Reasons why Mac Cleanup Pro deserves removal
Contents
Mac Cleanup Pro is a fake Mac OS optimizer that you should stay away from. It has been noticed that the program spreads via software bundling and displays fake positive scan results for users. It seems that the program uses scare tactics to trick the victim into purchasing its full version to fix non-existent problems.
The program has raised concerns for Mac Mojave or earlier users, making them contemplate whether Mac Cleanup Pro is a scam. According to user reports on various forums, the program appeared on their computer “out of nowhere”, shows notifications about infected files and malware issues and offers extremely high-priced tech support services.
According to the same user reports, the so-called tech support attempts to convince the victim to purchase even more “security” programs. Check one of the lengthiest and most detailed user complaints on Apple forum. If you recognize the program causing you similar issues, initiate Mac Cleanup Pro removal immediately.
The optimizer can be safely called a potentially unwanted program (PUP) and an adware-type threat that can trick you into spending money for nothing. Besides, its official website now gives a red warning, very similar to Deceptive Site Ahead, informing that the site can contain harmful programs.
Be careful as people have reported that it spreads around with a fake Adobe Flash Player update. If you need ADF update, get it from the official Adobe website and not from untrustworthy Internet sources. Otherwise, you can infect your PC not only with a PUP, but a far more dangerous program.
Another point worth mentioning is that the program can cause privacy issues as it may collect some data about your browsing habits, interaction with ads and similar information. In fact, its activity is very similar to Driver Tonic, Mac Auto Fixer, or Driver Support. What users also don’t like is that they find it hard to delete Mac Cleanup Pro from Apple computers such as MacBook.
Threat Summary
Name | Mac Cleanup Pro |
Type | Fake system optimizer, adware |
Affects | Mac OS |
Symptoms | Annoying pop-ups, system slowdowns, false-positive ads about infected system |
Dangers | Might trick the user into purchasing deceptive tech support services or even more similar software |
Distribution | Deceptive online ads and software bundles (fake Adobe Flash Player) |
Removal | Manual or automatic |
It is clear that this system optimizer is nothing else but a deceptive program, so you need to remove Mac Cleanup Pro virus as soon as possible. To delete it from your Mac, see instructions below the article. We suggest deleting it manually or removing with trustworthy antivirus software.
Distribution of fake optimizers
Fake system fixers and optimizers are typically distributed in several ways:
- Deceptive ads informing about many problems on your computer system;
- Software bundles and compromised software packs.
In general, these two ways are to blame for so many Mac Cleanup Pro infections. Please be aware that such untrustworthy programs tend to create fake online ads that often appear on your screen after an unexpected redirect. It can occur while browsing online, especially after clicking a link on websites like 0123movies.com which tend to trigger redirects to third-party partners’ sites.
A typical Mac Cleanup ad appears in Safari and suggests a “25% discount if you activate before the timer hits zero.” The pop-up also displays a random number of errors, saying “Fix all 1101 issues and enjoy a performance boost with a super saver offer”.
First of all, it is impossible to scan your system from a browser, believe us. Second of all, the program won’t boost the system, but rather decrease its performance.
The second way to land such annoyance on your computer is installing software from wrong sources. Therefore, if you ever run into a suggestion to install a software update while browsing online, step back and go to the official website of the said program to check if you need an update at all. Remember that fake ads about software updates (especially Flash Player) are simply a common method to spread potentially unwanted programs.
Remove Mac Cleanup Pro virus now
Remove Mac Cleanup Pro from your Mac at all costs to stop it from interfering with other processes, displaying ads and slowing down your computer. Although it cannot be assigned to the malware category due to its technical properties, it doesn’t make it any less undesirable.
Initiate Mac Cleanup Pro removal with the help of instructions below the article. If you realize that the program is stuck on your computer and you can’t uninstall it using traditional ways, consider using an automatic tool like antivirus.
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Mac Cleanup Pro Removal Tutorial
To remove the unwanted program from your Mac, use these instructions below to uninstall associated applications from your Mac computer. Then scroll down for instructions how to clean each affected web browser individually.
Remove Mac Cleanup Pro from Mac
- Click on Finder.
- Go to Applications folder.
- Look for suspicious applications you can't remember installing. Right-click them and select Move to Trash.
- After moving all suspicious apps to Trash, right-click the Trash bin in Mac's Dock and select Empty Trash.
Remove using INTEGO ANTIVIRUS for Mac (includes scanning for iOS devices). The one-of-a-kind security suite provides VirusBarrier X9 real-time protection against Mac and Windows-based malware, removes existing threats and scans for malware in popular e-mail clients. Includes NetBarrier X9, an intelligent firewall for home, work and public connections.
Remove Mac Cleanup Pro from Safari
Uninstall suspicious Safari extensions
- Open Safari and click on Safari button in the top left corner. Select Preferences in the menu that appears on the screen.
- Now, go to Extensions tab. Look at the left to see all installed extensions, click on suspicious ones and hit that Uninstall button as shown in the picture. Confirm your choice by clicking Uninstall again. Repeat until you get rid of all unwanted extensions.
Change Safari Homepage and default search engine
- In Preferences, open the General tab. Here, check what URL is set as your homepage. Delete it and type in whatever URL you want to set as your Safari Start Page.
- Next, go to the Search tab. Here, choose what Search engine you want to set as default.
- Next, click on Manage websites... then Remove all... and then Done.
Remove push notifications on Safari
Some suspicious websites can try to corrupt your Safari by asking to enable push notifications. If you have accidentally agreed, your browser will be flooded with various intrusive advertisements and pop-ups. You can get rid of them by following this quick guide:
- Open Safari and click on Safari button in the top-left corner of the screen to select Preferences;
- Go to Websites tab and navigate to Notifications on the left side toolbar.
Reset Safari
- Click on Safari > Clear History...
- Then choose to clear All history and hit Clear History button to confirm.
- Go to Safari > Preferences and then open Privacy tab.
- Click Manage Website Data... then Remove All. To finish, click Done.
- Finally, clear Safari cache. In Safari Menu, click Develop > Clear Cache.
Remove Mac Cleanup Pro from Google Chrome
Remove suspicious Chrome extensions
- Open Chrome and type chrome://extensions into address bar and press Enter.
- Here, look for suspicious extensions, and Remove them.
- Don't forget to confirm by pressing Remove in the confirmation pop-up.
Change Start Page settings
- In Chrome address bar, type chrome://settings and press Enter.
- Scroll down to the On startup section. Check for suspicious extensions controlling these settings, and Disable them.
- Additionally, you can set browser to Open a specific page or set of pages via these settings. Simply choose this option, click Add a new page, enter your preferred URL (f.e. www.google.com) and press Add.
Change default search settings
- In Chrome URL bar, type chrome://settings/searchEngines and press Enter. Make sure you type searchEngines, not searchengines. Additionally, you can go to chrome://settings and find Manage search engines option.
- First, look at the list of search engines and find the one you want to set as default. Click the three dots next to it and select Make Default.
- Finally, look through the list and eliminate suspicious entries. Right-click the three dots and select Remove from the list.
Remove push notifications from Chrome
If you want to get rid of the annoying ads and so-called push-notifications viruses, you must identify their components and clean your browser. You can easily remove ads from Chrome by following these steps:
- In Google Chrome, press on Menu (upward arrow) in the top-right corner of the window.
- Select Settings.
- Go to Privacy and Security > Site Settings.
- Open Notifications.
- Here, go to the Allow list and identify suspicious URLs. You can either Block or Remove by pressing on the three vertical dots on the right side of the URL. However, we suggest the Block option, so the site won't ask you to enable the notifications if you ever visit it again.
Reset Google Chrome browser
- The final option is to reset Google Chrome. Type chrome://settings in the URL bar, press Enter and then scroll down until you see Advanced option. Click it and scroll to the bottom of the settings.
- Click Restore settings to their original defaults.
- Click Restore settings to confirm.
Remove Mac Cleanup Pro from Mozilla Firefox
Remove unwanted add-ons from Firefox
- Open Firefox and type about:addons in the URL bar. Press Enter.
- Now, click on Extensions (in the left section).
- Click Remove next to every suspicious browser add-on that you can't remember installing.
Change Firefox Homepage
- In Firefox address bar, type about:preferences and hit Enter.
- Look at the left and click the Home tab.
- Here, delete the suspicious URL and type or paste in the URL of a website you'd like to set as your homepage.
Alter preferences in Firefox
- Type about:config in Firefox address bar and hit Enter.
- Click I accept the risk! to continue.
- Here, type in the URL which has taken over your browser without your knowledge. Right-click each value that includes it and choose Reset.
Remove annoying push notifications from Firefox
Suspicious sites that ask to enable push notifications gain access to Mozilla's settings and can deliver intrusive advertisements when browsing the Internet. Therefore, you should remove access to your browser by following these simple steps:
- In Mozilla Firefox, click on Menu (the three horizontal bars) on the top-right corner of the window, then choose Options.
- Click on Privacy and Security, then scroll down to Permissions section.
- Here, find Notifications and click Settings button next to it.
- Identify all unknown URLs and choose to Block them. Click Save Changes afterward.
Reset Mozilla Firefox
- In Firefox, type about:support in the address bar and press Enter.
- Click on Refresh Firefox...
- Click Refresh Firefox again to confirm.
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Matt Corey is passionate about the latest tech news, gadgets and everything IT. Matt loves to criticize Windows and help people solve problems related to this operating system. When he’s not tinkering around with new gadgets he orders, he enjoys skydiving, as it is his favorite way to clear his mind and relax.
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