Search.macsafefinder.com Redirect (Mac)

How to remove search.macsafefinder.com browser hijacker from Mac?

What is search.macsafefinder.com?

According to the developers, search.macsafefinder.com is a high-end Internet search engine that generates improved results and, therefore, enhances the browsing experience. Judging on appearance alone, search.macsafefinder.com may seem similar to Google, Bing, Yahoo, and other legitimate search engines. Therefore, many users believe that search.macsafefinder.com is also legitimate and useful. In fact, developers promote this site using browser-hijacking download/installation set-ups that modify browser options without consent. Furthermore, search.macsafefinder.com records various user-system information that might contain personal details.

Rogue set-ups target Safari, Mozilla Firefox, and Google Chrome. Following infiltration, they hijack these browsers and stealthily assign the default search engine, homepage, and new tab URL options to search.macsafefinder.com. Set-ups stealthily install a number of third party potentially unwanted programs (PUPs) and/or browser extensions (so-called "helper objects"). Therefore, users are unable to revert the aforementioned changes. Installed PUPs and add-ons reassign browser settings when attempts are made to change them. Therefore, returning browsers to their previous states becomes impossible and users continually encounter unwanted redirects to search.macsafefinder.com, significantly diminishing the browsing experience. As mentioned above, search.macsafefinder.com (and installed PUPs/add-ons) continually record user-system information (mostly, relating to users' browsing activity) that might contain personal details. Developers later sell this information to third parties, thereby putting your privacy at risk. Furthermore, some PUPs/add-ons are known to stealthily run background processes (such as mining cryptocurrency). This misuses computer resources, diminishing overall performance. Therefore, if you encounter redirects to search.macsafefinder.com, uninstall all suspicious applications and browser plug-ins. We strongly advise you to avoid this website.

The Internet is full of fake search engines virtually identical to search.macsafefinder.com. The list of examples includes (but is not limited to) search.romandos.com, omni-search.net, feed.snowbitt.com, and home.giantsender.com. All promise to enhance the browsing experience by generating improved search results and, in some cases, providing other "useful features" (for example, shortcuts to popular websites, weather forecasts, etc.) In fact, only a small fraction of fake search engines provide any value for regular users - most are useless. They are designed only to generate revenue for the developers. Rather than providing the functionality promised, most fake search engines cause unwanted redirects and record user-system information. Some generate fake results and deliver malicious ads (banners, coupons, etc.) that can lead to malicious websites. In addition, the ads might run scripts that download and install malware. Therefore, using a fake Internet search engine is very risky.

How did search.macsafefinder.com install on my computer?

Criminals promote search.macsafefinder.com using rogue downloaders/installers. This deceptive marketing method is called "bundling". Developers hide all details of browser modifications within the "Custom/Advanced" options of the download/installation processes. They do not properly disclose this information. Therefore, rushing and skipping the download/installation steps inadvertently grants set-ups permission to modify browser options, exposes systems to risk of various infections, and compromises users' privacy.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications?

PUPs are distributed using the bundling method and malicious ads. Therefore, be cautious when downloading/installing software and browsing the Internet. Carefully analyze each step of the download/installation process, cancel offers to download or install additional applications, and opt-out of those already included. In addition, download your software from official sources only and, preferably, using a direct download link. Third party downloaders/installers are monetized using bundling (they promote third party software). Therefore, these tools should never be used. Many malicious ads appear legitimate - cyber criminals put a great deal of time and effort into designing them. Therefore, it is difficult to determine if they originate from the visited (legitimate) website. Note that they usually lead to survey, gambling, pornography, adult dating, and other suspicious websites. If you encounter such ads, uninstall all suspicious applications and browser plug-ins.

Website promoting search.macsafefinder.com browser hijacker:

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Quick menu:

• What is search.macsafefinder.com?
• STEP 1. Remove search.macsafefinder.com related files and folders from OSX.
• STEP 2. Remove search.macsafefinder.com redirect from Safari.
• STEP 3. Remove search.macsafefinder.com browser hijacker from Google Chrome.
• STEP 4. Remove search.macsafefinder.com homepage and default search engine from Mozilla Firefox.

Video showing how to remove adware and browser hijackers from a Mac computer:

search.macsafefinder.com redirect removal:

Remove search.macsafefinder.com-related potentially unwanted applications from your "Applications" folder:

Click the Finder icon. In the Finder window, select “Applications”. In the applications folder, look for “MPlayerX”,“NicePlayer”, or other suspicious applications and drag them to the Trash. After removing the potentially unwanted application(s) that cause online ads, scan your Mac for any remaining unwanted components.

Remove macsafefinder.com browser hijacker related files and folders:

Click the Finder icon, from the menu bar, choose Go, and click Go to Folder...

Check for adware-generated files in the /Library/LaunchAgents folder:

In the Go to Folder... bar, type: /Library/LaunchAgents

In the “LaunchAgents” folder, look for any recently-added suspicious files and move them to the Trash. Examples of files generated by adware - “installmac.AppRemoval.plist”, “myppes.download.plist”, “mykotlerino.ltvbit.plist”, “kuklorest.update.plist”, etc. Adware commonly installs several files with the same string.

Check for adware-generated files in the /Library/Application Support folder:

In the Go to Folder... bar, type: /Library/Application Support

In the “Application Support” folder, look for any recently-added suspicious folders. For example, “MplayerX” or “NicePlayer”, and move these folders to the Trash.

Check for adware-generated files in the ~/Library/LaunchAgents folder:

In the Go to Folder bar, type: ~/Library/LaunchAgents

In the “LaunchAgents” folder, look for any recently-added suspicious files and move them to the Trash. Examples of files generated by adware - “installmac.AppRemoval.plist”, “myppes.download.plist”, “mykotlerino.ltvbit.plist”, “kuklorest.update.plist”, etc. Adware commonly installs several files with the same string.

Check for adware-generated files in the /Library/LaunchDaemons folder:

In the Go to Folder... bar, type: /Library/LaunchDaemons

In the “LaunchDaemons” folder, look for recently-added suspicious files. For example, “com.aoudad.net-preferences.plist”, “com.myppes.net-preferences.plist”, "com.kuklorest.net-preferences.plist”, “com.avickUpd.plist”, etc., and move them to the Trash.

 Scan your Mac with Combo Cleaner:

If you have followed all the steps in the correct order you Mac should be clean of infections. To be sure your system is not infected run a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus. Download it HERE. After downloading the file double click combocleaner.dmg installer, in the opened window drag and drop Combo Cleaner icon on top of the Applications icon. Now open your launchpad and click on the Combo Cleaner icon. Wait until Combo Cleaner updates it's virus definition database and click "Start Combo Scan" button.

Combo Cleaner will scan your Mac for malware infections. If the antivirus scan displays "no threats found" - this means that you can continue with the removal guide, otherwise it's recommended to remove any found infections before continuing.

After removing files and folders generated by the adware, continue to remove rogue extensions from your Internet browsers.

macsafefinder.com browser hijacker homepage and default Internet search engine removal from Internet browsers:

Remove malicious extensions from Safari:

Remove macsafefinder.com browser hijacker related Safari extensions:

Open Safari browser. From the menu bar, select "Safari" and click "Preferences...".

In the preferences window, select "Extensions" and look for any recently-installed suspicious extensions. When located, click the "Uninstall" button next to it/them. Note that you can safely uninstall all extensions from your Safari browser - none are crucial for normal browser operation.

Change your homepage:

In the "Preferences" window, select the "General" tab. To set your homepage, type the preferred website URL (for example: www.google.com) in the Homepage field. You can also click the “Set to Current Page” button if you wish to set your homepage to the website you are currently visiting.

Change your default search engine:

In the "Preferences" window, select the "Search" tab. Here you will find a drop-down menu labelled "Search engine:" Simply select your preferred search engine from the drop-down list.

• If you continue to have problems with browser redirects and unwanted advertisements - Reset Safari.

Remove malicious plug-ins from Mozilla Firefox:

Remove macsafefinder.com browser hijacker related Mozilla Firefox add-ons:

Open your Mozilla Firefox browser. At the top right corner of the screen, click the "Open Menu" (three horizontal lines) button. From the opened menu, choose "Add-ons".

Choose the "Extensions" tab and look for any recently-installed suspicious add-ons. When located, click the "Remove" button next to it/them. Note that you can safely uninstall all extensions from your Mozilla Firefox browser - none are crucial for normal browser operation.

Change your homepage:

To change your homepage, click the "Open Menu" (three horizontal lines) button and choose "Preferences" from the drop-down menu. To set your homepage, type the preferred website URL (for example: www.google.com) in the Homepage Page.

Change default search engine:

In the URL address bar, type "about:config" and click the "I'll be careful, I promise!" button.

In the "Search:" field, type the name of the browser hijacker. Right click on each of the found preferences and click "Reset" from the drop-down menu.

• If you continue to have problems with browser redirects and unwanted advertisements - Reset Mozilla Firefox.

Remove malicious extensions from Google Chrome:

Remove macsafefinder.com browser hijacker related Google Chrome add-ons:

Open Google Chrome and click the "Chrome menu" (three horizontal lines) button located in the top-right corner of the browser window. From the drop-down menu, choose "More Tools" and select "Extensions".

In the "Extensions" window, look for any recently-installed suspicious add-ons. When located, click the "Trash" button next to it/them. Note that you can safely uninstall all extensions from your Google Chrome browser - none are crucial for normal browser operation.

Change your homepage:

Click the "Chrome menu" (three horizontal lines) button and choose "Settings". In the "On Startup" section, click the "Set pages" link near to the "Open a specific page or set of pages" option. Remove the URL of the browser hijacker (for example trovi.com) and enter your preferred URL (for example, google.com).

Change default search engine:

Click the "Chrome menu" (three horizontal lines) button and choose "Settings". In the "Search" section, click the "Manage search engines..." button. In the opened window, remove the unwanted Internet search engine by clicking the "X" button next to it. Select your preferred Internet search engine from the list and click the "Make default" button next to it.

• If you continue to have problems with browser redirects and unwanted advertisements - Reset Google Chrome.