"Your system is infected with (3) Viruses” when opening a Safari tab

yttocs wrote:

I pay a fair amount in annual dues for various protection schemes for all our machines/devices/services but feel it's just as incredibly important and valuable (if not more) as car/home/health insurance. I wouldn't be caught dead without these all active and on guard 24/7.

Stay safe...

ST

What "protection schemes" would those be? You should not install any third party app that claims to protect, clean, boost performance, etc.

Just got the same popup when accessing a website using Safari. Completely locked my computer. Had to shut it down. Seems ok now...but not sure. I think I am going to bite the bullet and get Malware Bytes for OS. I had it for my PC and it works great.

Yes, Malwarebytes is the only anti-malware tool routinely recommend here and by Apple Support folk.

Also here some steps you can take:

Force Quit Safari ( command + option + esc keys).Then restart Safari holding the Shift key. If you still have problems Empty Caches (Safari menu > Preferences > Privacy > Remove all website data. (This will also remove history if you do not want to remove History open Safari Preferences > Advanced and check mark “Show Develop Menu” then choose “Empty Caches” from Develop Menu ).

Then go to Safari Preferences > Extensions and check there. If there is an extension delete it.

Hi

Safari opens a new window with this message all the time. When I just move my mouse over any given page a new window opens up with it.

How can I remove this virus?

tx.

R.

So many common questions, virtually all with one answer.

Usually phishers don’t just target a single machine or person, they “cast” a bunch of machines to see if they get a bite.... that’s why it’s called “phishing”.

It's still phishing. Doesn't matter if it came as an email, text message or otherwise. Casting is exactly what the crooks are doing using any of these methods. Send out the same junk to thousands, hundreds of thousands or millions of collected email addresses and see who responds.

I had the same problem last week. It was really annoying. I realized I visited online WhatsApp chat on my MacBook which asked me to download flash player, since then I got the virus problem.

Not a virus. You installed it. That's a Trojan. Viruses replicate with no user interaction necessary. Trojans require your help to do anything. You installed adware.

it happened to me too... should I call the real apple support ( not the number it showed) and is my Mac ok??

Yes, you're okay. It's nothing but a scam message.

I get this pop up saying I’m an Amazon winner…

This particular advertiser is buying tons of ad space through various ad servers. It's still just an ad. Usually causing a redirect to another site rather than simply displaying an ad on the site you were at.

I've done everything suggested, but I still have a notification at the top right of my screen that says 358 issues found..... There is no close button other than to press 'start repair' which I obviously won't do. How do I get rid of this screen?

See solution at the end of this post.

I get that message about once a week. It doesn't seem to be triggered by any particular website I visit. I would love to learn how to keep it from popping up. According to Malwarebytes I don't have any viruses on my computer.

And you don't since there are zero viruses on the Mac or iOS. Seeing them that often means you either installed adware, or you are simply visiting the same sites where these ads are. Keep going there and you'll keep getting the same ads or scam messages.

Today I got a message from a Apple support (on my phone 6s) saying that if I don’t contact Apple support three viruses will be installed. Idk of its real or not, has anyone else had this problem?

Yes, thousands of users get these scam messages every day. No, it's not real. Ignore.

I pay a fair amount in annual dues for various protection schemes for all our machines/devices/services…

Then you are truly wasting your money. Get rid of this junk service and simply use your head.

Just got the same popup when accessing a website using Safari. Completely locked my computer.

No, it locked Safari into a continuous JavaScript loop. All you needed to do was close Safari and restart it with the Shift key held down.

Safari opens a new window with this message all the time. When I just move my mouse over any given page a new window opens up with it. How can I remove this virus?

Not a virus. See earlier response above about viruses. That you're seeing them so often pretty much says you installed adware.

For iOS devices:

1. Double tap the Home button to call up the Application Switcher.

2. Slide Safari up and off the screen to close it.

3. Go to Settings > Safari. Tap the button to Clear History and Website Data.

This will only last as long as it takes you to go to a site that displays the same garbage popups and ads. Best current solution is to install an ad blocker. There are various free ones in the App Store. They can't stop everything, but will drastically reduce how much of this junk you get.

For Safari on your Mac:

1. Force Quit Safari.

2. Hold the Shift key down and relaunch it. This tells Safari not to remember any open sites from the previous session.

3. If that alone doesn't work (it's supposed to, but doesn't always work), disconnect from the Internet by either unplugging your wired Ethernet connection, or by turning off Wi-Fi. Launch Safari again. Repeat step two. With no way for the remote site to run JavaScript actions to keep a page open, you can now close them.

4. Re-establish your Internet connection.

Thomas Reed, who wrote and maintains MalwareBytes for Mac, noted recently that because of security changes in the Mac OS, they can no longer reset the Home page. So, if Safari is still going to a particular scam site at each launch of the app, you'll have to manually remove that entry in Safari's preferences. Which likely won't stick until you've removed the adware you've installed.

I just got that notification and I downloaded it, but I deleted it using the same method I did with MacKeeper

You've installed the absolute worst piece of junk on the entire Mac market. MacKeeper is just short of being classified as malware itself. This is an app that will claim a brand new Mac out of the box has hundreds of serious errors. They've been the subject of two lawsuits. Do yourself a HUGE favor and get rid of MacKeeper. Demand a refund if you can. Never install any AV software again. All of it is 100% useless.

In the link Avoid phishing emails, fake 'virus' alerts, phony support calls, and other scams - Apple Support it says don't give username and password. But yourMalwareBytes require username and password to install. How do I know yours is not phony download?

If you acquired MalwareBytes from anywhere but the original vendor, there's no easy way to know it hasn't been modified. It should only be downloaded from here:

Malwarebytes for Mac — Mac Antivirus Replacement | Malwarebytes

Installing MalwareBytes will ask for your admin password because it installs a kernel extension as part of its real time protection. The OS will also prompt you to okay the extension in the Security panel.

Happened to me also. I force quit out of Safari and then relaunch. This usually works fine. On occasion I have had to force quit a 2nd time and then tell safari not to open the window from the previous session.

My iPhone came up with a message telling me I have a virus. This sounds very suspicious to me. What should I do

Delete the message and ignore it. It's nothing but a scam.

I think my phone has been compromised. How do I fix?

Read the rest of this topic.

Unless you've jailbroken your phone, or it was in someone else's possession long enough to do that (and they'd have to be past your login, too), it hasn't been compromised.

Explain what you think is wrong.

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