I have a Zip Devil icon which has appeared on my homepage.

http://www.zipdevil.com/support.html#uninstall

[edit] theres nothing there!

please see Kappy's instructions here

Uninstall "ZipDevil"

Makes me wonder why anyone even bothers to write a utility like this, for $9.99 no less, when the OS can create and open zip files all by itself.

You installed ad-injection malware ("adware").

Don't use any kind of "anti-virus" or "anti-malware" product on a Mac. There is never a need for it, and relying on it for protection makes you more vulnerable to attack, not less.

Some of the most common types of adware can be removed by following Apple's instructions. If those instructions don't work for you, or if you have trouble following them, see below.

This easy procedure will detect any kind of adware that I know of. Deactivating it is a separate, and even easier, procedure that doesn't involve downloading anything.

Some legitimate software is ad-supported and may display ads in its own windows or in a web browser while it's running. That's not malware and it may not show up. Also, some websites carry intrusive popup ads that may be mistaken for adware.

If none of your web browsers is working well enough to carry out these instructions, restart the computer in safe mode. That will disable the malware temporarily.

Step 1

Please triple-click the line below on this page to select it, then copy the text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C:

~/Library/LaunchAgents

In the Finder, select

Go ▹ Go to Folder...

from the menu bar and paste into the box that opens by pressing command-V. Press return. Either a folder named "LaunchAgents" will open, or you'll get a notice that the folder can't be found. If the folder isn't found, go to the next step.

If the folder does open, press the key combination command-2 to select list view, if it's not already selected. Please don't skip this step.

There should be a column in the Finder window headed Date Modified. Click that heading twice to sort the contents by date with the newest at the top. If necessary, enlarge the window so that all of the contents are showing.

Follow the instructions in this support article under the heading "Take a screenshot of a window." An image file with a name beginning in "Screen Shot" should be saved to the Desktop. Open the screenshot and make sure it's readable. If not, capture a smaller part of the screen showing only what needs to be shown.

Start a reply to this message. Drag the image file into the editing window to upload it. You can also include text in the reply.

Leave the folder open for now.

Step 2

Do as in Step 1 with this line:

/Library/LaunchAgents

The folder that may open will have the same name, but is not the same, as the one in Step 1. As in that step, the folder may not exist.

Step 3

Repeat with this line:

/Library/LaunchDaemons

This time the folder will be named "LaunchDaemons."

Step 4

Open the Safari preferences window and select the Extensions tab. If any extensions are listed, post a screenshot. If there are no extensions, or if you can't launch Safari, skip this step.

Step 5

If you use the Firefox or Chrome browser, open its extension list and do as in Step 4.

but that one has a devil on it, and possibly a shiny icon - and it's developed by our old friends at Geneio, the finest name in crap infecting malware (tm)

Is it just me? I don't see these ads for Zip Devil, Clean my Mac, nothing. Do I need to go do dodgy sites to find them?

I've never had any of this stuff on my Mac's, either. Nor have I ever seen the popups that lock Safari to the page, declaring your system is infected and to call a 1-800 number RIGHT NOW!!!!

A

Although it's not malware and not related to the original question, "Rapport" is undesirable and should be removed.

Remove "Rapport" by following the instructions on this page. If you have trouble, see this page.

Back up all data before making any changes.

B

Again, back up all data before making any changes.

In the folder arranged as shown in the first screenshot, please delete these items:

None

In the second folder:

#2 through #4 ("InstallMac")

In the third folder:

None

Restart the computer.

Uninstall any Safari extensions you don't know you need. If in doubt, remove all of them. None is needed for normal operation.

Do the equivalent in the Chrome and Firefox browsers, if you use either of those.

Reset the Safari home page, if it was changed. You may need to do the same in the other browsers.

From the Applications folder (not shown in the screenshots), delete items with any of the following names:

InKeepr

InstallMac

Epolife

MPlayerX

ZipDevil

Open your home folder by clicking the house icon with your name in the sidebar of a Finder window. If there is a subfolder named "Applications" (different from the main Applications folder), remove anything in it that you did not put there yourself. Never, in my experience, does a legitimate software installer put anything in that folder automatically.

These steps will permanently inactivate the malware, as long as you never reinstall it. A few small files may remain in hidden folders, but they have no effect.

The instructions above apply only to you. I'm including more general—and complete—self-contained removal instructions below for the benefit of others who may find this discussion. You can skip the remaining steps, but you should read them.

C (optional)

You installed one or more variants of the "InstallMac" trojan. Take the steps below to disable it.

The criminal behind this attack tries to make the malware hard to remove by varying the names of the files it installs. This procedure works as of now, as far as I know. It may not work in the future. Anyone finding this comment a few days or more after it was posted should look for a more recent discussion, or start a new one.

Back up all data before continuing.

1. Triple-click the line below on this page to select it, then copy the text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C:

~/Library/LaunchAgents

In the Finder, select

Go ▹ Go to Folder...

from the menu bar and paste into the box that opens by pressing command-V. You won't see what you pasted because a line break is included. Press return. A folder named "LaunchAgents" will open.

2. Inside the folder you just opened, there may files with a name of the form

something.download.plist

something.ltvbit.plist

something.update.plist

where something is usually a meaningless string, such as any of the following:

Epolife

InstallMac

Javeview

Leperdvil

Manroling

Otwexplain

These are examples, not a complete list. The string could be anything. The point is that the same string will appear in the name of three files.

You could have more than one copy of the malware, with different values of something.

Move all such items to the Trash. There may not be any other files in the LaunchAgents folder; in that case, you can delete the folder, but otherwise don't delete it. Other files in the folder are not necessarily malicious (though they could be, if you also installed some other kind of malware.)

Log out or restart the computer. The trojan will now be inactive, but there are a few more components of it that should be cleaned up.

3. Open this folder in the same way as above:

~/Library/Application Support

and move to the Trash any subfolders named with the same something you found in Step 2.

Don't move the Application Support folder or anything else inside it.

4. Open the Applications folder. If there is an item with the same name as in Step 3, or any of the other names listed in Step 2, drag it to the Trash.

If in doubt, press the key combination option-command-4 to arrange the apps by date added. Look at the apps that have been added since you first noticed the problem. If there is one you don't recognize, drag it to the Trash.

Empty the Trash.

If you get an alert that the application is in use, force it to quit.

5. From the Safari menu bar, select

Safari ▹ Preferences... ▹ Extensions

Uninstall all extensions you don't know you need. If in doubt, remove all of them. None is required for normal operation. Do the equivalent in the Chrome and Firefox browsers, if you use either of those.

6. Reset the home page in each of your browsers, if it was changed. In Safari, first load the home page you want, then select

Safari ▹ Preferences... ▹ General

and click

Set to Current Page

Hallo Linc,

Open your home folder by clicking the house icon with your name in the sidebar of a Finder window. If there is a subfolder named "Applications" (different from the main Applications folder), remove anything in it that you did not put there yourself. Never, in my experience, does a legitimate software installer put anything in that folder automatically.

In my mac it seems that Parallels puts the applications in it of the Windows VM.