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Remove Mac Security Plus virus

Learn what makes the Mac Security Plus app dodgy and get informative insights into the methods to remove this scareware from Mac in a few simple steps.

One of the telltale signs of scareware activity is the influx of scans that the user never ran, along with irritating popup alerts that diminish the admin’s experience. What’s the point? It all comes down to money. The makers of these pseudo system utilities try to scare the victims that their Macs aren’t safe and healthy and then offer a “cure” for a registration fee. Whoever is behind the app called MacSecurityPlus (Mac Security Plus) chose not to go off the beaten track. This piece of software pretends to check the host system for various types of malicious code as well as performance issues. In doing this, though, it doesn’t get beyond pretending. The scan reports are going to be stuffed up with detected items, including trojans, viruses, privacy problems, memory congestion, lack of disk space, unused languages, unnecessary files, and similar concerns.

Mac Security Plus may look legit but it’s a fake system utility in fact

In addition to the annoying scans that appear off and on, the Mac Security Plus malware displays popup alerts that reiterate the purported necessity of cleaning up the computer. Unless the victim is okay with closing these dialogs one after another, such an interference is a big nuisance that doesn’t get along with normal Mac usage. This is a component of the intimidation tactic that feigns extra urgency and encourages the target person to take immediate action. To make matters worse, the permanently splashing phony scans and nag screens have a considerable system footprint and may slow the Mac down to a crawl. In some cases, the virus may hijack Safari or other default browser and redirect it to deceptive landing pages that echo the allegedly unsatisfactory safety and performance condition of the host machine.

Although the installation of the Mac Security Plus virus is always a trespass, the process involves certain action on the user’s end. The problem is that people fail to notice the untoward occurrence. The common entry vector exploited by the cybercriminals is what’s called bundling. It’s not an offensive mechanism per se, being a major monetization means for freeware authors. The gist is to push malicious or potentially unwanted applications (PUAs) as part of complex setups for programs that don’t require payment. In the upshot, Mac users believe they are installing one thing that’s harmless but end up additionally authorizing concomitant shady entities to infiltrate their machines. This is the fundamental reason to refrain from agreeing to the express setup option and go for the custom one instead. This way, it’s at least possible to take a look at what’s being promoted into the bargain.

To recap, Mac Security Plus is distributed in a furtive way. When inside and running, it frustrates the victim with frequent bogus scans and popup ads reporting problems that have nothing to do with the real state of things. On top of that, the virus deteriorates system performance and may tweak browser settings. Obviously, such a pest is subject to removal, with no other treatment being appropriate whatsoever.

Mac Security Plus virus manual removal for Mac

The steps listed below will walk you through the removal of this potentially unwanted application. Be sure to follow the instructions in the order specified.

  1. Open up the Utilities folder as shown below

    Open up the Utilities

  2. Locate the Activity Monitor icon on the screen and double-click on it

    Locate the Activity Monitor

  3. Under Activity Monitor, find the entry for Mac Security Plus, select it and click Quit Process
  4. A dialog should pop up, asking if you are sure you would like to quit the Mac Security Plus executable. Select the Force Quit option
  5. Expand the Go menu in Apple Finder and select Go to Folder
  6. Type or paste the following string in the folder search dialog: /Library/LaunchAgents

    Go to the LaunchAgents folder

  7. Once the LaunchAgents directory opens up, find the following entries in it and move them to Trash:
    • com.MacSecurityPlus.agent.plist
    • com.MacSecurityPlus.msphlpr
    • com.MSP.msphlpr
  8. Use the Go to Folder lookup feature again to navigate to the folder named ~/Library/LaunchAgents. When this path opens, look for the same entries (see above) and send them to Trash
  9. Similarly, go to the ~Library/Application Support folder. Locate and move the following entries to Trash:
    • MacSecurityPlus
    • helpermsp
    • hlprmsp
    • hlprmacsecurityplus
  10. Click the Go button again, but this time select Applications on the list. Find the entry for Mac Security Plus on the interface, right-click on it and select Move to Trash. If user password is required, go ahead and enter it

    Mac Auto Fixer icon under Applications

  11. Now go to Apple Menu and pick the System Preferences option

    Pick the System Preferences

  12. Select Accounts and click the Login Items button. The system will come up with the list of the items that launch when the box is started up. Locate Mac Security Plus there and click on the “-“ button

    Mac Auto Fixer entry under Login Items

Use automatic tool to uninstall Mac Security Plus virus from your Mac

The Mac maintenance and security app called Combo Cleaner is a one-stop tool to detect and remove Mac Security Plus virus. This technique has substantial benefits over manual cleanup, because the utility gets hourly virus definition updates and can accurately spot even the newest Mac infections.

Furthermore, the automatic solution will find the core files of the malware deep down the system structure, which might otherwise be a challenge to locate. Here’s a walkthrough to sort out the Mac Security Plus issue using Combo Cleaner:

  1. Download Combo Cleaner installer. When done, double-click the combocleaner.dmg file and follow the prompts to install the tool onto your Mac.

    Download Combo Cleaner

    By downloading any applications recommended on this website you agree to our Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy. The free scanner checks whether your Mac is infected. To get rid of malware, you need to purchase the Premium version of Combo Cleaner.

  2. Open the app from your Launchpad and let it run an update of the malware signature database to make sure it can identify the latest threats.
  3. Click the Start Combo Scan button to check your Mac for malicious activity as well as performance issues.

    Combo Cleaner Mac scan progress

  4. Examine the scan results. If the report says “No Threats”, then you are on the right track with the manual cleaning and can safely proceed to tidy up the web browser that may continue to act up due to the after-effects of the malware attack (see instructions above).

    Combo Cleaner scan report – no threats found

  5. In case Combo Cleaner has detected malicious code, click the Remove Selected Items button and have the utility remove Mac Security Plus threat along with any other viruses, PUPs (potentially unwanted programs), or junk files that don’t belong on your Mac.

    Combo Cleaner – threats found

  6. Once you have made doubly sure that the malicious app is uninstalled, the browser-level troubleshooting might still be on your to-do list. If your preferred browser is affected, resort to the previous section of this tutorial to revert to hassle-free web surfing.
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