Posted on 03/25/2015 8:24:24 PM PDT by Swordmaker
Use these instructions to uninstall or remove ad-injection software — sometimes called adware – from your Mac.
Ad-injection software is advertising-supported software that can come from third-party download sites. Software that you download from such sites may have been customized to install both the software you want and the ad-injection software. If your Mac has ad-injection software installed, you might see pop-up windows, ads, and graphics while surfing the web, even if “Block pop-up windows” is selected in Safari preferences. Ad-injection software might also change your homepage and preferred search engine.
Check Safari settings and extensions
Go to Safari > Preferences, then follow these steps:
1. Click the General icon and make sure that the Homepage field contains the website you want.
2. Click the Search icon and make sure that the search engine setting shows your preferred search engine. Some versions of Safari have this setting in the General pane instead.
3. Click the Extensions icon. If you don’t want an extension or don’t know what it does, select the extension from the list and click Uninstall. These are examples of ad-injection extensions, but there are others:
• Amazon Shopping Assistant by Spigot Inc.
• Ebay Shopping Assistant by Spigot Inc.
• Searchme by Spigot, Inc.
• Slick Savings by Spigot Inc.
• GoPhoto.It
• Omnibar
Remove certain ad-injection software
Use this “Go to Folder” method to find and remove each item listed in the sections below, one item at a time:
1. Drag to select an entire line in the lists below, starting with /System/Library/Frameworks/v.framework, for example.
2. Choose Edit > Copy.
3. Open a Finder window, then choose View > As Columns.
4. Choose Go > Go to Folder.
5. Choose Edit > Paste to paste the line you copied into the text field.
6. Press Return.
• If the item is on your Mac, a window opens with the item you searched for already selected. Drag only that item to the Trash. If you’re asked to enter a password, enter your administrator password.
• If the item is not on your Mac, you’ll see a message that the folder can’t be found. Continue to the next item in the list.
Remove Downlite, VSearch, Conduit, Trovi, MyBrand, Search Protect
Use Go to Folder to find and remove each of these items:
/System/Library/Frameworks/v.framework
/System/Library/Frameworks/VSearch.framework
/Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/Jack
/Library/InputManagers/CTLoader/
/Library/Application Support/Conduit/
~/Library/Internet Plug-Ins/ConduitNPAPIPlugin.plugin
~/Library/Internet Plug-Ins/TroviNPAPIPlugin.plugin
/Applications/SearchProtect.app
After you remove the items above, restart your Mac. Then choose Finder > Empty Trash to permanently remove them.
Remove Genieo, InstallMac
First follow these steps to stop the Genieo or InstallMac processes, if they’re running. Be sure to restart your Mac when instructed.
1. Open Activity Monitor.
You can use Spotlight (Command-Space) to search for “Activity Monitor,” then choose Activity Monitor from the search results.
2. In the Activity Monitor window, click the CPU tab, then click Process Name at the top of that column to sort the list alphabetically.
3. Look for the process “Genieo.” Select it, then click the Force Quit button (x) in the upper-left corner of the window.
4. Look for the process “InstallMac.” Select it, then click the Force Quit button.
5. Quit Activity Monitor.
6. Use Go to Folder to find and remove /private/etc/launchd.conf.
Restart your Mac
Use Go to Folder to find and remove each of these items:
/Applications/Genieo
/Applications/InstallMac
/Applications/Uninstall Genieo
/Applications/Uninstall IM Completer.app
/usr/lib/libgenkit.dylib
/usr/lib/libgenkitsa.dylib
/usr/lib/libimckit.dylib
/usr/lib/libimckitsa.dylib
/Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/com.genieoinnovation.macextension.client
~/Library/Application Support/Genieo/
~/Library/Application Support/com.genieoinnovation.Installer/
Restart your Mac
Now find and remove /Library/Frameworks/GenieoExtra.framework.
Restart your Mac
Choose Finder > Empty Trash to permanently remove the items.
Optionally remove other adware files
You don’t need to remove these files to disable the adware. If you do remove them, first remove the other files listed in the sections above. Use the same Go to Folder method to find and remove each item.
/Library/LaunchAgents/com.genieo.completer.update.plist
/Library/LaunchAgents/com.genieo.engine.plist
/Library/LaunchAgents/com.genieoinnovation.macextension.client.plist
/Library/LaunchAgents/com.genieoinnovation.macextension.plist
/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.genieoinnovation.macextension.client.plist
/Library/LaunchDaemons/Jack.plist
~/Conduit/
~/Trovi/
~/Library/Caches/com.Conduit.takeOverSearchAssetsMac
~/Library/Caches/com.VSearch.bulk.installer
~/Library/Caches/com.VSearch.VSinstaller
~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.genieo.completer.download.plist
~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.genieo.completer.ltvbit.plist
~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.genieo.completer.update.plist
~/Library/Preferences/com.genieo.global.settings.plist.lockfile
~/Library/Preferences/com.geneio.settings.plist.lockfile
~/Library/Preferences/com.geneio.global.settings.plist
~/Library/Saved Application State/com.genieo.RemoveGenieoMac.savedState
~/Library/Saved Application State/com.VSearch.bulk.installer.savedstate
Go to the /Library/LaunchAgents/ folder and look for a file named com.*.agent.plist. The asterisk (*) could be any word, including “Apple.” Example: com.midnight.agent.plist. Move the file to the Trash.
Go to the /Library/LaunchDaemons/ folder and look for a file named com.*.daemon.plist and a file named com.*.helper.plist. The asterisk (*) could be any word, but it will be the same word used in the LaunchAgents folder, above. Example: com.midnight.daemon.plist and com.midnight.helper.plist. Move the files to the Trash.
Go to the /Library/Application Support/ folder and look for a file name that is the same word used in the LaunchAgents and LaunchDaemons folders, above. Example: midnight. Move the file to the Trash.
Restart your Mac, then choose Finder > Empty Trash to permanently remove the items.
Source: Apple Inc.
No, but none of these adware apps do either. . . they are not allowed on the Apple iOS App Store.
However there are still website that, using HTML techniques, will pop-up ads or, using java scripting, will, on merely loading the ad, re-direct you to the App Store to purchase a particular iOS app. Very irritating. Apple closed that redirection ability and they found another way to do it. . . and Apple blocked that. . . and they found another way. Luckily most advertisers are too ethical to irritate their customers by using it. . . and Apple has warned developers that such advertising techniques may get their apps pulled from the App Store because such techniques do not add to the user experience of Apple products.
Utilizer and one other poster came on this thread not to participate in a "conversation," but as schoolyard bullies gleefully throwing feces, trashing the thread, denigrating other participants, littering the grounds with inanities of broken glass from the windows they've thrown bricks through, insulting other participants, lying about the platform, and pestering people, acting like juvenile delinquents, uncivilized disrupters for the purpose of making the thread completely unusable for conversation. It was NOT a disagreement, but a disruption created by them.
I agree, do not delete this thread. . . but not for the reasons Utilizer falsely claims. His contributions to this thread are NOT CONVERSATION. He and one other poster on here are not here to provide any useful or meaningful information or discusion. They are here to insult and throw brickbats at other Freepers. They are running a campaign to make any thread related to Apple an unpleasant experience for any other participant. There presence here is not about any kind of conversation, but rather about trying to start a FLAME WAR.
This was a TECH THREAD for the useful purpose of providing important information that may have been needed by the thousands of Freepers who happen to use Apple Mac computers for their visits to FreeRepublic.
As Jim Robinson has stated in the past, if you don't like a thread, STAY OUT.
The only ones acting disagreeable here were those two who invaded this thread to act juvenile and nasty. They are not interested in using Macs, but they cannot politely excuse themselves and move on, but just HAVE to spew their garbage commentary totally off topic.
Now, after making the mess, Utilizer is trying to sound "Oh, so reasonable," but he is anything but reasonable when HE THREW THE FIRST PUNCH. and continues to feed the flames. Then he's basically claiming "I haven't hurt any one! Nobody is hurt by what I did!" That is the sign of the typical bully. He knows what he is up to and is trying to cover his rear end!
Then, after making this mess, Utilizer adds a smiley. Wonderful.
Utilizer is trying to say "Nothing to see here, let's move on" to cover-up his reprehensible behavior. Sounds very Clintonesque.
That is why I COUNTER their LIES and mis-use of language. I refuse to allow them to get away with it. I will NOT allow their statements to stand, uncountered. They need to be called on the carpet every single time they do it.
I’ll check mine when I get home.
I should be ok.
Ignore ignoramuses such as Utilizer. He is one of the PC lemmings who follows the crowd over the cliff and a true believer. They are the true cultists.
I checked mine and I’m clean.
A friend just brought me his wife's 11" Macbook Air. . . and the Safari on it was crashing on startup for her and all of her family member's users profiles. . . It was Genieo ad-ware. Took me a bit to locate all pieces of this load of mal-adware and delete them.
It came in on her latest update of damned Adobe Flash!! The dates co-incide on the file installs. It can't have come in anywhere else. . . I knew exactly what to look for and what to delete. Deleted the files and Safari started up perfectly again.
Always uncheck the extras check boxes when installing Flash if you must install it. . .
As a rule I don’t install anything Im not sure of. I have Genieo before and have always tried to avoid it.
Mac cleaner is another one I stay away from. I haven’t really found the need to run any cleanup software.
That's why I ignored Minnesota_bound's links to CCleaner. It essentially does everything OS X already does if you just leave your Mac turned on over night. Why run a utility to do something that the SYSTEM takes care of automatically with built in routines! Yes, it has a button you can click to run Permissions Repairs, but so does Disk Utilities in your Apple Utilities folder. Redundant.
I can’t use a Mac.
I’m a heterosexual.
I was going to tease you about this, but the utilizer is being such an a$$ I can’t bring myself to do it. Good day.
Thanks, Woodman, you have a good one, too.
Me either!
Thanks. This is just another example of how most computer problems can be traced to the peripheral attached to the keyboard.
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