kristymarie33
Level 1 (4 points)
Notebooks

Q: I Believe MacKeeper is hacking my system

Hi there.

 

I have a new MacBook Pro, and every once in a while it will freeze up.

 

When I power it back up, it will list a "Guest" profile alongside my profile, even though I have disabled a Guest profile.

 

One time when I was away from my computer and came back and it was frozen, I noticed that there was a "MacKeeper" window open, urging me to install their software.

 

What is the best way to keep them OUT of my system?

MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2015), OS X El Capitan (10.11.2)

Posted on Apr 5, 2016 5:05 PM

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kristymarie33

Q: I Believe MacKeeper is hacking my system

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  • by Carolyn Samit,

    Carolyn Samit Carolyn Samit Apr 5, 2016 5:20 PM in response to kristymarie33
    Level 10 (124,577 points)
    Apple Music
    Apr 5, 2016 5:20 PM in response to kristymarie33

    If you are using Safari, it may be due to a cookie they've placed on the hard drive.

     

    From your Safari menu bar click Safari > Preferences then select the Privacy tab then click:  Remove All Website Data

     

    Restart your Mac to test.


    If the problem persists, download  the (FREE)  Malwarebytes malware removal tool.


    If you are not comfortable downloading the removal tool, you can use the instructions for removing malware manually >  Stop pop-up ads and adware in Safari - Apple Support


    Hopefully that will eradicate the problem.



    I noticed that your profile indicates your Mac is running v10.11.2. If that is the case, the best way to avoid malware is to keep your OS X software up to date at all times.


    The v10.11.4 update is available from the App Store.


    Another way to avoid malware is to make sure Gatekeeper is enabled.


    Open System Preferences > Security & Privacy then select the General tab.

    Select:  Mac App Store and identified developers

    If that area is grayed out, click the padlock icon to make changes. You may be prompted for your admin password before proceeding.


    *  message edited by CS