Avoid "Your Apple iPhone is severely damaged by (6) viruses!" scam

What is "Your Apple iPhone is severely damaged by (6) viruses!"?

This scam website tricks visitors into downloading and installing various dubious applications such as fake VPN (Virtual Private Network) clients and other app types. The site claims that the device (iPhone) is infected with viruses and encourages visitors to remove them with an application.

At the time of research, it offered download of an app called "Free App". We advise against downloading or installing software that is advertised on web pages such as this, or other deceptive, unofficial sites.

This deceptive web page is disguised as an Apple site. It states that the Apple iPhone is significantly damaged by six viruses. It goes on to state that the user's browser is damaged by trojan-type viruses, which infected it through some recently visited, corrupted pages.

These viruses might apparently cause damage to sensitive data, Facebook accounts, WhatsApp messages, photos and various apps.

To remove the viruses, users are encouraged to download and install the aforementioned Free App. In fact, this web page offers download and installation of other untrustworthy applications. In any case, none can be trusted. The same applies to this and all the other, similar websites.

Browsers often open these web pages when potentially unwanted applications (PUAs) are installed on them. PUAs can open dubious web pages, display various ads, and gather browsing data (and other) details. They record information such as geolocations, entered search queries, URLs of visited websites, IP addresses, and so on.

Some PUAs might be used to record personal data. They can also display coupons, pop-up ads, surveys, banners and other annoying advertisements. If clicked, these run scripts that cause download/installation of unwanted applications, or they open untrustworthy, potentially malicious web pages.

Other examples of similar scam web pages are safetyvpn[.]net, numberonevpn[.]com, and thevpnsafety[.]com. Unfortunately, there are many more.

Typically, they display fake warning messages relating to 'detected' viruses/errors, and other issues that can supposedly be fixed with certain dubious applications. Do not trust these pages or apps promoted through them. Remove any installed PUAs, since they might cause problems relating to privacy, browsing safety or even identity theft.

How did potentially unwanted applications install on my computer?

PUAs are often installed through deceptive ads or when software developers distribute them using the "bundling" method. In any case, people do not generally install apps of this type intentionally. PUAs are distributed by including them into the download and/or installation set-ups of various software.

Information regarding their inclusion in the set-ups is not properly disclosed. Developers hide offers to download and/or install PUAs in "Custom", "Advanced" and other similar settings. When people download and install software without checking or changing these settings, they often agree by default with offers to download and install other, potentially unwanted software.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

Download software from reputable, official websites. Do not use download or installation sources or tools such as third party downloaders, installers, dubious websites, Peer-to-Peer networks (e.g. eMule, torrent clients). These are commonly monetized by promoting potentially unwanted applications.

Check all "Advanced", "Custom" and other similar settings of the download and/or installation set-ups. Decline any offers to download and/or install unwanted software. It not safe to click intrusive ads, especially those displayed on dubious websites.

They can redirect people to various web pages that cannot be trusted, or cause download/installation of PUAs (possibly, malware). Remove any unwanted, unknown extensions, plug-ins or add-ons from your browser immediately. The same should be applied to software of this kind installed on the operating systems.

If your computer is already infected with PUAs, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate them.

Text on this scam website:

App Store
WARNING!
Your Apple iPhone is severely damaged by (6) viruses!

We have detected that your Browser is (45.4%) DAMAGED by BROWSER TROJAN VIRUSES picked up while surfing recent corrupted sites.

Immediate action is required to prevent it from spreading and infecting sensitive data like your Facebook account, Whatsapp messages photos and private applications.

Here is how you can solve this in just a few seconds (Step by Step)

Step 1: Tab REMOVE VIRUS to install Free App from the App Store.
Step 2: Open the application to activate the latest update and remove any older (Infected) versions.
Remove Virus

Another example of "Another variant of Your Apple iPhone Is Severely Damaged by (6) Viruses!" pop-up scam:

Initial pop-up:

Text presented within:

Apple iPhone is infected by (6) viruses.

If not resolved immediately, the virus will crash your cellphone, damage the SIM card and delete all your contacts.

Follow the instructions below to remove the virus.

Page displayed afterwards:

Text presented within:

Virus Warning!
Your Apple iPhone has been infected with potential virus!
Click the OK button to scan your phone now
OK

To enable pop-up blocking, fraudulent website warnings, and remove web browsing data in mobile Apple devices, follow these steps:

First, go to "Settings", and then scroll down to find and tap "Safari".

Check if the "Block Pop-ups" and "Fraudulent Website Warning" toggles are enabled. If not, enable them immediately. Then, scroll down and tap "Advanced".

Tap "Website Data" and then "Remove All Website Data".

Instant automatic malware removal:

Manual threat removal might be a lengthy and complicated process that requires advanced IT skills. Combo Cleaner is a professional automatic malware removal tool that is recommended to get rid of malware. Download it by clicking the button below:

By downloading any software listed on this website you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. 7 days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by RCS LT, the parent company of PCRisk.com.

Quick menu:

• What is Your Apple iPhone is severely damaged by (6) viruses!?
• STEP 1. Remove PUA related files and folders from OSX.
• STEP 2. Remove rogue extensions from Safari.
• STEP 3. Remove rogue add-ons from Google Chrome.
• STEP 4. Remove potentially unwanted plug-ins from Mozilla Firefox.

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

Potentially unwanted applications removal:

Remove 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.

Instant automatic malware removal:

Manual threat removal might be a lengthy and complicated process that requires advanced IT skills. Combo Cleaner is a professional automatic malware removal tool that is recommended to get rid of malware. Download it by clicking the button below:

By downloading any software listed on this website you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. 7 days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by RCS LT, the parent company of PCRisk.com.

Quick menu:

• What is "Your Apple iPhone is severely damaged by (6) viruses!" pop-up?
• How to identify a pop-up scam?
• How do pop-up scams work?
• How to remove fake pop-ups?
• How to prevent fake pop-ups?
• What to do if you fell for a pop-up scam?

How to identify a pop-up scam?

Pop-up windows with various fake messages are a common type of lures cybercriminals use. They collect sensitive personal data, trick Internet users into calling fake tech support numbers, subscribe to useless online services, invest in shady cryptocurrency schemes, etc.

While in the majority of cases these pop-ups don't infect users' devices with malware, they can cause direct monetary loss or could result in identity theft.

Cybercriminals strive to create their rogue pop-up windows to look trustworthy, however, scams typically have the following characteristics:

• Spelling mistakes and non-professional images - Closely inspect the information displayed in a pop-up. Spelling mistakes and unprofessional images could be a sign of a scam.
• Sense of urgency - Countdown timer with a couple of minutes on it, asking you to enter your personal information or subscribe to some online service.
• Statements that you won something - If you haven't participated in a lottery, online competition, etc., and you see a pop-up window stating that you won.
• Computer or mobile device scan - A pop-up window that scans your device and informs of detected issues - is undoubtedly a scam; webpages cannot perform such actions.
• Exclusivity - Pop-up windows stating that only you are given secret access to a financial scheme that can quickly make you rich.

Example of a pop-up scam:

How do pop-up scams work?

Cybercriminals and deceptive marketers usually use various advertising networks, search engine poisoning techniques, and shady websites to generate traffic to their pop-ups. Users land on their online lures after clicking on fake download buttons, using a torrent website, or simply clicking on an Internet search engine result.

Based on users' location and device information, they are presented with a scam pop-up. Lures presented in such pop-ups range from get-rich-quick schemes to fake virus scans.

How to remove fake pop-ups?

In most cases, pop-up scams do not infect users' devices with malware. If you encountered a scam pop-up, simply closing it should be enough. In some cases scam, pop-ups may be hard to close; in such cases - close your Internet browser and restart it.

In extremely rare cases, you might need to reset your Internet browser. For this, use our instructions explaining how to reset Internet browser settings.

How to prevent fake pop-ups?

To prevent seeing pop-up scams, you should visit only reputable websites. Torrent, Crack, free online movie streaming, YouTube video download, and other websites of similar reputation commonly redirect Internet users to pop-up scams.

To minimize the risk of encountering pop-up scams, you should keep your Internet browsers up-to-date and use reputable anti-malware application. For this purpose, we recommend Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows.

What to do if you fell for a pop-up scam?

This depends on the type of scam that you fell for. Most commonly, pop-up scams try to trick users into sending money, giving away personal information, or giving access to one's device.

• If you sent money to scammers: You should contact your financial institution and explain that you were scammed. If informed promptly, there's a chance to get your money back.
• If you gave away your personal information: You should change your passwords and enable two-factor authentication in all online services that you use. Visit Federal Trade Commission to report identity theft and get personalized recovery steps.
• If you let scammers connect to your device: You should scan your computer with reputable anti-malware (we recommend Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows) - cyber criminals could have planted trojans, keyloggers, and other malware, don't use your computer until removing possible threats.
• Help other Internet users: report Internet scams to Federal Trade Commission.