How to remove unwanted apps designed to open reander.net?

What is reander[.]net?

Reander[.]net is a scam website. Its main purpose is to scare visitors into downloading and installing a potentially unwanted application (PUA) by displaying a fake virus notification saying that a device is infected. Typically users do not visit pages like reander[.]net intentionally - they get opened after deceptive ads are clicked, shady websites are visited.

Or when a certain PUA is installed on a browser and/or the operating system.

Reander[.]net displays a fake notification saying that 3 viruses have been detected on a device (iPhone) and its battery has been damaged. If the user is not going to remove those viruses immediately, they may cause even more damage. The user is offered to remove viruses with an app called Secure & Fast VPN Protector.

Since this app is available on App Store (and only on it), it is safe to assume that this app is legitimate. However, as its name suggests, this app is not designed for malware removal. There is another version of reander[.]net page displaying a notification offering to download another app called Chamy VPN (which is also available on App Store).

It is important to mention that even if pages like reander[.]net promote legitimate apps, it does not make them trustworthy. As mentioned in the introduction, pages like reander[.]net can be promoted via PUAs.

It is common that apps of this kind collect browsing-related data like IP addresses, geolocations, addresses of visited sites, entered search queries, although, in some cases even sensitive details. They can also generate banners, coupons, surveys, pop-up ads, and ads of other types.

If clicked, those ads could open shady pages or cause unwanted downloads or even installations by running certain scripts.

Threat Summary:

Name	reander.net pop-up
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Mac malware, Mac virus
Fake Claim	iPhone has been infected with three viruses
Serving IP Address	172.67.181.206
Promoted Applications	Chamy VPN, Secure & Fast VPN Protector
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 like reander[.]net are support-service[.]space, peachlandcn[.]com and crypt-protection[.]com. It is common that they are disguised as official Apple pages. However, no Apple page is actually related to any of them. Also, it is worthwhile to mention that users download and/or install apps (PUAs) that promote pages like reander[.]net unknowingly.

How did potentially unwanted applications install on my computer?

One of the most popular ways used to distribute PUA is to include them in download and/or installation setups of other programs (to bundle them together with other programs). As a rule, offers to download and/or install bundled apps can be declined in "Advanced", "Custom" or other settings of setups.

Users agree with those offers when they finish downloads and/or installations without changing the aforementioned settings. Sometimes users cause unwanted downloads and/or installations when they click deceptive advertisements that are designed to run certain scripts.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications?

Unofficial, shady websites, Peer-to-Peer networks (e.g., eMule. torrent clients), third-party downloaders, installers should not be used. Apps should be downloaded only from official websites and via direct links. Downloads and installations should not be finished without checking "Custom", "Advanced" or other settings for unwanted offers.

Advertisements on shady pages can open untrustworthy websites or cause downloads and/or installations of unwanted apps. Therefore, it is advisable not to click such ads. Any unwanted, suspicious extensions, add-ons, and plug-ins that are installed on a browser should be removed.

Apps of this kind that are installed on the operating system should be uninstalled too. 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 pop-up window of the main reander[.]net variant:

(1) SYSTEM NOTIFICATION
Please Read Important Notification Regarding Your iOS Device.
OK

Screenshot of the background page of this variant:

Text in the background:

Apple SecurityWednesday
27 January 2021
(3) 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 53 seconds
Download and Install
Detected By Apple.

Screenshot of the app promoted via this variant:

Screenshot of the second reander.net variant:

Text in the pop-up window:

0:11 / 1:38     
VPN Update
Please Download The Free VPN App To Continue Watching in safe mode

App promoted via this variat:

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 reander[.]net?
• 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 reander.net 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.

reander.net pop-up removal from Internet browsers:

Remove malicious extensions from Safari:

Remove reander.net 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 reander.net 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 reander.net 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.

Click to post a comment