chiychiystan

Q: Malware Stopping Internet Connection and Anti-Malware Software

Hi! I have a 2015 MacBook Pro that I use for college work, so as you can imagine, I have a lot of important information on it. With that being said, I probably should have been more careful browsing through the internet, but I unfortunately seem to have fallen for a "Java update" Malware trick, and have successfully infected my laptop with Malware.

 

After reading a few recommendations online, I downloaded MalwareBytes Anti-Malware for free and ran it. It immediately detected the harmful Malware and gave me the option of cleaning my computer of the harmful programs. After it cleaned my computer, it restarted and opened up.

 

Not only did the Malware not go away, but it got worse: As soon as the screen turned on, a bunch of windows appeared, with statements such as: "accountsd wants to use the "login" keychain." & "com.apple.iCloud.Helper.xpc wants to use the "login" keychain." These windows don't go away when pressing cancel, and I'm afraid to put a password in while my laptop is still affected by the Malware.

 

Secondly, none of my internet browsers will connect to the internet. Google Chrome no longer loads any pages, and now often needs to be force-quitted to exit. Lastly, MalwareBytes Anti-Malware will no longer open, and immediately goes to "Application Not Responding" when opened.

 

Can anyone please help me with a solution to this problem? It would be greatly appreciated.

MacBook Pro with Retina display, OS X El Capitan (10.11.6)

Posted on Aug 10, 2016 12:11 PM

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Q: Malware Stopping Internet Connection and Anti-Malware Software

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  • Helpful answers

  • by JimmyCMPIT,

    JimmyCMPIT JimmyCMPIT Aug 10, 2016 12:14 PM in response to chiychiystan
    Level 5 (7,486 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 10, 2016 12:14 PM in response to chiychiystan

    if you have willingly or unknowingly exposed your computer to potentially damaging software you should consider a backup of your system and a reinstall of the OS as no single or multiple scan of your computer may completely provide an accurate assessment of what has been allowed to infiltrate your computer.

    Use iTunes on your Mac or PC to restore your iPhone, iPad, or iPod to factory settings - Apple Support

    About OS X Recovery - Apple Support

  • by chiychiystan,

    chiychiystan chiychiystan Aug 10, 2016 12:25 PM in response to JimmyCMPIT
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Notebooks
    Aug 10, 2016 12:25 PM in response to JimmyCMPIT

    Following another recommendation I read online, I backed up my laptop using an external hard drive, but I've only done so after the Malware was already affecting my computer. If I reinstall the OS and use the back up to restore my data, will the Malware still be there?

     

    I know it's very dumb of me to be backing up my laptop just now, and I should be backing up my laptop often as it does hold a lot of important information for me, and I'm just realizing how important it is.

  • by JimmyCMPIT,Solvedanswer

    JimmyCMPIT JimmyCMPIT Aug 10, 2016 12:35 PM in response to chiychiystan
    Level 5 (7,486 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 10, 2016 12:35 PM in response to chiychiystan

    Clean OS install and if possible clean install of your applications (from developer websites, and nowhere else) would address that.

    It's not impossible but it's insanely complicated to attach this stuff to images, music, movies, and documents (with the exception of word macros but the vast majority of them attack Widows) so that level of restore would be as close as you could get if you wanted your data and I would attack the situation that way, but it's not necessarily the only way to do this.

  • by chiychiystan,

    chiychiystan chiychiystan Aug 10, 2016 12:36 PM in response to JimmyCMPIT
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Notebooks
    Aug 10, 2016 12:36 PM in response to JimmyCMPIT

    Alright, seems like a viable option, I'll wait for more input and hopefully an easier solution that doesn't include reinstalling the OS. Thanks for your help!

  • by JimmyCMPIT,Helpful

    JimmyCMPIT JimmyCMPIT Aug 11, 2016 1:17 PM in response to JimmyCMPIT
    Level 5 (7,486 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 11, 2016 1:17 PM in response to JimmyCMPIT

    btw the iPad link, I don't know whats going on with my safari or my keyboard but my copy buffer is not working in safari and the internal conversion from URL to friendly name is bonkers for me lately

    this was the link I intended to post:

    Use Time Machine to back up or restore your Mac - Apple Support

  • by OGELTHORPE,

    OGELTHORPE OGELTHORPE Aug 10, 2016 12:54 PM in response to chiychiystan
    Level 9 (52,313 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 10, 2016 12:54 PM in response to chiychiystan

    When you open Malwarebytes anti-malware for Mac, the menu bar has a HELP function.  Use that and the odds are good that you will get authoritative assistance from the developer.

     

    Ciao,

  • by chiychiystan,

    chiychiystan chiychiystan Aug 10, 2016 1:11 PM in response to OGELTHORPE
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Notebooks
    Aug 10, 2016 1:11 PM in response to OGELTHORPE

    When I attempt to open Malwarebytes, the top menu bar stays at "Finder" and never changes to Malwarebytes, so the HELP function never shows up. When I open up the "Force Quit Applications" menu, Malwarebytes is open, but has the "(not responding)" text next to it, which explains why the top menu bar never changes from Finder to Malwarebytes.

  • by chiychiystan,

    chiychiystan chiychiystan Aug 10, 2016 1:13 PM in response to chiychiystan
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Notebooks
    Aug 10, 2016 1:13 PM in response to chiychiystan

    UPDATE: I noticed that after the restart of my computer, a folder appeared in my Trash that contained the apparent malicious Malware, so I emptied my trash thinking that would be the end of my problem, but nothing's changed.

  • by dominic23,

    dominic23 dominic23 Aug 10, 2016 3:38 PM in response to chiychiystan
    Level 8 (41,631 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 10, 2016 3:38 PM in response to chiychiystan

    Please try a different approach.

     

    You will have t do this after starting up in Safe Mode to prevent adware

    from interfering with the removal of adware .

     

    1. Shut down the computer.

        Press the power button. Immediately after you hear the startup sound,

        press and hold the Shift key.

     

        The Shift key should be pressed as soon as possible after startup,

        but not before the startup sound.

     

        Release the Shift key when you see the Apple logo on the screen.

        Startup will take longer than usual.

        Screen flickering is normal in Safe Mode.

        Login to your account. Launch Safari

     

        If wifi is available,

        enter this address       https://www.malwarebytes.org/antimalware/mac/

        in the Safari address bar.

        Download,   Install , open,  and run it by clicking “Scan”  button   to remove adware, if present.

     

        If wifi is not available, run the copy of MalwareBytes already installed again.

        Once done, quit MalwareBytes.

     

    2. Safari > Preferences > Extensions

        Turn all extensions off

             or  uninstall all extensions you haven’t installed knowingly.

    3. Safari > Preferences >  Search > Search Engine :

        Select your preferred   search engine.

     

    4. Safari > Preferences > General > Homepage:

         Set your Homepage.

     

    5. Restart normally from  menu in the menu bar.

     

    6. Relaunch Safari holding the shift key down.

  • by OGELTHORPE,

    OGELTHORPE OGELTHORPE Aug 10, 2016 4:10 PM in response to chiychiystan
    Level 9 (52,313 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 10, 2016 4:10 PM in response to chiychiystan

    I have a copy of Malwarebytes anti-malware for Mac in my applications folder.  As soon as I clicked on it in the applications folder, this was the result:

    Screen Shot 2016-08-10 at 7.06.24 PM.png

    Please note the menu bar on the very top of the image I posted, specifically the HELP option.

     

    Ciao.

  • by chiychiystan,

    chiychiystan chiychiystan Aug 11, 2016 1:16 PM in response to OGELTHORPE
    Level 1 (8 points)
    Notebooks
    Aug 11, 2016 1:16 PM in response to OGELTHORPE

    When I opened the application, no window popped up and the menu bar didn't change at the top. It remained as "Finder; File; Edit; View; Go; Window; Help". Malwarebytes would not run on my computer as a result of the Malware corrupting the file. There was no option to click "Help" for Malwarebytes.

     

    However, I did finally solve the problem. I contacted apple support and they walked me through reinstalling the OS on my laptop over the phone, as recommended by a suggestion above. Now my Malwarebytes application works and does not detect anymore Malware on the computer, and all my other applications are running normally. Thank you to everyone with helpful input.