Stop browsers from opening startmostoriginalprogram.icu

How to remove apps that open startmostoriginalprogram[.]icu on Mac computers

What is startmostoriginalprogram[.]icu?

startmostoriginalprogram[.]icu encourages visitors to download and install an update for Adobe Flash Player, however, note that this website cannot be trusted - it actually downloads the FPlayer.zip file, which contains FPSetup.dmg, a file that installs a potentially unwanted application (PUA) or even malicious software. There are many websites similar to startmostoriginalprogram[.]icu online. All are used to trick people into installing unwanted software. They contain no updates for Adobe Flash Player or any other legitimate software.

When visited, startmostoriginalprogram[.]icu displays a pop-up window suggesting that there is a new version of Adobe Flash Player available and encourages visitors to download and install it. As mentioned, this deceptive website downloads a ZIP file that contains a fake installer of a new Adobe Flash Player version. Typically, these fake programs install adware, browser hijackers or even malicious software such as ransomware, Trojans, and so on. If installed, adware-type apps display pop-up ads, coupons, banners, surveys and other forms of advertisements. In most cases, these ads lead to untrustworthy websites and sometimes might be designed to execute scripts to download and/or install unwanted applications (potentially malicious programs). Browser hijacking apps usually promote fake search engines by changing browser settings. Both browser hijackers and adware often gather various browsing data (e.g., IP addresses, entered search queries, addresses of visited web pages, geolocations) and sometimes personal information as well. Developers sell the details to third parties (potentially, cyber criminals) who misuse them to generate revenue. Some web pages such as startmostoriginalprogram[.]icu are used to trick visitors into using installers to infect systems with malicious programs designed to encrypt data, proliferate other malware, and so on. In any case, neither startmostoriginalprogram[.]icu nor other websites of this type should be trusted. None have anything do to with the official Adobe Flash Player or its updates.

Threat Summary:

Name	startmostoriginalprogram.icu pop-up
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Mac malware, Mac virus.
Fake Claim	This web page suggests that there is a new version of Adobe Flash Player available for download and encourages visitors to install it through a fake installer.
Detection Names	Forcepoint ThreatSeeker (Suspicious), Full List (VirusTotal)
Serving IP Address	34.202.53.95
Symptoms	Your Mac becomes slower than normal, you see unwanted pop-up ads, you are redirected to dubious websites.
Distribution methods	Deceptive pop-up ads, free software installers (bundling), fake Flash Player installers, torrent file downloads.
Damage	Internet browser tracking (potential privacy issues), display of unwanted ads, redirects to dubious websites, loss of private information.
Malware Removal (Mac)	To eliminate possible malware infections, scan your Mac with legitimate antivirus software. Our security researchers recommend using Combo Cleaner. ▼ Download Combo Cleaner for Mac To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. Limited three days free trial available.

Other examples of web pages similar to startmostoriginalprogram[.]icu are theultimatesafevideoplayer[.]info, mainsourceofupgrade[.]best and yourfine2upgradesfree[.]best. All offer to update Adobe Flash Player with a fake installer, which actually installs unwanted software. People often arrive at websites of this type inadvertently: they are redirected to them through other untrustworthy sites, deceptive ads, or browsers automatically open them due to installed PUAs.

How did potentially unwanted applications install on my computer?

Most people download and/or install various unwanted apps (PUAs) through deceptive advertisements (if clicked, these execute scripts designed to download and install PUAs) or via the download/installation set-ups of other software. Developers often distribute unwanted apps using a deceptive marketing method called "bundling" - they include PUAs into the set-ups of other (usually free) programs. Typically, offers to download and/or install additionally-included apps are placed in "Custom", "Advanced" and similar settings of the download and installation set-ups. People who leave these settings unchanged inadvertently allow included PUAs to be downloaded and/or installed.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

The safest way to download files and programs is using official websites and direct download links. Some examples of the download/installation tools, sources that should NOT be trusted are unofficial websites, third party downloaders, installers, and Peer-to-Peer networks such as torrent clients, eMule, etc. Check each download or installation setup for settings such as "Advanced", "Custom", "Manual", etc. and dismiss any offers to download or install unwanted software before completing the process. Do not click intrusive ads, especially if displayed on dubious pages. They can open untrustworthy websites or cause unwanted downloads/installations. Dubious ads might also appear on legitimate web pages. If you believe that a PUA is already installed, remove all unwanted extensions, add-ons, and plug-ins from the browser, and programs of this kind from the operating system. If your computer is already infected with PUAs, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for macOS to automatically eliminate them.

Text in the main pop-up window:

Software Update

 

Flash Player Update
Download new version

 

Update now

Flash Player is an essential plugin for your browser that allows you to view everything from video to games and animation on the web.

Flash Player supports several data formats including AMF, SWF, XML and JSON. The multimedia formats which are supported by Flash Player include .MP3, .FLV, .JPEG, .GIF, .PNG and .RTMP.

 

Other supported features include accelerated graphics rendering, multi-thread video decoding and webcam support.

 

Later Install

Appearance of startmostoriginalprogram[.]icu scam page (GIF):

Screenshot of a fake Adobe Flash Player installer:

Another screenshot of a fake Adobe Flash Player installer:

Instant automatic Mac malware removal: Manual threat removal might be a lengthy and complicated process that requires advanced computer skills. Combo Cleaner is a professional automatic malware removal tool that is recommended to get rid of Mac malware. Download it by clicking the button below:
▼ DOWNLOAD Combo Cleaner for Mac 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. Limited three days free trial available.

Quick menu:

• What is startmostoriginalprogram[.]icu?
• 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.

Remove startmostoriginalprogram.icu pop-up 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.

startmostoriginalprogram.icu pop-up removal from Internet browsers:

Remove malicious extensions from Safari:

Remove startmostoriginalprogram.icu pop-up 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.

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

Remove malicious plug-ins from Mozilla Firefox:

Remove startmostoriginalprogram.icu pop-up 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.

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

Remove malicious extensions from Google Chrome:

Remove startmostoriginalprogram.icu pop-up 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.

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

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