How to find/get rid of viruses

I was on Watch32 and my computer started poping inappropriate stuff up and i was having a hard time getting out of everything. Did it put a virus or anything on my computer?

Much misinformation!
But try to avoid going to untrusted websites to prevent it, there is a chance of getting malwares/viruses on your Mac.
As I already said, not at this time. That could change at any time in the future, but right now, this is not the case. The worst that might happen at this time is adware, which is not recognized as malware by most security software, if you download and install the wrong thing.
If you found that your Mac is running abnormally. You should try to restart your computer or have a system reinstall.
"Abnormally" is a very broad term. There's a huge number of problems that a simple restart wouldn't do anything to fix. There's also a huge number of problems that a system reinstall would be major overkill for, or even wouldn't do anything to fix it, depending on the problem and how the reinstall was done.
This advice is much like saying, "If you feel sick, go to sleep or rush to the emergency room."
There are few kinds of Malware/Viruses in the past for Macs. But all of them are only activated if you download it.
Again, not true... and, oddly, this seems to contradict the first sentence of your post.
A significant portion of the Mac malware that has appeared in the last year has utilized vulnerabilities in Java, Flash or Microsoft Office to install itself without the user doing anything. Currently, there are no such vulnerabilities being exploited by any known Mac malware, but if you're talking history, malware does not always require being downloaded and opened by the user manually.
See my Mac Malware Guide for more accurate information on this topic.

Similar Messages

How do I get rid of viruses on my MAcBook Pro

How do I get rid of viruses on my MAcBook Pro

A
It may not be malware, a Web scam that only affects your browser, and only temporarily. There are several ways to recover.
1. Some of those scam pages can be dismissed very easily. Press the key combination 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.
2. Press and hold command-W. You may hear repeating alert sounds. While holding the keys, click the OK button in the popup. A different popup may appear, which you can cancel out of as usual.
3. 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.
4. 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. None of the windows and tabs will reopen.
After closing the malicious page, 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.
B
If the above step doesn't solve the problem, you may have installed one or more of the common types of ad-injection malware. Follow the instructions on this Apple Support page to remove it. It's been reported that some variants of the "VSearch" malware block access to the page. If that happens, start in safe mode by holding down the shift key at the startup chime, then try again.
Back up all data before making any changes.
One of the steps in the article is to remove malicious Safari extensions. Do the equivalent in the Chrome and Firefox browsers, if you use either of those. If Safari crashes on launch, skip that step and come back to it after you've done everything else.
If you don't find any of the files or extensions listed, or if removing them doesn't stop the ad injection, ask for further instructions.
Make sure you don't repeat the mistake that led you to install the malware. It may have come from an Internet cesspit such as "Softonic" or "CNET Download." Never visit either of those sites again. You might also have downloaded it from an ad in a page on some other site. The ad would probably have included a large green button labeled "Download" or "Download Now" in white letters. The button is designed to confuse people who intend to download something else on the same page. If you ever download a file that isn't obviously what you expected, delete it immediately.
Malware is also found on websites that traffic in pirated content such as video. 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.
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.

Hi, just wondering how do i get rid of viruses on my mac pro?! as soon as i go on the internet other windows pops up and the whole screen starts to play up, like it starts to click things that i didn't even click?! help please

hi i was just wondering how do i get rid of viruses?! Everytime i go on safari my computer goes all weird and starts to pop up with other internet sites without me even typing it in. My arrow also starts to click on all things that i didn't even click on and opens up apps that i didn't want?!

There are several possible causes for this issue. Take each of the following steps that you haven't already tried until it's resolved. Some may not be applicable.
1. Follow the instructions in this support article, and also this one, if applicable.
2. Open the Bluetooth preference pane in System Preferences and check for unknown or forgotten input devices. Disconnect any USB input devices that you aren't using.
3. Boot in safe mode and test, preferably without launching any third-party applications. If you don't have the problem in safe mode, but it comes back when you reboot as usual, stop here and post your results. If you can't boot in safe mode, do the same. If you booted in safe mode and there was no change, go on to the next step.
4. Reset the System Management Controller.
5. If you're using a Bluetooth trackpad, investigate potential sources of interference, including USB 3 devices.
6. A swollen battery in a MacBook Pro or Air can impinge on the trackpad from below and cause erratic behavior. If you have trouble clicking the trackpad, this is likely the reason. The battery must be replaced without delay.
7. Press down all four corners of the trackpad at once and release. If there's any effect, it's likely to be temporary, and the unit needs to be serviced or replaced.
8. There's a report that a (possibly defective) Thunderbolt Ethernet adapter can cause the built-in trackpad of a MacBook to behave erratically. If you're using such an adapter, disconnect it and test.
9. There's also a report of erratic cursor movements caused by an external display that was connected but not turned on.
10. If none of the above applies, or if you have another reason to think that your computer is being remotely controlled, remove it from the network by turning off Wi-Fi (or your Wi-Fi access point), disconnecting from a Bluetooth network link, and unplugging the Ethernet cable or USB modem, whichever is applicable. If the cursor movements stop at once, you should suspect an intrusion.
11. Make a "Genius" appointment at an Apple Store to have the machine and/or external trackpad tested.

How do you get rid of viruses on my computer

hp pavilion g series how do i get viruses off my computer

Hi, Josh:
I like running the free Kapersky rescue CD.
You can boot from that disk and it scans your PC and gets rid of viruses and malware without you even having to boot into Windows.
The link to the download is below. Burn the file to a CD and read the otehr info on the link below such as how to use it.
http://support.kaspersky.com/viruses/rescuedisk
Paul

How to I get rid of virus's on my mac book pro?

is there any way to get rid of virus's on my macbook pro without making an appointment with apple?

Can you run EtreCheck and post the report here please?
EtreCheck: https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-6173

How do I get rid of viruses that are on my mac and are slowing my computer down?

its really slowing up my computer and i have no clue how to get rid of them PLEASE HELP!!!

There are no viruses. There is a trojan you would have to download and run from strange websites. What makes you think the slowdown is due to a virus? Maybe you could provide some specific evidence.
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
5. And to protect against a recent variant, MacGuard.
Before you delete anything, we need your help. Some AV folks in our community need to analyze these files in order to protect others. Before you delete anything please consider doing the following: Upload either the original .zip file or the MacGuard application to http://www.VirusTotal.com. If either is not detected by ClamXAV, then also upload it to http://cgi.clamav.net/sendvirus.cgi. If you are uncomfortable doing this for any reason and can determine the URL of the site where you got it please send the link to [email protected].
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.

How to find/get rid of duplicates in iTunes 11?

I have to many duplicates on iTunes, and i know there was an option before to find and get rid of duplicates on the old version of itunes. is there a way to do it on the new iTunes 11?

Apple has removed that feature along with several others, but
(5/12/2012) Missing 'Find Duplicates' feature in iTunes 11 to be restored - http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-13727_7-57557280-263/missing-find-duplicates-featur e-in-itunes-11-to-be-restored/ "Some of the features Apple has removed from iTunes will see a return, but others may indicate changes to come elsewhere in Apple's product lines."
Until then you will have to resort to sorting by a particular label such as artist and manually scanning, third party utilities such as Dougscripts Dupin to deal with duplicates, or revert back to iTunes 10.7.

How do I get rid of viruses on my mac?

Hi,
I have ran a speed test on my internet connection and it is currently at 0.48, I believe that I may have a virus in my mac. I have had a technician from my provider test the line and the speed on his laptop was 8.45.
What is the best free program that I can get? Or do I have to fork out money for an antivirus program?
thanks

Are you using WI-FI? If you are, option-click on the Airport icon. What is the Transmit Rate showing there?
To enter new DNS numbers (Sys Prefs>Network>Advanced) click on the + button. You will get a new field in blue, as shown in the screenshot below. Enter one number there, then hit OK. You will be brought back to the main tab. Hit Apply. Go back to Advanced and repeat for the second number, then hit OK. You will be brought back to the main page and hit Apply again. You can reorder the way the numbers appear by dragging them. Not absolutely certain of this, but the numbers first listed will be the DNS servers used first; second will be contacted next. If you put all those numbers in (all three sets), you can then test which servers are the fastest for you by rearranging the list order.
DNS (Domain Name Server) is like the phone book. It translates names into telephone numbers. You can't dial a name. DNS servers translate site names into numbers. Some servers are better/faster than others.
Also be sure to turn off IPv6 in TCP/IP
To check that OpenDNS is working, go to http://www.opendns.com/welcome/
Message was edited by: WZZZ

How do I get rid of virus.exe showing as a client in airport utility when i check on my airport extreme?

I checked the names of users connected to my Airport Extreme and found a client with a name of virus.exe. How do i delete it?

There is no simple easy way.. apple do not put a firewall into the airport.
You can change the password for wireless and change the admin password of the airport extreme..
Give out the change of password to no-one.
If a client needs to join your network check its name.. then you type the password in.
If virus.exe turns up again.. you have a computer or device where someone is having a bit of fun.. and making the name something to aggravate you.
I doubt it is really a virus.. as you have already got all the names when you signed in the client.. but track down its MAC address so you know what belongs to what. And can take measures to prevent the issue arising again.

How do get rid of viruses

how do u get rid of viruses on an ipod touch couz i think i hav 1 and had it long and havnt had 1 so can plse tell if i can and cannot

No, you don't have one because there are none.
Allan

There is Red Icon at the top bar and it says I have a virus and things keep popping up saying I have a virus and need to do a scan and pay for some sort of software to complete the scan, someone told me that this is a virus in. How do I get rid of it?

There is Red Icon at the top bar and it says I have a virus and things keep popping up saying I have a virus and need to do a scan and pay for some sort of software to complete the scan, someone told me that this is a virus in. How do I get rid of it?

This could well be the notorious Mac Defender - which is an annoying program that tricks you into thinking that your Mac is infected with a virus, when the only infection is Mac Defender itself.
When surfing the web never EVER click on a link that says "Free anti-virus scan" or "Scan now" - they are nearly always scams which will end up infecting your computer. Although Macs are resistant to viruses, they're not resistant to user stupidity.
If you Google "Mac defender" then you'll find plenty of sites with instructions on how to remove this minor nuisance. Take this as a warning that you need to be more careful in your surfing habits.
Bob

How do i get rid of the pop ups that are constantly popping up on my mac. Everytime i search for anything on google an ad for mac keeper comes up and every time i access Netflix another stream of ads pop up... Do i have a virus HELPPPPPP

How do i get rid of the pop ups that are constantly popping up on my mac. Everytime i search for anything on google an ad for mac keeper comes up and every time i access Netflix another stream of ads pop up... Do i have a virus HELPPPPPP

You may have installed the "VSearch" trojan, perhaps under a different name. Remove it as follows.
Malware is constantly changing to get around the defenses against it. The instructions in this comment are valid as of now, as far as I know. They won't necessarily be valid in the future. Anyone finding this comment a few days or more after it was posted should look for more recent discussions or start a new one.
Back up all data before proceeding.
Triple-click anywhere in the line below on this page to select it:
/Library/LaunchAgents/com.vsearch.agent.plist
Right-click or control-click the line and select
          Services ▹ Reveal in Finder (or just Reveal)
from the contextual menu.* A folder should open with an item named "com.vsearch.agent.plist" selected. Drag the selected item to the Trash. You may be prompted for your administrator login password.
Repeat with each of these lines:
/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.vsearch.daemon.plist
/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.vsearch.helper.plist
/Library/LaunchDaemons/Jack.plist
Restart the computer and empty the Trash. Then delete the following items in the same way:
/Library/Application Support/VSearch
/Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/Jack
/System/Library/Frameworks/VSearch.framework
~/Library/Internet Plug-Ins/ConduitNPAPIPlugin.plugin
Some of these items may be absent, in which case you'll get a message that the file can't be found. Skip that item and go on to the next one.
From the Safari menu bar, select
          Safari ▹ Preferences... ▹ Extensions
Uninstall any extensions you don't know you need, including any that have the word "Spigot," "Trovi," or "Conduit" in the description. If in doubt, uninstall all extensions. Do the equivalent for the Firefox and Chrome browsers, if you use either of those.
Reset the home page and default search engine in all the browsers, if it was changed.
This trojan is distributed on illegal websites that traffic in pirated content. If you, or anyone else who uses the computer, visit such sites and follow prompts to install software, you can expect much worse to happen in the future.
You may be wondering why you didn't get a warning from Gatekeeper about installing software from an unknown developer, as you should have. The reason is that this Internet criminal has a codesigning certificate issued by Apple, which causes Gatekeeper to give the installer a pass. Apple could revoke the certificate, but as of this writing, has not done so, even though it's aware of the problem. This failure of oversight has compromised both Gatekeeper and the Developer ID program. You can't rely on Gatekeeper alone to protect you from harmful software.
*If you don't see the contextual menu item, copy the selected text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C. 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.

My mac book air has a virus which is creating a lot of issues...how do i get rid of it? is there a free software to detect it and remove it?

my mac book air has a virus which is creating a lot of issues...how do i get rid of it? is there a free software to detect it and remove it?

There is no need to download anything to solve this problem.
You may have installed one or more of the common types of ad-injection malware. Follow the instructions on this Apple Support page to remove it. It's been reported that some variants of the "VSearch" malware block access to the page. If that happens, start in safe mode by holding down the shift key at the startup chime, then try again.
Back up all data before making any changes.
One of the steps in the article is to remove malicious Safari extensions. Do the equivalent in the Chrome and Firefox browsers, if you use either of those. If Safari crashes on launch, skip that step and come back to it after you've done everything else.
If you don't find any of the files or extensions listed, or if removing them doesn't stop the ad injection, ask for further instructions.
Make sure you don't repeat the mistake that led you to install the malware. It may have come from an Internet cesspit such as "Softonic" or "CNET Download." Never visit either of those sites again. You might also have downloaded it from an ad in a page on some other site. The ad would probably have included a large green button labeled "Download" or "Download Now" in white letters. The button is designed to confuse people who intend to download something else on the same page. If you ever download a file that isn't obviously what you expected, delete it immediately.
Malware is also found on websites that traffic in pirated content such as video. 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.
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.

How do I get rid of a virus I mistakingly got from a site called 'firstrow.eu'?

How do I get rid of a virus I mistakingly got from a site called 'firstrow.eu'?

Ru-tang wrote:
Ok then one last dumb layman's question...how do I rid myself securely of mackeeper/cleanmymac/norton? Does my Mac have an uninstaller or do I just dump them securely into the trash from Applications in my finder?
How you remove an app depends on the app. There's no built-in uninstaller in Mac OS X. Apps that were purchased through the App Store can just be dragged to the trash. Apps that required an installer should also require an uninstaller, and that uninstaller should be provided by the developer. Apps that are installed just by dragging to the Applications folder are a bit of a gray area... they should be removable just by dragging them to the trash, but sometimes such apps will install things that run in the background and that need removing. You'd need to see if the developer has removal instructions or an uninstaller.
There are special cases, of course. MacKeeper, for example, requires an installer, but has no uninstaller. Instead, you just drag the app to the trash, and a component of MacKeeper will notice that and ask if you want to remove it.
To remove Norton, you need to run the original installer, which will offer to remove Norton if it's already installed. If you don't have that installer, you can re-download it or check with Symantec about an uninstaller.
As for CleanMyMac, here's what the developer has to say:
http://macpaw.com/support/cleanmymac/knowledgebase/how-to-uninstall-cleanmymac-2
As a general rule, when dealing with apps from outside the App Store, you should always find out how an app is properly removed before installing it, as some apps from irresponsible developers may need - but not have - uninstallers. If an app doesn't have an easy removal process, you should think very carefully before installing.

I have a virus, how do I get rid of it?

I opened a website and a survey popped up. I didn't think anything of it and answered the survey. Now my Mac has a virus. Almost every webpage I open is bordered with "deal finder" ads and advertisements. How do I get rid of it?

Note that using a tool like Onyx to frequently "clean" your Mac is potentially more harmful than useful. That is something that should be done for troubleshooting only. See The myth of the dirty Mac.
As to the ad problem, there's no good reason for resetting Safari or cleaning the machine with Onyx to fix that problem, unless you were visiting sites that all used the same advertising company, which was using cookies to determine how to target your browser. Those sites would all have to be complicit in displaying the ads... nothing that would have been cleared using these techniques could have injected ads into sites that didn't explicitly support them.
If the ads come back, look for more solutions in Eliminating browser redirects and advertisements.

How to find/get rid of viruses

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for