How to Remove SearchMine From Your Mac

If you’re using a Mac, that doesn’t mean you’re completely protected from malware. There are many ways a Mac can be compromised, and SearchMine is one of the most common types of malware. If you don’t already know, this article will tell you what SearchMine is and how to remove SearchMine from your Mac.

For starters, SearchMine is a malicious browser extension that is often installed on Macs without the user’s knowledge. Once installed, it will make searchmine.net the default search engine, display annoying ads and send search results to advertisers.

Furthermore, it adds a toolbar to the browser and starts tracking and collecting users’ online activity to sell to third parties. Because there’s no application folder and it’s not included in Finder’s list of installed programs, it’s hard to find. But how did it come to your Mac in the first place? Let’s find out together.

How SearchMine Came to Your Mac

SearchMine is classified as a Potentially Unwanted Program (PUP) and is installed on a Mac through the included software. While this software may be legit, it often comes bundled with SearchMine and other programs you don’t need.

So when installing new software, it’s important to know the site you’re downloading from and to look through the bundled programs that may be included. Check the list of programs you don’t recognize and uncheck them before proceeding.

However, if you already have SearchMine, move on to the next section to learn how to get rid of it.

4 ways to remove SearchMine on Mac

Here are 4 ways to remove SearchMine from your Mac if you have somehow fallen into the SearchMine trap. Let’s start with the easiest ones.

1. Remove SearchMine from Mac using System Preferences

Hijackers take advantage of profiles to gain access to browser settings. In this method, we’ll use your Mac’s System Preferences to prevent browser intruders from preventing you from reverting to your browser’s default settings.

Step 1: From the Dock, open System Preferences or click the Apple icon in the top left and select System Preferences.

Step 2: Go to profile.

Note: If you don’t have any configuration profiles on your Mac, the configuration icon won’t appear.

Step 3: Press the ‘–’ button to remove the malicious configuration from the list if you see anything suspicious.

Pay attention to profiles named AdminPrefs, Safari Settings, or Chrome Settings.

Note: Images shown are for reference purposes only.

And this way you will get rid of the SearchMine hijacker. But what if SearchMine comes with some bundled apps? Well, we can remove it from there too. Follow up.

2. Delete SearchMine and all related files

This method will look through your Mac’s Applications folder, Library folder, and Login folder to find the SearchMine app.

Note: Some of the images in this section are for reference only.

Step 1: Press ‘Cmd + Space’ on your keyboard to launch Spotlight, type activity monitoring, and press Enter.

Step 2: Now look for any process called ‘SearchMine.’

Step 3: If you detect it, select it and click Stop.

Step 4: Select the Force Quit button in the prompt.

Step 5: Navigate to Apps and search for SearchMine.

Step 6: If you find one, right click and select ‘Move to Bin’.

There you have it. Your Mac currently doesn’t have SearchMine. You can double check by checking the login entries. This is the way.

Step 7: From the Dock, go to System Preferences.

Step 8: Go to ‘Users & Groups.’

Step 9: Click the Login Items tab.

Step 10: If you see something suspicious that could be a SearchMine browser intruder, click the padlock to make changes.

Step 11: Enter your password.

Step 12: Select the item and click the ‘–’ button to delete it.

Double-checking will prevent SearchMine from returning to your Mac. However, if SearchMine keeps coming back, here’s how to find it on your disk.

Step 13: In the finder, select ‘Go to Folder’ from the Go menu or simply press ‘Shift + Cmd + G’ on your keyboard.

Step 14: Now paste each location mentioned below in the search box one by one and press Go after each location.

~/Library/LaunchAgents /Library/LaunchAgents /Library/LaunchDaemons /Library/Application Support

Make sure each folder has no malware-related files. Move them all to the trash if you find any, but be careful not to delete any important files.

3. Remove SearchMine from Chrome, Safari and Firefox

Since the steps are different for web browsers, we have listed the steps separately for each browser. Select your web browser and follow the corresponding steps to remove SearchMine.

A. How to remove SearchMine from Chrome

Step 1: Open Chrome and paste the address below into the address bar.

chrome://settings/

Step 2: Select Reset Settings in the sidebar and click ‘Restore settings to factory defaults.’

Step 3: Click the Reset Settings button on the dialog box to confirm resetting Chrome.

Step 4: Now paste the below address in the address bar to open Chrome’s policy.

chrome://policy

If you find any suspicious policies, continue with the steps; if not, jump to Step 7.

Step 5: Press ‘Cmd + Space’ on your keyboard to open Spotlight, type terminal applicationthen press Enter.

Step 6: Paste the commands mentioned below one by one.

default value says com.google.Chrome HomepageIsNewTabPage -bool false default value says com.google.Chrome NewTabPageLocation -string “https://www.google.com/” default value says com.google.Chrome HomepageLocation -string “https://www.google.com/” clear default com.google.Chrome DefaultSearchProviderSearchURL default remove com.google.Chrome DefaultSearchProviderNewTabURL default remove com.google.Chrome DefaultSearchProviderName

Step 7: Select Chrome from the menu bar and click Exit Google Chrome. Now, reboot.

There you have it. Chrome will start with the default settings. But what if you’re using Safari? Follow the steps below.

B. How to remove SearchMine from Safari

You must be aware that deleting data may cause you to log out of some websites or change their behavior.

Note: Some of the images shown below are for reference only.

Step 1: Press ‘Cmd + Space’ on your keyboard to open Spotlight, type the hunt, and press Enter.

Step 2: Go to Preferences in the Safari menu.

Step 3: Go to the Advanced tab.

Step 4: Check the box next to ‘Show Develop menu in menu bar.’

Step 5: Now click Grow in the menu bar and select Empty Cache.

Step 6: Go to the Safari menu and click Clear history.

Note: Select all history from the drop-down menu and press Clear history.

Step 7: Return to Preferences.

Step 8: Select the Privacy tab and click ‘Manage Website Data’ to open a list of websites that store your browsing data.

Step 9: Select shady sites, tap Remove, and tap Done.

Step 10: Go to General tab and check Home.

Make sure it’s the page you want to use as your starter page.

Step 11: Finally, go to the Extensions tab to check for malicious code.

Step 12: Select it and click Uninstall.

There you have it! You have successfully deleted the Safari browser. Follow along to know how to remove SearchMine from Firefox.

C. How to Remove SearchMine from Firefox

Step 1: Open Firefox, in the address bar, paste the address below and press Enter.

About: support

Step 2: Click Refresh Firefox on the right hand side.

Step 3: In the dialog box, click the Refresh Firefox button.

The browser will restart and revert to default settings.

4. Use third-party tools to remove SearchMine quickly

You can use a third-party tool if you don’t want to go through the SearchMine browser intruder removal step-by-step process. One such tool is Malwarebytes, which we have already mentioned a lot.

SearchMine FAQ on Mac

1. Why does Chrome keep telling me I have a virus?

This could be because you might have unwanted software or malware installed on your computer:

2. Does Apple notify you if you have a virus?

Apple does not notify users of virus warnings. These people are scammers who send fake messages saying that your device has a virus. Careful.

Render Browser Hijacker

Browser intruders like SearchMine are common, but only some users take proper precautions not to let malware hijack their searches or for that matter, see what they search for. There’s a reason behind the name SearchMine; it mines your search data and sells it on the market. As always, it’s better to prevent than to fight to keep your PC safe from viruses and malware.

Categories: How to
Source: thpttranhungdao.edu.vn/en/