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Safari hacked/virus on it!

My safari browsor was taken over by a fake virus scanner. How do I get it off my computer and how do I stop all the pop ups on my browser?

MacBook Pro with Retina display, OS X Yosemite (10.10.2)

Posted on Apr 27, 2015 8:43 PM

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Posted on Apr 27, 2015 8:53 PM

Helpful Links Regarding Malware Problems


If you are having an immediate problem with ads popping up see The Safe Mac » Adware Removal Guide, remove adware that displays pop-up ads and graphics on your Mac, and AdwareMedic. If you require anti-virus protection Thomas Reed recommends using ClamXAV. (Thank you to Thomas Reed for this recommendation.) You might consider adding this Safari extensions: Adblock Plus 1.8.9.


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.

3 replies
Question marked as Best reply

Apr 27, 2015 8:53 PM in response to Keeks24

Helpful Links Regarding Malware Problems


If you are having an immediate problem with ads popping up see The Safe Mac » Adware Removal Guide, remove adware that displays pop-up ads and graphics on your Mac, and AdwareMedic. If you require anti-virus protection Thomas Reed recommends using ClamXAV. (Thank you to Thomas Reed for this recommendation.) You might consider adding this Safari extensions: Adblock Plus 1.8.9.


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.

Jun 20, 2015 4:06 PM in response to Keeks24

I was just attempted to be hacked. I received the 404 message with a phone number to call. I used my home phone, because I didn't want them to have access to my cell number. When I call, I just didn't feel right so I hung up. They proceeded to call me twice. I didn't answer. I shut down my computer for a few minutes. When I restarted everything was back to normal. So sad to hear about all the folks who gave out information. My rule is, NEVER GIVE PERSONAL INFORMATION OVER THE PHONE. I googled Safari hacked 2015 and I was sent to this page. So thank you all for writing about this. I am going to send a message to the person whose page I was on telling that their page might be linked to the hackers. I am also going to post this to my fb page. Thanks again for the heads up.

Safari hacked/virus on it!

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