How to uninstall OperativeBitUnit app/extension from Mac (Virus removal guide)

What is OperativeBitUnit

OperativeBitUnit is an adware program. Adware is type of malware that can cause issues for your MAC. It can generate numerous additional popup, banner, pop-under and in-text link advertisements flooding on your web browser; gather your confidential information such as login details, online searches, etc; run in the background and drag down your MAC running speed; give more chances for other adware, PUPs even malicious software to get on your computer.

Another reason why you need to remove the OperativeBitUnit adware is its online data-tracking activity. It has the ability to collect a wide variety of privacy info such as what web-sites you are opening, what you are looking for the Net and so on. This privacy data, subsequently, may be transferred third party companies. Therefore, it is not safe to use a Mac infected with adware. We advise you to follow the step-by-step guide below to remove the OperativeBitUnit adware and get rid of intrusive ads from your web-browser.

How does OperativeBitUnit get on your MAC system

Most of unwanted ads and popups come from web browser toolbars and/or extensions, BHOs (browser helper objects) and optional software. In most cases, these items claim itself as software which improve your experience on the Internet by providing a fast and interactive start page or a search engine that does not track you. Remember, how to avoid the unwanted applications. Be cautious, start only reputable programs which download from reputable sources. NEVER install any unknown and suspicious programs.

Threat Summary

Name	OperativeBitUnit, OperativeBitUnit 1.0 app
Type	adware software, PUP (potentially unwanted program), Mac malware, Mac virus
Detection Names	ApplicUnwnt, Osx.Adware.Cimpli, Program:MacOS/Vigram.A, OSX.Trojan.Gen, Adware.MAC.Generic, Trojan-Downloader.OSX.Adload, Adware/Adload!OSX and MacOS.Agent-MT
Distribution	Free software installers, suspicious pop up ads, fake updaters and torrent downloads
Symptoms	When you go to a web-site, you’re frequently redirected to another website that you do not intend to visit, you experience a huge number of of unexpected ads, there is an unwanted program in the ‘Applications’ section of the Finder, new toolbars on your desktop, your web browser settings are being changed without your request, slow Internet browsing speeds.
Removal	OperativeBitUnit removal guide

How to remove OperativeBitUnit adware

In the steps below we will have a look at the adware software and how to get rid of OperativeBitUnit from Chrome, Firefox and Safari web browsers for Mac, natively or by using a few free removal utilities. Read this manual carefully, bookmark it or open this page on your smartphone, because you may need to exit your web-browser or reboot your MAC.

To remove OperativeBitUnit, execute the steps below:

1. Remove unwanted profiles on Mac device
2. Uninstall OperativeBitUnit related programs through the Finder
3. Remove OperativeBitUnit related files and folders
4. Scan your Mac with MalwareBytes
5. Remove OperativeBitUnit from Safari, Chrome, Firefox
6. How to stay safe online
7. To sum up

Remove unwanted profiles on Mac device

OperativeBitUnit can install a configuration profile on the Mac system to block changes made to the browser settings. Therefore, you need to open system preferences, find and delete the profile installed by the adware.

Click Apple menu ( ) > System Preferences.

In System Preferences, select Profiles. if there is no Profiles in the list of preferences, that means there are no profiles installed on the Mac computer. If there is Profiles in the list, then click on it, then select a profile associated with OperativeBitUnit.

To delete a malicious profile, click on the minus button ( – ) located at the bottom-left of the Profiles screen.

Uninstall OperativeBitUnit related programs through the Finder

It’s of primary importance to identify and delete browser hijackers, adware and PUPs through ‘Applications’ section of your Finder.

Open Finder and click “Applications”.

Carefully browse through the list of installed applications and get rid of all suspicious and unknown programs.

After you’ve found anything dubious that may be the OperativeBitUnit adware or other PUP, then right click this application and choose “Move to Trash”. Once complete, Empty Trash.

Remove OperativeBitUnit related files and folders

Now you need to try to find OperativeBitUnit related files and folders, and then delete them manually. You need to look for these files in certain directories. To quickly open them, we recommend using the “Go to Folder…” command.

OperativeBitUnit creates several files, these files must be found and removed. Below is a list of files associated with this unwanted application.

• /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.OperativeBitUnit.system.plist
• ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.OperativeBitUnit.service.plist
• /Library/Application Support/.(RANDOM)/System/com.OperativeBitUnit.system
• ~/Library/Application Support/.(RANDOM)/Services/com.OperativeBitUnit.service.app

Some files created by OperativeBitUnit are hidden from the user. To find and delete them, you need to enable “show hidden files”. To do this, use the shortcut CMD + SHIFT + . Press once to show hidden files and again to hide them. There is another way. Click Finder -> Applications -> Utilities -> Terminal. In Terminal, paste the following text: defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles YES

Press Enter. Hold the ‘Option/alt’ key, then right click on the Finder icon in the dock and click Relaunch.

Click on the Finder icon. From the menu bar, select Go and click “Go to Folder…”. As a result, a small window opens that allows you to quickly open a specific directory.

Check for OperativeBitUnit generated files in the /Library/LaunchAgents folder

In the “Go to Folder…” window, type the following text and press Go:
/Library/LaunchAgents

This will open the contents of the “/Library/LaunchAgents” folder. Look carefully at it and pay special attention to recently created files, as well as files that have a suspicious name. Move all suspicious files to the Trash. A few examples of files: macsearch.plist, com.machelper.plist, com.OperativeBitUnit.service.plist, installapp.plist, com.net-preferences.plist, search.plist and com.google.defaultsearch.plist, . Most often, adware, browser hijackers and PUPs create several files with similar names.

Check for OperativeBitUnit generated files in the /Library/Application Support folder

In the “Go to Folder…” window, type the following text and press Go:
/Library/Application Support

This will open the contents of the “Application Support” folder. Look carefully at its contents, pay special attention to recently added/changed folders and files. Check the contents of suspicious folders, if there is a file with a name similar to com.OperativeBitUnit.system, then this folder must be deleted. Move all suspicious folders and files to the Trash.

Check for OperativeBitUnit generated files in the “~/Library/LaunchAgents” folder

In the “Go to Folder…” window, type the following text and press Go:
~/Library/LaunchAgents

Proceed in the same way as with the “/Library/LaunchAgents” and “/Library/Application Support” folders. Look for suspicious and recently added files. Move all suspicious files to the Trash.

Check for OperativeBitUnit generated files in the /Library/LaunchDaemons folder

In the “Go to Folder…” window, type the following text and press Go:
/Library/LaunchDaemons

Carefully browse the entire list of files and pay special attention to recently created files, as well as files that have a suspicious name. Move all suspicious files to the Trash. A few examples of files to be deleted: com.macsearch.system.plist, com.search.system.plist, com.installapp.system.plist, com.machelper.system.plist and com.OperativeBitUnit.system.plist. In most cases, adware, PUPs and browser hijackers create several files with similar names.

Scan your Mac with MalwareBytes

We recommend using MalwareBytes. You may download and install MalwareBytes to search for and delete OperativeBitUnit related apps from your Mac device. When installed and updated, the malicious software remover automatically scans for and removes all security threats exist on the MAC.

Installing the MalwareBytes is simple. First you’ll need to download MalwareBytes AntiMalware (MBAM) by clicking on the link below. Save it to your Desktop so that you can access the file easily.

Once downloading is finished, close all software and windows on your computer. Open a directory in which you saved it. Run the saved file and follow the prompts.

Once setup is complete, you’ll see window like below.

Now press the “Scan” button to perform a system scan with this tool for the OperativeBitUnit adware. When a malware, adware or PUPs are detected, the number of the security threats will change accordingly.

As the scanning ends, you may check all items found on your Apple Mac. When you are ready, press “Quarantine” button.

The Malwarebytes will now remove OperativeBitUnit adware and move the selected items to the Quarantine.

Remove OperativeBitUnit from Safari, Chrome, Firefox

If you have ‘OperativeBitUnit ‘ removal problem, then remove unwanted extensions can help you. In the steps below we’ll show you the solution to delete malicious extensions without reinstall. This will also help to delete OperativeBitUnit adware from your browser.

Google Chrome	Mozilla Firefox
In the top right hand corner, click on ‘three vertical dots’, and this will open up the main menu on Google Chrome. In the menu go to ‘More tools’, then ‘Extensions’. Click ‘Remove’ to uninstall an extension. Click ‘Remove’ in the dialog box. You can also try to delete OperativeBitUnit by reset Chrome settings.	Click on ‘menu’ button and select ‘Add-ons’. Go to ‘Extensions’ tab. To uninstall an add-on, click on ‘Remove’ button next to it. If you are still experiencing issues with OperativeBitUnit removal, you need to reset Firefox browser.
Safari
On the top menu select ‘Safari’, then ‘Preferences’. Select ‘Extensions’ tab. Select an extension you want to delete and click ‘Uninstall’ button next to it.

How to stay safe online

It’s also critical to protect your web browsers from harmful web-sites and advertisements by using an adblocker application like AdGuard. Security experts says that it’ll greatly reduce the risk of malware, and potentially save lots of money. Additionally, the AdGuard can also protect your privacy by blocking almost all trackers.

1. Click the link below to download the latest version of AdGuard for Mac OS.
   
   

   AdGuard for Mac download
   3677 downloads
   Author: © Adguard
   Category: Security tools
   Update: January 17, 2018
   
2. After the download is done, start the downloaded file. You will see the “Setup Wizard” program window. Follow the prompts.
3. When the installation is complete, press “Skip” to close the installation program and use the default settings, or press “Get Started” to see an quick tutorial that will assist you get to know AdGuard better.
4. In most cases, the default settings are enough and you do not need to change anything. Each time, when you start your computer, AdGuard will run automatically and stop unwanted ads, block harmful and misleading web pages.

To sum up

Now your machine should be clean of the OperativeBitUnit adware. We suggest that you keep AdGuard (to help you block unwanted advertisements and annoying harmful web-pages) and MalwareBytes Anti Malware (MBAM) (to periodically scan your machine for new adware softwares and other malicious software).

If you are still having problems while trying to get rid of OperativeBitUnit from the Google Chrome, Safari and Firefox, then ask for help here here.