Ib-search.com Mac hijacker (virus)

What is Ib-search.com Mac hijacker?

Ib-search.com is the application changing settings on the browser but affecting the speed of the device too

This site is the particular search engine that shows altered results to ensure that redirects are often caused

Ib-search.com Mac hijacker is nothing but a PUP that aims exclusively to affect macOS devices. There is no reason to keep it running all the searches and triggering redirects. Still, the piece of the infection is damaging more than the web browsing, so it becomes difficult to remove the hijacker properly. Potentially unwanted programs^[1] can easily find their way on Mac devices. Even though, some people believe that Apple machines are immune to cyber threats entirely.^[2]

This intruder can seem harmless because it focuses on creating issues with browsing activity, but additional features should be considered possibly dangerous. Cyber threats generally tend to spread around using deceiving methods like freeware installations, torrent pages, fake flash updates, and other content online. This is one of the reasons that make the hijacker unwanted and possibly malicious, intrusive application.

It is not malware that could steal or access your information and damage the machine significantly. However, having one infection can lead to infiltration of another program that is really damaging. Do not overlook these web browser-based threats this easily.

The particular problem with Ib-search.com is the changes in the web browser because if alters default settings to redirect users through the questionable engine all the time. Another annoying feature is silent infiltration. People are clueless about how this piece got on their machines because it bypasses the distinct authorization stage and manages to get into the computer without requiring permission from the user.

The intruder changes the homepage, default search engine, new tab, and new window preferences, so the content that users visit is heavily filled with advertisements and material that the PUP developer wants you to see. It coordinates Safari, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox browsers without having any permission.

Since the intruder mostly aims to affect Mac devices, the more common browsers like Safari and Chrome are affected the most. Unfortunately, the PUP is not easily found and removed, so you need to rely on proper tools that can find all malicious or potentially dangerous pieces and remove them from the machine. This way, you can terminate the Ib-search.com Mac virus yourself.

when the program targets macOS, distribution way includes fake Flash Player updates and deceptive ads

Terminate the PUP by disabling its functions

Once SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner or Malwarebytes manage to clean the machine for you, it is possible to revert those unwanted changes that the intruder made on the browser. However, that might be difficult, so rely on the instructions and restore the homepage, new tab, other preferences to your liking. Do not skip the random app removal step because it can be crucial for the persistence of this PUP.

Remove unwanted extensions from Safari:

1. Click Safari > Preferences…
2. In the new window, pick Extensions.
3. Select the unwanted extension and select Uninstall.

Clear cookies and other website data from Safari:

1. Click Safari > Clear History…
2. From the drop-down menu under Clear, pick all history.
3. Confirm with Clear History.

Reset Safari if the above-mentioned steps did not help you:

1. Click Safari > Preferences…
2. Go to Advanced tab.
3. Tick the Show Develop menu in the menu bar.
4. From the menu bar, click Develop, and then select Empty Caches.

Ib-search.com program does not give any positives when the machine is affected by the intruder, so experts^[3] always recommend getting rid of anything unwanted as soon as it annoys you. The longer these PUPs run on the computer, the worse the performance gets.

Manipulations on the machine and the browser directly can expose users to content that includes malicious material with direct malware downloads. You need to clean the machine, but all the additional installations of PUPs, browser-based threats can lead to further damage.

Make sure to eliminate any Ib-search.com – related content, including browser add-ons, extensions, other applications. This is the only way to stop banners, pop-ups, redirects from appearing on the screen repeatedly.

Delete malicious extensions from Google Chrome:

1. Open Google Chrome, click on the Menu (three vertical dots at the top-right corner) and select More tools > Extensions.
2. In the newly opened window, you will see all the installed extensions. Uninstall all the suspicious plugins that might be related to the unwanted program by clicking Remove.

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.

Change your homepage:

1. Click the menu and choose Settings.
2. Look for a suspicious site in the On startup section.
3. Click on Open a specific or set of pages and click on three dots to find the Remove option.

Reset Google Chrome:

If the previous methods did not help you, reset Google Chrome to eliminate all the unwanted components:

1. Click on Menu and select Settings.
2. In the Settings, scroll down and click Advanced.
3. Scroll down and locate Reset and clean up section.
4. Now click Restore settings to their original defaults.
5. Confirm with Reset settings.

Clear the machine fully to get rid of any Ib-search redirect symptoms

Since the intruder is not only the site that affects the browsing sessions, you need to get rid of the main app that causes all the Ib-search.com Mac redirects. That is not the easiest process, since the potentially unwanted application managed to get on the machine with the help of deceptive material and misleading messages.

Finding the PUP yourself is difficult because you need to know where the program got installed and what other files are needed to be deleted. The program is not added as a willingly installed program, so you need to check various places on the machine or run the proper PUP removal tool to ensure that all intruders are found.

Remove items from the Applications folder:

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 fully 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 dubious entries and then delete them.
4. Now enter /Library/LaunchAgents and /Library/LaunchDaemons folders the same way and terminate all the related .plist files.

Even though the mac operating system is considered safe and virus-free, you need AV tools for the thorough Ib-search.com removal procedure. You can also benefit from apps like FortectIntego that locate and solve issues with the system performance. This piece can clean any traces of the virus and ensure that the computer is running properly.

The hijacker and browser-based pieces cannot damage the machine themselves, but you should consider the PUP's existence a high risk for getting other programs installed without your permission. The piece needs to be terminated because this is not a reliable search engine, and all the redirects, advertisements become more of an issue over time.