Arcahol is a program that is used to monetized software installation. It is a platform that generates revenue for developer and helps in the distribution of other program. The bad thing about Arcahol is some adware authors are utilizing this program to deploy malicious application to Mac OS X systems.
Mac users who've downloaded the Mac Defender Trojan horse got some help from Apple Tuesday in the form of instructions on how to removal the malware off their Macs. Update for Mac OS X that.
How to avoid or remove Mac Defender malware in Mac OS X v10.6 or earlier Learn how to avoid or remove Mac Defender malware in Mac OS X v10.6 or earlier. A phishing scam has targeted Mac users by redirecting them from legitimate websites to fake websites which tell them that their computer is infected with a virus. Question: Q: Anyone know malware removal tool for Mac OS X 10.5.8? My email was hacked. It happened to me a few weeks prior. I am looking for malware identification and removal tool for my G5 Tower / MAC OS X 10.5.8; but Apple's web site focuses only on current products. Anyone have suggestions?
To be able to spread adware, authors of potentially unwanted program uses Arcahol to bundle their software into legitimate ones. In most cases, users are not aware that installing desired programs may contaminate their computers with various adware. Arcahol are commonly linked to freeware and third-party software.
Once Arcahol gets into Mac OS X computer, it will install the host program and deliberately load other adware in the background. It installs unknown software without asking for user’s permission. Arcahol also alters various settings and drops essential file to be able to perform its task naturally on the compromised system.
With various software downloaded and installed by Arcahol, expect that its presence can somehow affect the Internet connection speed. It will definitely affect the overall performance of the computer particularly if tool that monitors your system is installed. There are numerous programs pretending to monitor the computer’s health which were found distributed by Arcahol.
You need to get rid of Arcahol at once to avoid any further installation of adware into the computer. Complete guide is listed on this page. Make sure you download and scan the system with provided tools and security scanners.
Online Security Scanner Report for arcahol.com:
Procedures to Remove Arcahol Adware from Mac
This section contains comprehensive guide to help you remove threats from the affected computer. https://zglmxa.weebly.com/blog/cat-translatio-tool-for-mac.
Procedures on this page are written in a manner that can be easily understand and execute by Mac users.
QuickFix: Instant Removal
Combo Cleaner is a trusted Mac utility application with complete antivirus and optimization features. It is useful in dealing with adware, malware, and PUP’s. Moreover, it can get rid of malicious browser adware that causes annoyances. You may need to purchase full version if you require to maximize its premium features.
1. Download the tool from the following page:
Click here to Download Combo Cleaner (this will open a new window)
2. Double-click the downloaded file.
3. In the opened window, drag and drop the Combo Cleaner icon onto your Applications folder icon.
4. Open your Launchpad and click on the Combo Cleaner icon.
5. Wait until antivirus downloads it's latest virus definition updates and click on “Start Combo Scan“.
6. Free features of Combo Cleaner include Disk Cleaner, Big Files finder, Duplicate files finder, and Uninstaller. To use antivirus and privacy scanner users have to upgrade to a premium version.
Proceed with the rest of the removal steps if you are comfortable in manually removing malicious objects associated with the threat.
Step 1: Remove Browser Extensions that belongs to Arcahol
1. Locate the add-on or extension that is relevant to the adware. To do this, please follow the procedure depending on affected browser.
Safari – Choose Preferences from the Safari menu, then click the Extensions icon. This will open a window showing all installed extensions.
Chrome – Select Preferences from the Chrome menu, and then click the Extensions link found on the left pane.
Firefox – Choose Add-ons from the Menu. Look at both the Extensions and Plugins lists when it opens a new window.
2. Once you have located Arcahol, click on Remove or Uninstall, to get rid of it.
3. Close the browser and proceed to the next steps.
Step 2: Delete Malicious Files that have installed Arcahol
1. Select and copy the string below to your Clipboard by pressing Command + C on your keyboard.
~/Library/LaunchAgents
2. Go to your Finder. From the menu bar please select Go > Go to Folder…
3. Press Command + V on your keyboard to paste the copied string. Press Return to go to the said folder.
4. You will now see a folder named LaunchAgents. Take note of the following files inside the folder:
The term unknown is just a representation of the actual malware name. It is normally an unfamiliar file name such as the following:
– Arcahol, InstallMac, Genieo, Eliaho, Inkeeper
If you cannot find the specified file, please look for any unfamiliar or suspicious entries. It may be the one causing the Arcahol to be present on your Mac. Arranging all items to see the most latest ones may also help you identify recently installed unfamiliar files. Please press Option + Command + 4 on your keyboard to arrange the application list in chronological order.
Important: Take note of all the suspicious files as you may also delete the same item on another folder as we go on.
5. Drag all suspicious files that you may find to Trash.
6. Please restart the computer.
7. Open another folder using the same method as above. Copy and Paste the following string to easily locate the folder.
~/Library/Application Support
8. Look for any suspicious items that are similar to the ones in Step 4. Drag them to the Trash.
Optional: For locked files that cannot be removed, do the following:
1. Go to Launchpad, Utilities folder, open Activity Monitor.
2. Select the process you want to quit.
3. Click on Force Quit button.
4. You may now delete or remove locked files that belongs to Arcahol.
Step 3: Scan the System with Adware Removal Tool for Mac
1. Download Malwarebytes Anti-malware for Mac from this link:
Click here to download MBAM for Mac (this will open a new window)
2. Run Malwarebytes Anti-malware for Mac. It will check for updates and download if most recent version is available. This is necessary in finding recent malware threats including Arcahol.
3. If it prompts to close all running web browser, please do so. Thus, we advise you to PRINT this guide for your reference before going offline.
4. Once it opens the user interface, please click on Scan button to start scanning your Mac computer.
5. After the scan, Malwarebytes Anti-malware for Mac will display a list of identified threats, Arcahol is surely part of it. Be sure to select all items in the list. Then, click Remove button to clean the computer.
Step 4: Remove Arcahol from Safari Home Page and Search
1. Open Apple menu and select Force Quit. You can also press Command + Option + Esc on the keyboard to access this feature.
2. From the list of applications, select Safari, and then click on Force Quit button. Wait for Safari browser to close.
3. Now, hold down Shift key and launch Safari. Do this to avoid opening any unwanted window from Arcahol.
4. Go to Safari Menu and then select Preferences from the list.
5. On Default search engine section, select the desired search engine from the list to override Arcahol custom search engine.
6. Next, make sure that “New windows open with” is set to Homepage. Adware may alter this and set it to open to unwanted webpage.
7. Then, on Homepage field, type the URL of your desired Homepage.
Optional: Reset Safari Browser
If the above procedures did not help in eliminating Arcahol on your Safari browser, resetting it to default value may be the best solution. Be aware that there is no way to reverse this process once executed. Android multi tool for mac.
1. Go to Safari Menu. Select Reset Safari from the list. This will open a window showing applicable items.
2. It is better to maintain the pre-selected items.
3. Click on Reset button to totally clear all the configurations made by Arcahol. Please restart Safari browser.
Sorry, but there is no such tool for Leopard. You can try using ClamXav 2.2.5. Also, see:
Helpful Links Regarding Flashback Trojan
A link to a great User Tip about the trojan: Flashback Trojan User Tip
A related link in the tip to a checker: Malware Checker Dowload Link
A Google search can reveal a variety of alternatives on how the remove the trojan should your computer get infected. This can get you started.
Conficker removal tool for mac. For now I recommend the User Tip from etressoft to detect and remove:
Microsoft Malware Removal Tool For Windows 7
Kaspersky Flashback Trojan Site:Flashback Trojan Detection and Removal
Free Malware Removal Tool For Vista
Also see Apple's article About Flashback malware.
Mac Os X Virus Removal
May 8, 2012 3:54 PM
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