cleanmymac x app will damage your computer pop up

You asked your fellow users what was wrong. We told you. Getting defensive won't change the answers or facts that the mountain of add-on software you've installed are not only useless and bog your Mac down, but actually reduce your privacy. This is especially true of VPNs, as noted in my user tip:

What is malware? - Apple Community

Also make sure to follow the bottom link to John Galt's user tip for additional, and excellent information.

Since you haven't shown us a screen shot of the actual pop-up, we have to make assumptions. If it's anything similar to this…

…the OS itself is displaying the message. I imagine you already know this as it appears you found and followed the user tip on how to find the cause of such messages. Otherwise, it would be odd you didn't, but still posted screen shots of the three daemon folders.

Why would wiping the drive make you a lunatic? You have so much invasive "security" software installed (like the nearly impossible to remove, Citrix) that erasing the drive and setting it back up from scratch is simply the fastest and easiest thing to do.

1. Make a full backup of your system, first! Especially your personal data.
2. Boot into Recovery Mode. Use macOS Recovery on an Intel-based Mac - Apple Support Use macOS Recovery on a Mac with Apple silicon - Apple Support
3. Once in Recovery Mode, use Disk Utility to erase the drive. Then reinstall the OS.
4. Manually reinstall ONLY the third party software you actually need. Such as MS Office, Adobe, etc. But absolutely none of the so-called security apps we've mentioned.
5. Manually gather your personal files from the backup and put them back on your Mac.

You will find yourself with a Mac that runs about 1000% better.

Once these types of software are installed and embedded into the computer 

Start Over from Scratch 

Heavy Handed - Yes ?

Effective - Yes 

You can spend hours or days hunting down all the bits and pieces of this software and never really get it all off the computer

For Apple Silicon computer >> Use Disk Utility to erase a Mac with Apple silicon.

For Apple Intel computers >>   Use Disk Utility to erase an Intel-based Mac followed by How to reinstall macOS

You have several apps there that may give you problems. The simple rule is to never install any of these types of apps:

• Cleaners
• Optimizers
• AntiVirus
• VPN (unless used for work or school to access their servers)

You will want to use the uninstaller provided by those apps to successfully remove all components. One of the CleanMyMac files mentioned in the message you received is in your LaunchDaemons folder titled com.macpaw.CleanMyMac4.agent.plist.

I also suspect the performance of your computer is suffering from the junk apps running constantly in the background. You may be experiencing slowness or beach balling due to these conflicts.

Have you deleted the single MacPaw file as suggested in your LaunchDaemons folder titled: com.macpaw.CleanMyMac4.agent.plist

That may resolve the current Malware warning you are receiving. Launch Agents can also be embedded in the Application bundle of the app that you won't see in those folders, so make sure you do not have any CleanMyMac files in your Application Folder.

The computer certainly has two software either installed or previously installed

Neither of the two are needed and should be removed via the Developers Specific Instructions

com.mcafee.McAfeeSafariHost.plist

com.macpaw.CleanMyMac4.Agent.plist

You have so much useless garbage on your Mac, I'm surprised it even runs.

Remove all of the following. Seriously. ALL of it.

Citrix

Chrome

McAfee

PulseSecure

WindScribe

ExpressVPN

LogMeIn

Isreset

MacPaw (CleanMyMac)

PVPN

TunnelBear

TCPDump

I would have to agree a nuke and pave is in order. These are just the junk apps we see that have a launch agent or launch daemon. What other equally useless junk is installed?

@ Mac Jim ID

You and others may already be aware of this

And depending form what Source the CMM aka BrickMyMac was downloaded from

New macOS Malware "Cthulhu Stealer" Targets Apple Users' Data

All the more reason to nuke the machine ??

Mac Jim ID wrote:

PRP_53 wrote:

@ Mac Jim ID

You and others may already be aware of this

And depending form what Source the CMM aka BrickMyMac was downloaded from

New macOS Malware "Cthulhu Stealer" Targets Apple Users' Data

All the more reason to nuke the machine ??

It was in my first post that there is too much junk on the computer and there is no doubt a clean install will be the easiest solution to clean up the computer.

The problem is that the OP has made it clear, they don't care and they are not going to reset the computer, they only want the pop up to go away. It is their computer and their choice, once you make your case, that is all you can do.

Similar to the Chrome debate that went sideways, I agree that Chrome harvests your personal information and I do not use it myself. Actually I would consider it a form of Malware when an app collects my Location Data, Search History, Browsing History, and Contacts Info, then turns around and sells it to advertisers that target me (and my Contacts) with ads. That sounds like MALicious softWARE. All you can do is make a user aware of the vulnerabilities and if they choose not to follow your recommendation, then it is on them and you have done your job.

Well articulated in all above points

Could not agree more

Will close of my part with >>

While some individuals visit these forums seeking technical solutions to specific Apple-related issues, there are also those who seek recognition or fame through their contributions. 

Aside from the obsessive belief in the Google Devil, wiping your Mac and reinstalling macOS is the shortest path to a fix.

Of course not. I know what I wrote. And that is a repeat from another member's knowledge on Chrome.

But I sure as heck would do one of two things:

1. Try Brave first with any financial institution that demands you use Chrome for access.
2. If Brave doesn't work, pull everything I have out of that bank and move it to a new one that has intelligent staff.

This is the kind of thing Microsoft tried to pull a couple of decades ago. They built functions into Internet Explorer that only worked in Windows. Then they very strongly urged webmasters to use those functions. Mainly, the extremely dangerous ActiveX. That plug-in allowed web sites to run apps on your computer remotely. A webmaster could literally do anything, including erasing your drive if they wanted to. And on top of that, the Mac version of IE had no ActiveX plug-in. All in the effort to get the user to get rid of their Mac and purchase a Windows machine so you could get the proper internet experience.

Why do all of that? For the simple reason of if the internet only worked correctly when using Windows, you quite literally controlled the internet itself.

That's what Google is now trying to do with Chrome. They are trying to convince webmasters that Chrome is the only browser you should be using. Ever.

It took years to break the whole IE attempt at grabbing the internet as its personal playground and make it what it was always intended to be. A system that works in any OS, and in any browser.

How long will it be before enough users see what Google is trying to do?

PRP_53 wrote:

@ Mac Jim ID

You and others may already be aware of this

And depending form what Source the CMM aka BrickMyMac was downloaded from

New macOS Malware "Cthulhu Stealer" Targets Apple Users' Data

All the more reason to nuke the machine ??

It was in my first post that there is too much junk on the computer and there is no doubt a clean install will be the easiest solution to clean up the computer.

The problem is that the OP has made it clear, they don't care and they are not going to reset the computer, they only want the pop up to go away. It is their computer and their choice, once you make your case, that is all you can do.

Similar to the Chrome debate that went sideways, I agree that Chrome harvests your personal information and I do not use it myself. Actually I would consider it a form of Malware when an app collects my Location Data, Search History, Browsing History, and Contacts Info, then turns around and sells it to advertisers that target me (and my Contacts) with ads. That sounds like MALicious softWARE. All you can do is make a user aware of the vulnerabilities and if they choose not to follow your recommendation, then it is on them and you have done your job.

Kurt Lang wrote:

Directly, no. I was bundling Chrome in with all of the junk VPNs for their known function of collecting personal data without the user's okay, or knowledge.

I don't how true that is. In any case, some people are required to use Chrome, whether it's true or not.

It's completely true. That's the entire and only purpose of these two startup daemons:

com.google.keystone.agent.plist

com.google.keystone.xpcservice.plist

I know some places (like very poorly run banks) require Chrome for access. But in almost all cases Brave also works since it's based on the same open-source Chromium code. Basically Chrome without any of the intrusive data mining.

Kurt Lang wrote:

It's completely true. That's the entire and only purpose of these two startup daemons:

com.google.keystone.agent.plist

com.google.keystone.xpcservice.plist

That's not my understanding

I know some places (like very poorly run banks) require Chrome for access.

Exactly my point.