the warning that I may have two trojans on my computer. Is this a virus? How do I fix this? Please Help!
It's not a virus. It's a JavaScript scam that only affects your web browser, and only temporarily.
Some of those scam pages can be dismissed very easily. Press command-W to close the tab or window. A huge box will pop up. Press the return key and both the box and the page will close. If that doesn't happen, continue.
From the Safari menu bar, select
Safari ▹ Preferences... ▹ Security
and uncheck the box marked Enable JavaScript. Leave the preferences dialog open.
Close the malicious window or tab.
Re-enable JavaScript and close the preferences dialog.
If the Preferences menu item is grayed out, quit Safari. Force quit if necessary. Relaunch it by holding down the shift key and clicking its icon in the Dock. From the menu bar, select
Safari ▹ Preferences... ▹ Privacy ▹ Remove All Website Data
to get rid of any cookies or other data left by the server. Open your Downloads folder and delete anything you don't recognize. -
I have macbook pro and am on OS X Yosemite 10.10.2 . I am having lot of warning message on my browser that my computer is infected with malware/spyware and use mackeeper. How do I solve this issue . This is happening more on chrome and Safari browser
There is no need to download anything to solve this problem. You may have installed a variant of the "VSearch" ad-injection malware. Follow Apple Support's instructions to remove it.
If you have trouble following those instructions, see below.
Malware is always changing to get around the defenses against it. This procedure works as of now, as far as I know. It may not work in the future. Anyone finding this comment a few days or more after it was posted should look for a more recent discussion, or start a new one.
The VSearch malware tries to hide itself by varying the names of the files it installs. To remove it, you must first identify the naming pattern.
Triple-click the line below on this page to select it, then copy the text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C:
/Library/LaunchDaemons
In the Finder, select
Go ▹ Go to Folder...
from the menu bar and paste into the box that opens by pressing command-V. You won't see what you pasted because a line break is included. Press return.
A folder named "LaunchDaemons" may open. Look inside it for two files with names of the form
com.something.daemon.plist
and
com.something.helper.plist
Here something is a variable string of characters, which can be different in each case. So far it has always been a string of letters without punctuation, such as "cloud," "dot," "highway," "submarine," or "trusteddownloads." Sometimes it's a meaningless string such as "e8dec5ae7fc75c28" rather than a word. Sometimes the string is "apple," and then you must be especially careful not to delete the wrong files, because many built-in OS X files have similar names.
If you find these files, leave the LaunchDaemons folder open, and open the following folder in the same way:
/Library/LaunchAgents
In this folder, there may be a file named
com.something.agent.plist
where the string something is the same as before.
If you feel confident that you've identified the above files, back up all data, then drag just those three files—nothing else—to the Trash. You may be prompted for your administrator login password. Close the Finder windows and restart the computer.
Don't delete the "LaunchAgents" or "LaunchDaemons" folder or anything else inside either one.
The malware is now permanently inactivated, as long as you never reinstall it. You can stop here if you like, or you can remove two remaining components for the sake of completeness.
Open this folder:
/Library/Application Support
If it has a subfolder named just
something
where something is the same string you saw before, drag that subfolder to the Trash and close the window.
Don't delete the "Application Support" folder or anything else inside it.
Finally, in this folder:
/System/Library/Frameworks
there may an item named exactly
v.framework
It's actually a folder, though it has a different icon than usual. This item always has the above name; it doesn't vary. Drag it to the Trash and close the window.
Don't delete the "Frameworks" folder or anything else inside it.
If you didn't find the files or you're not sure about the identification, post what you found.
If in doubt, or if you have no backups, change nothing at all.
The trouble may have started when you downloaded and ran an application called "MPlayerX." That's the name of a legitimate free movie player, but the name is also used fraudulently to distribute VSearch. If there is an item with that name in the Applications folder, delete it, and if you wish, replace it with the genuine article from mplayerx.org.
This trojan is often found on illegal websites that traffic in pirated content such as movies. If you, or anyone else who uses the computer, visit such sites and follow prompts to install software, you can expect more of the same, and worse, to follow. Never install any software that you downloaded from a bittorrent, or that was downloaded by someone else from an unknown source.
In the Security & Privacy pane of System Preferences, select the General tab. The radio button marked Anywhere should not be selected. If it is, click the lock icon to unlock the settings, then select one of the other buttons. After that, don't ignore a warning that you are about to run or install an application from an unknown developer.
Then, still in System Preferences, open the App Store or Software Update pane and check the box marked
Install system data files and security updates (OS X 10.10 or later)
or
Download updates automatically (OS X 10.9 or earlier)
if it's not already checked. -
New mac user. Husband was reading online newspaper, hit the back button and a windows security alert comes up saying our computer is infected with trojans on our shared documents, my documents, local disk C and D.
It shows the threats and actions listed and states "waiting for removal"?????
I can't remove anything and am in a panic here. Using safari.
Help!!!!Ignore it, completely.
It is not a system alert at all. It is a pop-up ad on the site you're visiting.
The scummy company behind the ad specifically design it to look like a Windows system alert in the hope that some portion of Windows users will mistake it for the real thing and click the ad.
In some cases these kinds of ads may link to legitimate (or, at least, real - they're still scummy) products, but in many cases they link to malware and the whole setup is designed to fool people into downloading trojans, viruses, and the like.
Thankfully the people behind the scumware are too stupid to realize you're on a Mac (they could set the ad to only show for Windows users), so you're in no danger - you can safely ignore it, but even if you click the ad it won't be able to infect your machine. -
There is a message that pops up and it says that my computer is infected???
there is a message that pops up on the screen of my macbook pro that says that my computer is infected and has some kind of virus. what do i do to get rid of it?
hi this is what to do!
http://blogs.pcmag.com/securitywatch/2011/05/how_to_remove_macdefender.php
http://www.reedcorner.net/news.php/?p=138 -
Hi, I need help my computer is not starting up at all, nothing happening when I press the button on/off. The battery charger is working as using it for another laptop. Not sure what to do. Anyone have any idea? many thanks
You could try a SMC reset:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964
If no change, do what Allan advises.
Caio. -
I need help my computer isn't working and there is no was to get on my iTunes and I just updated my phone and now it's stuck on where it shows the plug connected to iTunes help!!!!
There is no other way than to plug into a computer to restore the phone. You can use another computer to do so, but in case you did not back up to iCloud your data and settings will be gone.
Follow this article to connect in recovery mode:
iOS: Unable to update or restore -
Apps tab of Creative Cloud desktop helper constantly displays "Download error. press retry or contact customer support". As well as reloading, I've also quit CC desktop helper, restarted computer, checked network settings, relogged in. Cannot download any new apps or updates. please help.
System: Mac OSX 10.9.4. 3.4ghz intel core i7, 8gb ramHello,
Adobe has brought these new links in this matter:
Troubleshoot Creative Cloud download and install issues and
App doesn’t open; progress wheel spins continually
Please have a look there. If necessary and for further questions click through http://helpx.adobe.com/contact.html and if "open" please use chat, I had the best experiences. I quote from Preran: The chat button is activated as soon as there is an agent available to help.
Good luck!
Hans-Günter -
All my old tv shows are not working please help my computer sed I have to Atheris 5 computers to play all my old tv shows I Pade for with eney Itunas cards.
What do y mean by not work?
What happens when y try to play them on yur iPod?
What happens when yo try to play them in iTunes on yur computer?
If you get a message what is the exact wording of the message?
You can redownload most iTunes purchases by:
Downloading past purchases from the App Store, iBookstore, and iTunes Store
Some countries do not allow redownloads some kinds of media -
What antivirus protection should I purchase for my MacBook Pro? MacSecurity.app appeared on my desktop, and I downloaded that. Since then, it has said my computer is infected and pop-ups have been appearing.
You've been infected by a scam trojan. You don't need any anti-virus software on your Mac. See the following about getting rid of the trojan.
Trojan War
If you discover a trojan program is running on your computer then look to the following information for assistance:
1. A recent discussion on the Apple Support Communities: MacDefender Trojan.
2. An excellent site devoted to Mac Malware: Macintosh Virus Guide
3. Another site for removing MacDefende, et.al.: MAC Defender Rogue Anti-Virus analysis and Removal
4. A new removal utility - MacDefenderKiller
Removing strange software can be a task. The following outlines various ways of uninstalling software:
Uninstalling Software: The Basics
Most OS X applications are completely self-contained "packages" that can be uninstalled by simply dragging the application to the Trash. Applications may create preference files that are stored in the /Home/Library/Preferences/ folder. Although they do nothing once you delete the associated application, they do take up some disk space. If you want you can look for them in the above location and delete them, too.
Some applications may install an uninstaller program that can be used to remove the application. In some cases the uninstaller may be part of the application's installer, and is invoked by clicking on a Customize button that will appear during the install process.
Some applications may install components in the /Home/Library/Applications Support/ folder. You can also check there to see if the application has created a folder. You can also delete the folder that's in the Applications Support folder. Again, they don't do anything but take up disk space once the application is trashed.
Some applications may install a Startup item or a Log In item. Startup items are usually installed in the /Library/StartupItems/ folder and less often in the /Home/Library/StartupItems/ folder. Log In Items are set in the Accounts preferences. Open System Preferences, click on the Accounts icon, then click on the LogIn Items tab. Locate the item in the list for the application you want to remove and click on the Delete [-] button to delete it from the list.
Some software use startup daemons or agents that are a new feature of the OS. Look for them in /Library/LaunchAgents/ and /Library/LaunchDaemons/ or in /Home/Library/LaunchAgents/.
If an application installs any other files the best way to track them down is to do a Finder search using the application name or the developer name as the search term. Unfortunately Spotlight will not look in certain folders by default. You can modify Spotlight's behavior or use a third-party search utility, Easy Find, instead. Download Easy Find at VersionTracker or MacUpdate.
Some applications install a receipt in the /Library/Receipts/ folder. Usually with the same name as the program or the developer. The item generally has a ".pkg" extension. Be sure you also delete this item as some programs use it to determine if it's already installed.
There are many utilities that can uninstall applications. Note that you must have this software installed before you install software you may need to uninstall. Uninstallers won't work if you install them after the fact. Here is a selection:
AppZapper
Automaton
Hazel
CleanApp
Yank
SuperPop
Uninstaller
Spring Cleaning
Look for them and others at VersionTracker or MacUpdate.
For more information visit The XLab FAQs and read the FAQs on removing software and dealing with spyware and malware.
After removing all the components of the software you may have to restart the computer to fully disable the software. This will be the case when removing software that has installed a daemon. After the daemon has been removed you need to restart the computer to stop the daemon. Alternatively, you can kill the daemon process using the Terminal application or Activity Monitor. -
Have upgraded to itunes 11.0.1.12. Start itunes and it is closed with the message itunes closed to help protect computer data execution prevention has closed itunes. operating system is ms vista 32 bit. I have followed the procedures that I can find on the itune support site.
You're welcome. Glad you got things sorted out.
(No problem about not spotting the solutions ... the most common causes of this sort of message changes over time, so it's not straightforward to be able to tell when a given piece of advice still applies to the symptoms. Definitely worth posting to try to get a current heads-up on the likely contemporary causes of a particular error message.) -
Your computer appears to be infected
We believe that your computer is infected with malicious software. If you don't take action, you might not be able to connect to the Internet in the future.
Learn how to remove this software.No you do not have a virus. That is a standard web popup usually, that tres to get up to download a "removal program". The removal program is the virus or similar.
-
How can I tell if my computer is infected with Zeus
How cn I tell if my computer is infected with Zeus?
Apparently affects Windows platform only.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zeus_(Trojan_horse)
Stedman -
Received a notice saying my computer is infected, wants to install MacProtector.mpkg. Is this legit?
Received a notice saying my computer is infected, wants to install MacProtector.mpkg. Is this legit?
It's a varient of the MacDefender antivirus scam.
For those infected with the MACDefender malware, the following steps are recommended:
1. Open Applications > Utilities > Activity Monitor and quit any processes linked to MACDefender.
2. Delete MACDefender from the Applications folder.
3. Check System Preferences > Accounts > Login Items for suspicious entries
4. Run a Spotlight search for "MACDefender" to check for any associated files that might still be lingering.
Change all the names above to MacProtector.
Regards
Maybe you are looking for
-
Option help in Save for Web & Devices dialog
When down sampling images for use in a DPS folio, what settings should be chosen in the Save for Web & Devices dialog in Photoshop?
-
Cannot download 10.5 -invalid signature
Trying to set up my new iphone through itunes but it says I need the new 10.5 version. When I try to download it, it stops halfway through and says 'itunes 10.5 cannot be downloaded due to invalid signature' and then just closes. Help!
-
Duplex printing for last 2 pages only
A customer has an invoice report where they want the terms and conditions (which are 2 pages) duplexed while the report itself is not printed that way. Any ideas if this can be done using native SSRS? Sherry
-
Tabs on the actual bottom of the page?
Hi. Is there a way to make tabs appear on the actual VERY bottom of the page? And I don't mean that "bottom" which is still on top, gosh, who named that feature? Basically, I want all my tabs to appear at the bottom but I'm not keen on using any plug
-
Y r there 3 documents being genrated in bdc
I have written code for bdc that works if plant is kf* and allows only non ware house storage locations. Till then its working fine.... but user asked y r there 3 documents being genrated in bdc???when the consumption is on 1 process order nly i woul