How to remove EngineFiles from your browser and operating system

What is EngineFiles?

EngineFiles is an app designed to improve the browsing experience, however, it is categorized as a potentially unwanted application (PUA) and adware-type software. When installed, EngineFiles forces browsers to display various ads. It is also likely to gather browsing data and other information. People often download and install software such as EngineFiles unintentionally.

In most cases, applications such as EngineFiles serve intrusive content (advertisements) in the form of coupons, banners, surveys, pop-ups, and so on. People who click these ads are usually redirected to various untrustworthy web pages.

Adware-type apps sometimes display ads that, if clicked, execute scripts designed to download and/or install unwanted, potentially malicious software. Furthermore, EngineFiles might display ads and also collect data relating to users' browsing habits.

For example, IP addresses, geolocations, entered search queries, addresses of visited websites. In some cases, these apps collect personal, sensitive details. The developers misuse gathered data to generate revenue, or sell it to third parties (potentially, cyber criminals) who misuse it for the same purpose.

People who have adware installed on their browsers and/or operating systems risk becoming victims of identity theft, experiencing problems relating to browsing safety, online privacy, and other issues. To avoid this, do not trust PUAs and remove any installed adware immediately.

Threat Summary:

Name	Ads by EngineFiles
Threat Type	Adware, Mac malware, Mac virus.
Detection Names	Kaspersky (Not-a-virus:HEUR:AdWare.Script.SearchExt.gen), ZoneAlarm by Check Point (Not-a-virus:HEUR:AdWare.Script.SearchExt.gen), Full List (VirusTotal)
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 seven days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by Rcs Lt, the parent company of PCRisk.com read more.

More examples of apps that are very similar to EngineFiles include CentralLocator, AreaProduct, and CentralHere. In most cases, they are advertised as legitimate and useful apps, however, few deliver any useful features or other value. Typically, they are designed only to display ads and gather information.

As mentioned, people do not generally download or install these apps intentionally.

How did EngineFiles install on my computer?

People often inadvertently download and/or install unwanted apps when they click deceptive ads or when software developers distribute them using a marketing method called "bundling". They use this method to trick people into downloading and installing potentially unwanted apps together with other software.

I.e., they include PUAs into the download/installation set-ups of other (usually free) programs and do not disclose related information properly. Typically, offers to download and/or install PUAs can be found in "Advanced", "Custom" and other similar settings of the set-ups.

Many people leave these settings unchecked and unchanged, thereby allowing unwanted apps to be downloaded and/or installed with regular software.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

Download software from official websites. Avoid other tools such as third party downloaders (and installers), torrent clients, eMule (and other Peer-to-Peer networks), unofficial pages, and so on. Check settings such as "Advanced", "Custom" of the download/installation set-ups and dismiss any offers to download or install unwanted software.

Do not trust ads displayed on dubious web pages. If clicked, they often redirect people to other untrustworthy websites. Clicking them might also lead to download/installation of unwanted apps on the browser or computer.

Remove any unwanted, unknown plug-ins, add-ons or extensions installed on the web browser, and programs of this type from the operating system immediately. If your computer is already infected with EngineFiles, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for macOS to automatically eliminate this adware.

Pop-up window displayed once EngineFiles installation is complete:

Installation folder and files of EngineFiles adware:

EngineFiles extension on Safari web browser:

Instant automatic Mac 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 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 seven days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by Rcs Lt, the parent company of PCRisk.com read more.

Quick menu:

• What is EngineFiles?
• STEP 1. Remove EngineFiles related files and folders from OSX.
• STEP 2. Remove EngineFiles ads from Safari.
• STEP 3. Remove EngineFiles adware from Google Chrome.
• STEP 4. Remove EngineFiles ads from Mozilla Firefox.

Video showing how to remove EngineFiles adware using Combo Cleaner:

EngineFiles adware removal:

Remove EngineFiles-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 adware-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 exact 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 exact 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 correctly, your Mac should be clean of infections. To ensure 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 the 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 its virus definition database and click the "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.

Remove malicious extensions from Internet browsers

Remove malicious Safari extensions:

Open the 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 regular browser operation.

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

Remove malicious extensions from Google Chrome:

Click the Chrome menu icon (at the top right corner of Google Chrome), select "More Tools" and click "Extensions". Locate all recently-installed suspicious extensions, select these entries and click "Remove".

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

Remove malicious extensions from Mozilla Firefox:

Click the Firefox menu (at the top right corner of the main window) and select "Add-ons and themes". Click "Extensions", in the opened window locate all recently-installed suspicious extensions, click on the three dots and then click "Remove".

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

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