Hi I am sure I might be sounding like a broken record, but I recently heard about this MacDefender malware scam. I didn't download it or anything like that, but I have heard of the "MacKeeper" and I was wondering if MacKeeper is the same thing. Has anyone used thi MacKeeper? Is this another malware application that is messing with mac users?
Thanks!
-NightNinjaPDX
MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.6.7), 750GB (7200), 4GB Ram, 2.5GHz
MacKeeper isn't a trojan.
(58606)
Trojan War
If you discover a trojan program is running on your computer then look to the following information for assistance:
1. A recent discussion on the Apple Support Communities: MacDefender Trojan.
2. An excellent site devoted to Mac Malware: Macintosh Virus Guide
3. Another site for removing MacDefende, et.al.: MAC Defender Rogue Anti-Virus analysis and Removal
4. A new removal utility - MacDefenderKiller
MacKeeper is a maintenance utility for Macs but not a very good one. See the following:
Kappy's Personal Suggestions for OS X Maintenance
For disk repairs use Disk Utility. For situations DU cannot handle the best third-party utilities are: Disk Warrior; DW only fixes problems with the disk directory, but most disk problems are caused by directory corruption; Disk Warrior 4.x is now Intel Mac compatible. TechTool Pro provides additional repair options including file repair and recovery, system diagnostics, and disk defragmentation. TechTool Pro 4.5.1 or higher are Intel Mac compatible; Drive Genius is similar to TechTool Pro in terms of the various repair services provided. Versions 1.5.1 or later are Intel Mac compatible.
OS X performs certain maintenance functions that are scheduled to occur on a daily, weekly, or monthly period. The maintenance scripts run in the early AM only if the computer is turned on 24/7 (no sleep.) If this isn't the case, then an excellent solution is to download and install a shareware utility such as Macaroni, JAW PseudoAnacron, or Anacron that will automate the maintenance activity regardless of whether the computer is turned off or asleep. Dependence upon third-party utilities to run the periodic maintenance scripts had been significantly reduced in Tiger and Leopard. These utilities have limited or no functionality with Snow Leopard and should not be installed.
OS X automatically defragments files less than 20 MBs in size, so unless you have a disk full of very large files there's little need for defragmenting the hard drive. As for virus protection there are few if any such animals affecting OS X. You can protect the computer easily using the freeware Open Source virus protection software ClamXAV. Personally I would avoid most commercial anti-virus software because of their potential for causing problems.
I would also recommend downloading the shareware utility TinkerTool System that you can use for periodic maintenance such as removing old logfiles and archives, clearing caches, etc. Other utilities are also available such as Onyx, Leopard Cache Cleaner, CockTail, and Xupport, for example.
For emergency repairs install the freeware utility Applejack. If you cannot start up in OS X, you may be able to start in single-user mode from which you can run Applejack to do a whole set of repair and maintenance routines from the commandline. Note that AppleJack 1.5 is required for Leopard. AppleJack 1.6 is compatible with Snow Leopard.
When you install any new system software or updates be sure to repair the hard drive and permissions beforehand. I also recommend booting into safe mode before doing system software updates.
Get an external Firewire drive at least equal in size to the internal hard drive and make (and maintain) a bootable clone/backup. You can make a bootable clone using the Restore option of Disk Utility. You can also make and maintain clones with good backup software. My personal recommendations are (order is not significant):
Super Flexible File Synchronizer
Visit The XLab FAQs and read the FAQs on maintenance, optimization, virus protection, and backup and restore.
Additional suggestions will be found in Mac Maintenance Quick Assist.
Referenced software can be found at CNet Downloads or MacUpdate.
hi thank you for your reply I really appeciate it. What is MacKeeper? Is it legitimate?
Hi Kappy thanks for replying to me also. What is MacKeeper?
As I said it's a Mac maintenance utility. Visit MacKeeper.
Oh sweet thanks you! I thought MacKeeper was this damned MacDefender garbage too. You guys are awesome!
The MacKeeper product from a developer called "Zeobit" is not known to be a trojan, but it's marketed unethically. It does nothing useful that you can't do just as well without it.
Ok thank you very much!
I am afraid its worse then THAT!!. I bought two licences from those fraud spammers, liftetime with "satisfaction or moneyback guarentee".
Both my Imac and MacPro kept crashing after installing it. All the helpdesk from zeobit did for me was sending me mails i should re-install osx and mackeeper.
When that didnt help, the gave in. I asked my money back, as in the guarentee. Thet denied flat out. "Sir this is not OUR software causing the problem, but OSX. Go there with your complained!"
Alsoo there newsletter......i UNLISTED 9 times now and still i get 5-8 spam mails a week.
It´s a fraud a company !!
Swindlers!! Alsoo see :
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/2786697?start=0&tstart=0
If you (or someone using your computer) so much as clicks on an offer for MacKeeper, you are entering the gates of computer ****. "Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch'intrate" or "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here."
My laptop (only 6 months old) began running slower and slower, and hotter and hotter. And then funny things began happening to my OS. Went to an Authorized Mac Service provider and *they* were not able to trash the program, because it infiltrates and imbeds itself in so many places. They called MacKeeper malware.
I've spent two days trying to find out how to remove it and get things back to a pre-MacKeeper state. Reinstalled my OS and all of the software updates and finally, after a search and destroy mission for anything with derivatives of com.zeobit.MacKeeper, I am back to a faster and cooler running computer.
Burn in Dante's Inferno forever MacKeeper!
MacKeeper removal
Use the free Easy Finder and search for "zeobit" and MacKeeper and delete with extreme prejudice.
MacKeeper STAY AWAY FROM IT!!!! WARNING!!! IT IS AN EPIDEMIC OF INFECTIOUS DISEASE FOR YOU MAC. it will do your mac no good.
aka 911 bundle on app store WARNING!!!
Thanks for the opinion I will look into this after reading your post. A worf of advice I would reccomend restraining from sounding hot tempered as it may not allow others to read your posts without imagining you are possibly biased for reasons unstated... anyways be well. Matt
Trojans, MacDefender, and MacKeeper
