Is Macupdate an Apple  app or 3rd party

Macupdate occasionally has shown up on my Mac before and  usually the only way to delete it has been to shut down my Mac manually.  When it reappeared today, even that didn't work.
I also  tried searching for all entries or remnants of the name (Macupdate) in system preferences . . . applications  . . . monitor activity . . .  support . . . java script etc. (and everywhere else I could think of looking), but could find no sign of Macupdate.
The most recent  addition I could find anywhere was a string of unrelated  letters next to java script dated  a week ago.
The only onscreen image right now is the alert from Macupdate.com-apple.menu that a virus was contracted on the last website  I visited (highly unlikely because I visit the same site several times a day) . . . and an invitation to remove it immediately by clicking "OK."
I've read mixed reviews of Macupdate dating back several years, so have been reluctant to  open it, because I suspect I could be opening a can of worms — but also can't find any instructions for deleting it beyond what I already have tried.
The app also seems to be limited to Safari, because I still am able to access and use FireFox (my backup browser).
Any suggestions where I can find step-by-step directions for deleting Macupdate?
Thanks

Hey! I went to a page that was identified as an article about how owls die from eating poisoned mice, and instead of an article, a download automatically started, finished and was gone before I could do anything. It said thanks for installing "mactunepro".
Now, if you could tell us where to go to uninstall this *******, that would be great. It has changed everything in my iTunes opening page. Instead of opening to my library (which it has for years) it now is asking for my logon ID to either "go to the itunes store" or "Scan for media."
Is this an apple deal, or some serious hack job? Either way I have a clone backup, and I'm almost ready to pull the trigger and see if it fixes the glitch.
Thanks for any help

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