How to remove Mwoukrkskills.xyz ads

Mwoukrkskills.xyz is used by crooks to make money from users' clicks on advertisements

Mwoukrkskills.xyz is a bogus website that was created for the purpose of monetizing user activity. It uses social engineering^[1] to trick users into allowing push notifications. People start getting spammed with annoying pop-up ads that can appear even when the browser is closed.

Crooks may use rogue advertising networks that place ads leading to dangerous websites. As a result, people can end up on scam pages that try to trick them into providing personal information, downloading PUPs (potentially unwanted programs),^[2] and even malware.

Social engineering

The deceptive site displays a message that asks users to press “Allow” to continue. Then it shows another pop-up that says to click “Allow” to close it. There are many tricks that crooks use to get users to subscribe to push notifications but the most common ones are:

Type Allow to verify that you are not a robot
Click Allow to watch the video
Download is ready. Click Allow to download your file
Press Allow to verify that you are not a robot

This can remind some people of a CAPTCHA verification process. However, a legitimate human verification step should never ask you to choose between “Block” and “Allow” on a browser prompt. Usually, users have to identify certain objects in pictures, like crosswalks or traffic lights.

Distribution methods

Most of the time, people stumble upon scam sites such as Mwoukrkskills.xyz by browsing through shady websites. Usually, they hide behind deceptive ads and sneaky redirects on pages that engage in illegal activities because they are unregulated. It is best not to visit unknown websites and not click on random links.

Another possibility is that the page appeared without any user input. This can happen if there is adware – advertising-supported software^[3] hiding in your system. It can cause an increased amount of commercial content, like pop-ups, banners, and redirects.

Stop the intrusive pop-ups

Below you will find a manual guide on how to take care of your browser. Because push notifications are subscription-based, you will have to disable them yourself:

Google Chrome (desktop):

1. Open Google Chrome browser and go to Menu > Settings.
2. Scroll down and click on Advanced.
3. Locate the Privacy and security section and pick Site Settings > Notifications.
4. Look at the Allow section and look for a suspicious URL.
5. Click the three vertical dots next to it and pick Block. This should remove unwanted notifications from Google Chrome.

Google Chrome (Android):

1. Open Google Chrome and tap on Settings (three vertical dots).
2. Select Notifications.
3. Scroll down to Sites section.
4. Locate the unwanted URL and toggle the button to the left (Off setting).

Mozilla Firefox:

1. Open Mozilla Firefox and go to Menu > Options.
2. Click on Privacy & Security section.
3. Under Permissions, you should be able to see Notifications. Click Settings button next to it.
4. In the Settings – Notification Permissions window, click on the drop-down menu by the URL in question.
5. Select Block and then click on Save Changes. This should remove unwanted notifications from Mozilla Firefox.

Safari:

1. Click on Safari > Preferences…
2. Go to Websites tab and, under General, select Notifications.
3. Select the web address in question, click the drop-down menu and select Deny.

MS Edge:

1. Open Microsoft Edge, and click the Settings and more button (three horizontal dots) at the top-right of the window.
2. Select Settings and then go to Advanced.
3. Under Website permissions, pick Manage permissions and select the URL in question.
4. Toggle the switch to the left to turn notifications off on Microsoft Edge.

MS Edge (Chromium):

1. Open Microsoft Edge, and go to Settings.
2. Select Site permissions.
3. Go to Notifications on the right.
4. Under Allow, you will find the unwanted entry.
5. Click on More actions and select Block.

Get rid of cookies and cache

You should also take care of your browser by clearing cookies and cache. Cookies are used by almost every website to track your activity. They can store data like your IP address, geolocation, websites you visit, and things you purchase online. They can later be sold to advertising networks or other third parties.

Because you probably were browsing through shady sites, this step is essential. We also have an automatic solution for this if you want to avoid a lengthy manual process – FortectIntego.

Clear cache and web data from Chrome:

1. Click on Menu and pick Settings.
2. Under Privacy and security, select Clear browsing data.
3. Select Browsing history, Cookies, and other site data, as well as Cached images and files.
4. Click Clear data.

Scan your system to detect adware

If you notice an increased amount of commercial content like pop-ups, banners, surveys, and others, or you often get redirected to strange websites even after you completed the previous steps, you may have adware installed in your system. PUPs are most commonly spread on freeware^[4] distribution platforms.

Because the owners of these pages provide programs for free, they include additional programs in the installers that monetize user activity.  People do not notice that other files were installed because they normally rush through the process.

If you want to avoid PUAs, you have to pay attention. Always choose “Custom” or “Advanced” installation methods and go through all the steps. The most important part is checking the file list and seeing if there is anything that you do not need. If you see them, just untick the boxes next to the names.

Generally, it is never clear which application could be causing the problems, as PUPs are often disguised as “handy” tools. We suggest using SpyHunterCombo Cleaner or MalwarebytesMalwarebytes anti-malware tools that can automatically scan your machine and eliminate it completely. If you know what you are doing and want to do it yourself, here are the directions for Windows and macOS:

Windows 10/8:

1. Enter Control Panel into Windows search box and hit Enter or click on the search result.
2. Under Programs, select Uninstall a program.
3. From the list, find the entry of the suspicious program.
4. Right-click on the application and select Uninstall.
5. If User Account Control shows up, click Yes.
6. Wait till uninstallation process is complete and click OK.

Windows 7/XP:

1. Click on Windows Start > Control Panel located on the right pane (if you are Windows XP user, click on Add/Remove Programs).
2. In Control Panel, select Programs > Uninstall a program.
3. Pick the unwanted application by clicking on it once.
4. At the top, click Uninstall/Change.
5. In the confirmation prompt, pick Yes.
6. Click OK once the removal process is finished.

Mac:

1. From the menu bar, select Go > Applications.
2. In the Applications folder, look for all related entries.
3. Click on the app and drag it to Trash (or right-click and pick Move to Trash)

To entirely remove an unwanted app, you need to access Application Support, LaunchAgents, and LaunchDaemons folders and delete relevant files:

1. Select Go > Go to Folder.
2. Enter /Library/Application Support and click Go or press Enter.
3. In the Application Support folder, look for any suspicious entries and then delete them.
4. Now enter /Library/LaunchAgents and /Library/LaunchDaemons folders the same way and terminate all the related .plist files.