Jun 21, 2019 There are several steps you can take to get rid of a virus on an infected Mac computer. Here's a guide with methods and advice for every Mac user. The Adobe Flash Player update virus is one of the common ways cybercriminals try to deposit additional harmful code onto a Mac. It usually operates in tandem with such threats as bogus system utilities that report non-existent problems and thus attempt to manipulate users into activating the licensed copy of the scareware.

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Ask most Mac users about antivirus for Mac, and they’ll tell you that macOS doesn’t get viruses, so there’s no need to worry about it. Sadly, that’s not quite true. While there’s been no serious outbreak or epidemic of Mac viruses in the wild, macOS has been hit by malware quite a few times. Just recently, Meltdown and Spectre malware exploited flaws in Intel chips and affected Macs.

Macro Virus is the new Mac-specific threat that was discovered in 2020. This virus gets on your Mac through an infected Word document.

While malware and viruses aren’t the same things, the steps taken to combat them are similar enough that we’re going to use both terms interchangeably. And the best security software for Mac should deal with both categories equally well.

Technically, a virus is a bit of code that infects your system and can cause all sorts of havoc. Malware is a much wider term used to describe anything malicious that finds its way onto your Mac from apps you download think they were something else and which steal data, to code that arrives on your Mac because you clicked on a link on a website and which shows you adverts or threatens to hack your computer if you don’t pay up.

How do I know if my Mac has a virus?

Viruses display a number of different symptoms, depending on the kind of malware they are. It could be that your Mac starts behaving strangely and displaying odd things on the screen. Or you may see a message telling you that your Mac is infected and that you should call a premium rate number to get rid of it. If you see that, don’t call the number.

Here are a few signs that your Mac has a virus:

1. Your Mac suddenly starts running very slowly, or applications lag much more than they usually do.
2. You see adverts pop up on your Mac randomly.
3. Websites you visit show strange adverts that are unconnected with anything you’ve browsed or searched for.
4. You find a piece of software, like, say, a browser toolbar that you didn’t install.
5. Websites that don’t normally show adverts have banners on them.

If your Mac displays one or more of these symptoms, it doesn’t necessarily mean it has a virus or has been infected with malware. It’s a sign that it might do, however. And it’s well worth getting to the root of the problem. You can do that by installing an antivirus program and using it to scan your Mac. It will alert you if it detects any known viruses or malware.

What do I do if my Mac gets a virus?

We’ve covered that in detail in a separate article here. In summary, here’s what you should and shouldn’t do.

Don’t google your symptoms, and then download whatever comes at the top of the search listings. One common host for malware is fake antivirus software, and often the websites that house these apps are optimized for the very symptoms they cause. So instead of downloading a solution, you make the problem worse. If you want to scan your Mac for malware, try using CleanMyMac X. It can detect thousands of threats, including adware, worms, spyware, ransomware, and more.

It comes with a malware monitor that works in real-time. If some dubious app attempts to get into your Launch Agents, you'll see an alert and instructions on what to do next. Here's the screenshot of CleanMyMac X detecting a bunch of viruses on a MacBook:

How can I protect my Mac from viruses?

The obvious answer is to do research and install some trusted Mac security software. Our latest research on best antivirus for Mac may be a good starting point.

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1. Clear your browser cache

If the malware has come from a website you downloaded, you don’t want any traces of the site or and files it’s deposited left on your Mac. You can quickly and easily clear the browser cache for Safari and Chrome using CleanMyMac X. Unlike many independent antiviruses; this program is notarized by Apple, so check it out.

CleanMyMac X can also remove extensions for those two browsers — extensions are sometimes infected, and if you get a virus, it may have come from one of those.

2. Make sure your Mac’s firewall is switched on

1. Go to System Preferences and click on the Security & Privacy pane.
2. Choose the Firewall tab.
3. If the green light next to the word Firewall is showing, your firewall is on. If it’s not, click Turn On Firewall.
4. Click on Firewall Options and check the Enable Stealth Mode box.

3. Use ClearVPN

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Keeping your firewall on will help protect your Mac, but it won’t keep out every piece of malware. If you regularly use your Mac on a public Wi-Fi network, you should consider using MacPaw's ClearVPN — the first effortless VPN for a personalized and secure online experience. By using ClearVPN, you create a secure tunnel between your Mac and the websites you visit, and your data is encrypted. If the Wi-Fi network is compromised, your data and your Mac will be safe.

4. Don’t click the link

Email messages are a very common distribution medium for malware. Never click a link in an email unless you’re certain you know who the message is from. Phishing, as it’s called, can catch anyone out if you’re not vigilant. We’ve all had emails that look legitimate, and that ask us to click a link to access a form or read an important message. Don’t do it. The easiest strategy and the best malware removal for Mac is simply being vigilant.

5. Trust in Gatekeeper

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Gatekeeper is a built-in security layer of the macOS itself. It's no replacement for antimalware software, but it has a couple of very helpful tools that protect your Mac. One is Quarantine. If you’ve ever downloaded an application from the internet, you’ll have seen it in action. It pops up a dialog box telling you that you’ve downloaded it and where it’s come from — assuming it’s been digitally signed by its developer. Apps that don’t have a signature, supplied by Apple, don’t even get that far. You must then click to approve the app before it can be opened. Please don’t ignore this box when you see it. Check the app you’ve downloaded is the one you expected to download before you agree to open it.

6. Xprotect yourself

The other macOS tool is Xprotect — it scans files you’ve downloaded when you open them and looks for known malware. If it finds anything, it will warn you. If you see it, follow its instructions.

7. Avoid known offenders

Both Flash and Java have been used in the past to spread viruses — usually by hackers who create fake installers that pretend to be updated and lure you into downloading them. But outdated versions of Flash (the MacDownloader malware used a fake Flash update as a host) and Java can leave your Mac vulnerable to malware. The safest approach is to uninstall them altogether. Now that most of the web uses HTML 5 video and Adobe discontinued support for Flash Player, there's no reason to have Flash installed on your Mac.

8. Keep your browser up to date

Safari updates are installed with macOS updates, while other browsers like Firefox and Chrome will alert you when your browser is outdated and a newer version is available. Don’t ignore the warnings. Update your browser immediately. Often, these updates will include security features designed to keep you safe from malware.

9. Backup your Mac regularly

If you back up your Mac, you can restore from that backup if a virus causes real damage to your system. And if you use Time Machine, you can boot your Mac into the recovery partition and restore from a snapshot taken just before your Mac became infected. That makes it very easy to get back up and running again.

10. Secure personal data

You could use macOS FileVault to encrypt every file on your Mac. But it consumes resources and hits your Mac’s performance. For most of us, it’s overkill. But you should make sure that all sensitive or personal data stored on your Mac is encrypted. One way to do that is to use a password manager. As well as passwords, most of these apps encrypt and safely store credit card details, bank accounts, and text notes. You should also use secure, difficult-to-guess passwords for everything, from your Mac user account to your Wi-Fi network.

As you can see, the best virus protection for a Mac is to be alert and to use common sense. If you notice your Mac behaving strangely, take action immediately, even if it’s only launching Activity Monitor, to find out why your Mac is running slowly.

Apple virus protection in macOS, in the form of Gatekeeper and Xprotect will help, but they won’t stop every possible piece of malware. You need to be vigilant, backup your Mac regularly, and minimize the risk by removing Flash and Java.

The chances of your Mac becoming infected with a virus are slim. By employing the advice here, you can reduce that risk even further.

11. Antivirus software

What to look for in antivirus software? Antivirus software is a juicy market that attracts many newcomers. That’s why you should look into the software with a reputable name and at least some years of credibility behind it. So, don’t fall for fancy names. And don’t install more than two antivirus programs because antiviruses often conflict with each other. What else to consider:

Reputable brand: Malwarebytes, CleanMyMac X
Apple notarization: Legit apps are notarized with Apple
Real-time protection
Regular updates: Because new viruses appear every day
We hope this article gave you some valuable insights. Our MacPaw team is on the watch for the latest Mac security updates, so stay tuned.

If you use Google Chrome to browse the web or to work in Google Docs, and it starts behaving erratically, or you start seeing lots of intrusive adverts, it’s likely the browser has been infected with malware.

While it’s frustrating, and sometimes alarming, it’s not necessarily harmful to your Mac. Nevertheless, it’s best to get rid of it as soon as you realize it’s there.

What kind of Chrome virus is that?

Malware can take a number of different forms:

1. Adware

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This type of malware downloads itself to your Mac, usually in the form of a browser extension, or hidden in a file you’ve downloaded. It displays adverts in a web browser or on your desktop.

2. Pop-up windows

These are a bit like adware. Examples, like a Chrome pop-up virus, appear when you use a web browser, either on top of your current browser window, or behind it and take you to a website you haven’t chosen to go to.

3. Hyperlinks

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This is more difficult to spot. This type of malware, or Chrome redirect virus, turns regular text on a web page into hyperlinks. If you click on one of the links, it will take you to a web page selling something, or urging you to download a file.

4. Spyware

Spyware is often hidden in a trojan, disguised to look like a legitimate file — perhaps a movie or a software update — but when you download it, it immediately starts stealing personal data, including financial details, web pages you’ve visited, passwords, and even the keys you press on your keyboard.

How to know if Google Chrome has a virus

There are a number of signs that you have Chrome malware on your Mac.

• Chrome starts running very slowly and using up lots of processor cycles. Often, the first sign is that your Mac’s fans start running loudly when you’re not doing anything that’s processor intensive. If that happens, you can use Activity Monitor to confirm that it’s Chrome that’s stressing the CPU.
• You start seeing adverts unrelated to any site you’ve visited or search term you’ve used.
• A browser toolbar you didn’t deliberately download appears in your copy of Chrome.
• Pop-up windows appear frequently on sites that don’t normally use pop-ups.
• You discover an application in your Applications folder that you didn’t download.

How to remove adware and malware from Chrome

The easy way: Check your Mac with CleanMyMac X

CleanMyMac X by MacPaw is a tool that looks for Mac-specific viruses. This one is notarized by Apple.
The app might be able to detect adware, spyware, worms, ransomware, and other vulnerabilities and hazards. Here’s how to use it:

1. Download the free version of CleanMyMac and launch the app.
2. Click the Malware Removal tab.
3. Click Scan.

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If CleanMyMac finds something suspicious, it will offer immediate removal.

The manual way

1. Uninstall suspicious apps

Google recommends that when you discover adware or other malware, the first thing you should do is identify and get rid of any applications in your Applications folder that you suspect may be malicious.

1. Open a Finder window and go to Applications.
2. Look through the list of applications and identify any you didn’t download deliberately.
3. If you find one, you should remove it. However, just dragging the app to the Trash won’t get rid of every trace of the application. To do that, you need to remove every file associated with the app.

How to safely remove every trace of an application

You can safely remove unwanted apps, along with their leftovers, with the help of an app we’ve mentioned above — CleanMyMac X. It knows where to look for files that are installed by apps and searches for them there, then lists them when it finds them, allowing you to easily delete them.

If you’ve already downloaded and installed CleanMyMac, start using it right away. Go to the Uninstaller module and check the box next to the app you want to delete, and click Uninstall. That’s it!

Repeat the process for every app you suspect is malware.

2. Reset Chrome settings

If you don’t find any apps in your Applications folder that look like they’re malware, or if removing them doesn’t solve the problem, the next step is to reset Chrome’s settings.

1. Open a Finder window, go to Applications and launch Chrome.
2. At the top right of the window, click the ‘More’ icon (three dots stacked vertically).
3. At the bottom of the menu, click Settings.
4. At the bottom of the browser window that opens, click Advanced.
5. Scroll to the bottom again and click Reset settings.
6. Read the information in the box that appears, then click Reset.

Resetting Chrome, among other things, turns off extensions. If you need to use extensions, you’ll need to turn them back on again. However, before you do, it’s a good idea to go through them and check that you intended to download them. If you find any that you didn’t intentionally download or that you no longer need, you should delete them.

3. Remove extensions or turn them on again

1. In Chrome, click on the More button again.
2. Click More Tools, about halfway down.
3. Click Extensions.
4. Look through the installed extensions. If you see any you didn’t intend to download or no longer need, click Remove.
5. If you suspect it’s malware, check the Report abuse box.
6. Click Remove.

To turn an extension back on again, click on the toggle switch at the bottom right-hand corner of the extension box.

How to protect Chrome from malware

1. Don't click suspicious links

Email accounts for 90% of malware out there. There will always be virus emails in your inbox, often posing as existing services like Apple or Amazon.

Always check where the link leads: Hover your mouse pointer over the link and it will display the destination address. That could be radically different from what it claims to be.

Tip: Go to the Amazon or Apple, or USPS and check the message on their site directly.

By the way, one of the most common ways that malware is disguised is as updates to Adobe Flash. Given that most websites no longer use Flash, it’s safest to remove it from your Mac altogether. That way you won’t be tempted to download a spoof update.

2. Make sure your Mac’s Firewall is turned on

You’ll find the switch in the Firewall tab in the Security&Privacy pane in System Preferences.

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3. Use a non-admin account on your Mac

This tip may surprise you but most viruses need your admin privileges to be able to do any changes. How to prevent it? Simply use a non-admin account, like a standard account that has no privileges to adjust core system settings. The virus activity will be contained within those limits.

• Open System Preferences > Users & Groups.
• Click the “+” and unlock the padlock to create a new account.

4. Keep your browser up to date

Google Chrome can be set to update itself automatically, which is the safest way to do it. If you don’t want it to do that, make sure you install updates manually as soon as Chrome alerts you it’s out of date.

5. Keep macOS up to date

Apple issues security updates for the current version of macOS and for older versions. If you see one on the App Store or if macOS alerts you that an update is available, install it.

Go to Apple Menu > About this Mac > Software Updates.

6. Watch out for bogus warnings

One of the biggest scams on the internet is pop-ups telling you that your computer has a virus. If you see one, ignore it.

In addition to preventing malware, there are a number of things you can do to reduce the damage malware will do.

• Keep your personal data safe. Never store sensitive data like usernames and passwords, or credit card details as plain text. Use a password manager, which will encrypt everything.
• Back up your Mac regularly. If you use Time Machine to back up your Mac and the worst happens, you can roll back to a point just before your Mac was infected. Or you can recover individual files that have become corrupt.

Final tip: Check which apps have too wide permissions

There is a chance that a malware app will want to hijack your camera or a mic. Sometimes you don't even know that you've allowed an app to do certain things. It could happen inadvertently.
The mentioned Mac antivirus, CleanMyMac has a handy console for checking and adjusting permissions.
Run the free version of CleanMyMac (download it here)
Click on Privacy and choose Application Permissions.

This way you can grant and revoke permissions to camera, mic or other vital parts of your Mac. For example, if you believe your Chrome app has a virus, you can ban it here from using your camera.
As you can see, it’s not too difficult to remove malware from Chrome or remove adware from Chrome. However, it’s much better if you avoid download malicious code at all. If you follow the steps at the end of this article, you’ll make sure your Mac and the Chrome browser are both as safe as they can be.