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All replies
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Helpful answers
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Feb 20, 2015 7:18 PM in response to bathart14by Kappy,★HelpfulNo, you don't need it nor want it.
Helpful Links Regarding Malware Problems
If you are having an immediate problem with ads popping up see The Safe Mac » Adware Removal Guide and AdwareMedic.
Open Safari, select Preferences from the Safari menu. Click on Extensions icon in the toolbar. Disable all Extensions. If this stops your problem, then re-enable them one by one until the problem returns. Now remove that extension as it is causing the problem.
The following comes from user stevejobsfan0123. I have made minor changes to adapt to this presentation.
Fix Some Browser Pop-ups That Take Over Safari.
Common pop-ups include a message saying the government has seized your computer and you must pay to have it released (often called "Moneypak"), or a phony message saying that your computer has been infected, and you need to call a tech support number (sometimes claiming to be Apple) to get it resolved. First, understand that these pop-ups are not caused by a virus and your computer has not been affected. This "hijack" is limited to your web browser. Also understand that these messages are scams, so do not pay any money, call the listed number, or provide any personal information. This article will outline the solution to dismiss the pop-up.
Quit Safari
Usually, these pop-ups will not go away by either clicking "OK" or "Cancel." Furthermore, several menus in the menu bar may become disabled and show in gray, including the option to quit Safari. You will likely have to force quit Safari. To do this, press Command + option + esc, select Safari, and press Force Quit.
Relaunch Safari
If you relaunch Safari, the page will reopen. To prevent this from happening, hold down the 'Shift' key while opening Safari. This will prevent windows from the last time Safari was running from reopening.
This will not work in all cases. The shift key must be held at the right time, and in some cases, even if done correctly, the window reappears. In these circumstances, after force quitting Safari, turn off Wi-Fi or disconnect Ethernet, depending on how you connect to the Internet. Then relaunch Safari normally. It will try to reload the malicious webpage, but without a connection, it won't be able to. Navigate away from that page by entering a different URL, i.e. www.apple.com, and trying to load it. Now you can reconnect to the Internet, and the page you entered will appear rather than the malicious one.
An excellent link to read is Tom Reed's Mac Malware Guide.
Also, visit The XLab FAQs and read Detecting and avoiding malware and spyware.
See these Apple articles:
Mac OS X Snow Leopard and malware detection
OS X Lion- Protect your Mac from malware
OS X Mountain Lion- Protect your Mac from malware
OS X Mavericks- Protect your Mac from malware
If you require anti-virus protection Thomas Reed recommends using ClamXAV. (Thank you to Thomas Reed for this recommendation.)
From user Joe Bailey comes this equally useful advice:
The facts are:
1. There is no anti-malware software that can detect 100% of the malware out there.
2. There is no anti-malware that can detect everything targeting the Mac.
3. The very best way to prevent the most attacks is for you as the user to be aware that
the most successful malware attacks rely on very sophisticated social engineering
techniques preying on human avarice, ****, and fear.
4. Internet popups saying the FBI, NSA, Microsoft, your ISP has detected malware on
your computer is intended to entice you to install their malware thinking it is a
protection against malware.
5. Some of the anti-malware products on the market are worse than the malware
from which they purport to protect you.
6. Be cautious where you go on the internet.
7. Only download anything from sites you know are safe.
8. Avoid links you receive in email, always be suspicious even if you get something
you think is from a friend, but you were not expecting.
9. If there is any question in your mind, then assume it is malware.
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Feb 21, 2015 1:55 AM in response to bathart14by seventy one,Small addition to Kappy's post. Some companies offer Mcafee or Norton as free security with their service (I thinkSky is one). Before you buy, ask if you can opt out of taking that offer. In most cases you can, and should do so.
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Feb 23, 2015 7:11 AM in response to bathart14by NortonSupport,Hi there !
Norton Security on your mac adds an additional level of security to your computer and protects your computer from threats and viruses.
Thanks!
AbilashNorton Support
<Link Edited By Host>
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Feb 22, 2015 11:05 PM in response to NortonSupportby Terence Devlin,Norton products have a long long history of trashing OS X installations. You forgot to mention that.
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Feb 23, 2015 12:32 AM in response to bathart14by Donald Morgan,Bathart welcome to the discussions,
The fact remains that Apple computers and there devises are made up of a completely different format than a PC. Thus meaning you don't want or need several of the products out there and have found to be detrimental to Apple products. OF COURSE THEY ALL SAY THEY ARE MAC COMPATIBLE BUT THE FACT REMAINS NORTON WILL CRASH YOUR MAC.
The same holds true for most of them.
GOOD LUCK
DON
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Feb 23, 2015 2:19 AM in response to NortonSupportby seventy one,We (that is, almost all of us helping on the forums) tend to believe there are no viruses currently running that affect Macs ... but ... if you know different and can point to a virus that affects Macs that Norton has found, please tell us. I, personally, would much prefer to have the confidence to praise a supplier's product than to demean it.
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Feb 24, 2015 12:47 AM in response to seventy oneby seventy one,Yesterday I asked ...
"We (that is, almost all of us helping on the forums) tend to believe there are no viruses currently running that affect Macs ... but ... if you know different and can point to a virus that affects Macs that Norton has found, please tell us."
There's a suspicious silence from the Norton camp.
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Feb 24, 2015 12:55 AM in response to NortonSupportby petermac87,NortonSupport wrote:
Hi there !
Norton Security on your mac adds an additional level of security to your computer and protects your computer from threats and viruses.
Thanks!
AbilashNorton Support
<Link Edited By Host>
. Nortons is destructive to Macs. What Mac viruses has it reported? Almost Everybody here who has had Nortons installed has had severe problems which have more thaan Often been corrected by uninstalling the Nortons rubbish. There are enough free apps that will do that much damage without paying Symentec.
Cheers
Pete