Application.MAC.OSX.AMCleaner PUA Removal

George Herman

IT Security Expert

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What is Application.MAC.OSX.AMCleaner

Application.MAC.OSX.AMCleaner is a malicious software that falls under the PUA (Potentially Unwanted Application) umbrella. This parasite will flood your screen with numerous annoying pop-ups and ads, no matter what website you’re visiting. Its goal? To make you install other unreliable programs that you do not need. It may even generate pay-per-click revenue for each ad you click on.

How it operates

The parasite is known to use scare tactics to trick you into believing that you must urgently install software on your Mac. In most cases, you will see a very convincing OSX dialog message box, claiming that you have no suitable app installed on your Mac, followed by a recommended link. And, if you make the mistake of clicking on it, you’ll only grant access to even more malicious software, or even dangerous viruses. As we already mentioned, PUAs will produce a large amount of shady advertisements, aiming to make you click on them. In order to make such content as attractive as possible, your online activity may be monitored. Web data like browsing history and search results will help the parasite in creating a specifically targeted ads, that you’ll most likely be attracted to. It is also possible for private information like passwords, bank accounts and credit card numbers to fall into the hands of cyber criminals. What’s more, the longer this PUA stays on your Mac, the worse the consequences will get. Soon, your internet speed will decrease, and your browser will become unresponsive to your actions. The only way to ensure that none of those things can happen, is to remove the threat ASAP!

How it is distributed

The most common PUA distribution methods are torrent files, email attachments, software bundles, freeware, fake update messages, dubious ads and links, etc. Often, users install such undesirable software purely by mistake. This happens when you rush into a software installation, without paying attention to the process. Which is why you need to pay attention to every step. If you notice any bonus content, make sure to opt out of it. Malicious software like Application.MAC.OSX.AMCleaner can often be seen disguised as optional installations, which will not be properly disclosed before the user downloads the program they actually want. Another mistake is to blindly trust a random ad that is urging you to update a program, most commonly Flash Player. Do not click on such fake update messages! If you truly need to download updates, then visit the official site for the program in question. Always rely on licensed and trust-worthy sources for your software downloads!

Staying safe from Application.MAC.OSX.AMCleaner PUA

Apart from having a reliable AV software installed on your Mac, there are other things you can do to ensure your device’s safety. We highly recommend you to:

• Pay close attention when you install third-party software, especially torrent files, so you don’t install shady additional applications that you don’t want. In most cases, that’s how malicious parasites are able to infect your computer;
• Read any Terms and Conditions you see, so you know exactly what you agree to. The last thing you want is to unknowingly give permission to a nasty virus to infiltrate your Mac;
• Follow links that lead to trustworthy sites only;
• It is best to visit only reliable and official websites. You never know what dangers might lurk behind an unfamiliar site;
• No matter how attractive an ad is, if you are not familiar with the website it redirects to, it might be best to steer clear of it and not click;
• Always check the sender’s email address before opening a message. If it states that it’s from an official company, compare the email with the one given in their official page. If there is no match, delete the message, since it most likely is fake and has malicious aims;
• Don’t open email attachments from unknown senders. More often than not, such files carry infections that can seriously damage your computer.

How to manually remove Application.MAC.OSX.AMCleaner PUA from Mac

If you’ve had the misfortune of getting your Mac infected with the Application.MAC.OSX.AMCleaner PUA, the instructions below can help you to remove it manually. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Go to Utilities. You can do that by using the ⇧+⌘+U key combination, or by going to Finder and choosing Utilities from the Go main menu at the top.

2. Find Activity Monitor and double-click it.

3. A list will be displayed. Find any processes that seem suspicious to you and use the ‘Force Quit‘ option to quit them completely.

4. Open Finder. Click on the Go button from the main menu at the top, and choose Applications. An alternative way is to use the ⇧+⌘+A key combination.

5. Look for any suspicious applications, especially ones with a name similar to Application.MAC.OSX.AMCleaner. If any are found, right-click on them and select the ‘Move to Trash‘ option.

6. Remove any related left-over files by going to Finder‘s search bar and typing the name of the app you want to remove. Make sure to modify the two drop down menus above to ‘System Files‘ and ‘Are Included‘, so that any hidden files are visible for you to remove. Once you find the files you want to remove, simply drag them to Trash.

7. All that’s left for you to do is remove any related extensions to Application.MAC.OSX.AMCleaner from your Mac browsers.

For Mozilla Firefox extensions:

• Open the Firefox browser and from the ‘burger’ menu in the top right corner of the window select ‘Add-ons’.
• Select any suspicious extensions that may be related to the virus and click ‘Remove’.

For Google Chrome extensions:

• Open the Chrome browser and select Tools > Extensions from the menu (the three dots in the top right corner of the browser window).
• Locate any suspicious extensions that may be related to the virus and remove them.

For Safari extensions:

• Open the Safari browser. From the Safari menu choose Preferences. Select Extensions from the options at the top.
• Find any extensions you think are related to the virus, select them and click ‘Uninstall’. A new window will show up asking for confirmation. Click Uninstall again, for the extension to get deleted permanently from your browser.