MAC.OSX.Hacktool.BrutalGift Removal

George Herman

IT Security Expert

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What is MAC.OSX.Hacktool.BrutalGift

Every user fears the Trojan horse virus. And with good reason. They are incredibly stealthy and dangerous. They have the ability to collect personal data and severely damage your system, if they stay undetected long enough. MAC.OSX.Hacktool.BrutalGift is an example of such malicious software.

How it is distributed

Trojan horse infections such as MAC.OSX.Hacktool.BrutalGift does not infiltrate Mac devices on their own. They need permission, in order to invade. Your permission, to be exact. This usually happens through software bundles, freeware, torrent files, email attachments, fake update messages, as well as infected ads and pop-ups. What you can do, in order to avoid accidentally giving this virus access to your system, is to make sure to opt out of any additional software during an installation. More often than not, such bonus content turns out to be malicious parasites in disguise. Also, do not open emails and attachments from unknown senders. There’s a good chance they may be infected with a virus. Updating programs through questionable pop-ups and ads are not advised. You should only get your software updates straight from the developer’s official website, and not blindly trust an online pop-up that is urging you to make a necessary update.

How it operates

The MAC.OSX.Hacktool.BrutalGift Trojan is not to be underestimated. Once it gets active, it will start corrupting and deleting files at random. Other symptoms that point straight at a Trojan infection include modified Registry, lagging, slow internet speed, high CPU usage, overheating, advertisement spam, installation of browser extensions and apps without your knowledge and consent, etc. The creators of this nasty virus may use this infection to spy on you – both online and physically. They may take control over your web camera and microphone to monitor your every move. Sensitive data like passwords, bank account and credit card information, IP addresses, etc. May get obtained by hackers and shared with other third-parties for profit. The only way to return your Mac to a normal and secure state, is to get rid of this virus as soon as you detect its presence!

Staying safe from MAC.OSX.Hacktool.BrutalGift Trojan horse

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 MAC.OSX.Hacktool.BrutalGift Trojan horse from Mac

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

1. First, start by finding all registry entries added by MAC.OSX.Hacktool.BrutalGift and deleting them. You do this by holding down the Option key while looking at the Go menu in Finder to access the ~/Library folder. Find all related entries and delete them one by one.

2. 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.

3. Find Activity Monitor and double-click it.

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

5. 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.

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

7. 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.

8. All that’s left for you to do is remove any related extensions to MAC.OSX.Hacktool.BrutalGift 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.