My MacBook Air got stopped by a pop up window claiming to be apple and telling me not to dare shut down my computer, that my computer was locked. It was impossible to navigate away from it, so I shut it down. Now many websites cannot be opened. How can I get rid of this?
I’d hold off on installing any add-on anti-malware apps, and would continue to use the built-in anti-malware.
For this particular case, malware is very unlikely.
if some junk browser tab actually installed something, we’d quickly be swimming in malware.
Prevent the problematic tab from re-opening (with the shift key at launch), and this pop-up mess should go away.
Safari pop-up scams go back many years, unfortunately.
Assuming this was in Safari, quit Safari then restart Safari while holding the Shift key.
Phony "tech support" / "ransomware" popup… - Apple Community
Press and hold the Shift key when next launching Safari.
That’ll prevent that obnoxious tab from re-opening.
Control which windows Safari reopens on Mac - Apple Support
To check for Malware, download the free version of MalwareBytes. It only needs to be run when you have clicked a link that you should not have to install the Malware. You do not need to have the program run constantly.
How to remove malware
