How to remove unwanted apps that open pages like support-service.space?

How to remove apps that promote support-service[.]space?

What is support-service[.]space?

Support-service[.]space is a deceptive website designed to trick visitors into believing that their device is infected and downloading some potentially unwanted application (PUA) that supposed to remove viruses. Typically, such scam websites get opened when users visit other untrustworthy pages, click deceptive ads or some installed PUA opens them. It is known that support-service[.]space is promoted via deceptive Calendar events.

Support-service[.]space displays a fake virus notification saying that a device (iPhone) has been infected with 16 viruses and its battery has been damaged too. If a user will not remove those viruses with an app that can be downloaded by following the given instructions, then they will cause even more damage to the device. This page is designed to look like an official Apple page. However, none of the Apple pages are related to this (or any other) scam.

As mentioned in the first paragraph, it is known that support-service[.]space is promoted via unwanted events that users usually add to their Calendar app via other deceptive websites (e.g., on shady pages that ask for a permission to show notifications). It is very likely that the aforementioned events are used to promote not only the support-service[.]space pages but also pages that are used promote adware, browser hijacker, or some unwanted software, or other untrustworthy, potentially malicious. If there are any unwanted events added on the Calendar app, then they should be removed as soon as possible.

Threat Summary:

Name	apple.support-service.space pop-up scam
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Mac malware, Mac virus
Fake Claim	iPhone has been infected with 16 viruses
Serving IP Address	104.21.14.244
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.

More examples of pages that are more or less similar to support-service[.]space are peachlandcn[.]com, crypt-protection[.]com and techmobionline[.]com. Most of them display fake virus notifications (pop-ups) saying that a device has been infected amd immediate removal of detected malware is required to prevent any further damage (e.g., loss of sensitive information, photos, apps). In one way or another, none of these pages can be trusted.

How did potentially unwanted applications install on my computer?

Quite often users unknowingly cause unwanted downloads and/or installations when they download and/or install programs that are bundled together with some unwanted apps. More precisely, when users finish downloads and/or installations without declining unwanted offers. Usually it can be done via "Advanced", "Custom", "Manual" settings, or by unticking certain checkboxes. In some cases unintentionally cause unwanted downloads and/or installations by trusting (clicking) deceptive ads that are designed to run certain scripts.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications?

Third party downloaders, installers, torrent clients, eMule) and other Peer-to-Peer networks, unofficial websites, etc., should not be used as tools to download or install any apps. It is advisable to downloaded them only from official websites and via direct links. Download and installation setups that include "Custom", "Advanced" and other settings should be checked for unwanted offers. Advertisements that appear on dubious sites should bot be clicked as well, very often those ads open other pages of this kind, in some cases they cause download, installation of some unwanted app. Unwanted, suspicious extensions, add-ons or plug-ins are already installed on a browser and apps of this kind are installed on the operating system should be removed. 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 support-service[.]space page:

Apple Security

(16) Viruses have been detected on your iPhone and battery has been infected and damaged.

If you do not remove this malware now, it may cause more damage to your device. How to fix this:

Step 1: Tap the button below & install the recommended virus protection tool for free from the AppStore.

Step 2: Run the app to remove all malware to repair your phone to 100%
1 minutes and 25 seconds
Download and Install
Detected By Apple.

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 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 support-service[.]space?
• 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 apple.support-service.space pop-up scam 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.

apple.support-service.space pop-up scam removal from Internet browsers:

Remove malicious extensions from Safari:

Remove apple.support-service.space pop-up scam 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 apple.support-service.space pop-up scam 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 apple.support-service.space pop-up scam 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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