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

What is AboutDynamic

AboutDynamic is a malicious application that belongs to the Adware category. Adware is something that developed in order to provide third-party ads to the user without asking permission. AboutDynamic takes control of web-browsers, and redirects them to scam pages and displays unwanted ads every time users browse the Internet. The adware can end up on MAC computers in various ways. In most cases is when users install freeware and forget to uncheck the box for the third-party software installation.

Does AboutDynamic steal your personal information? It can monetize its functionality by gathering personal data from your browsing sessions. This confidential data, subsequently, can be easily sold to third parties. This puts your user info at a security risk.

How does AboutDynamic get on your MAC system

Adware software is bundled with various freeware. This means that you need to be very careful when installing programs downloaded from the Web, even from a large proven hosting. Be sure to read the Terms of Use and the Software license, choose only the Manual, Advanced or Custom installation mode, switch off all optional modules and apps are offered to install.

Threat Summary

Name	AboutDynamic, AboutDynamic 1.0 app
Type	adware, potentially unwanted program (PUP), Mac malware, Mac virus
Detection Names	ApplicUnwnt, Adware.MAC.Generic, Adware/Adload!OSX, Trojan-Downloader.OSX.Adload, OSX.Trojan.Gen, Program:MacOS/Vigram.A, MacOS.Agent-MT and Osx.Adware.Cimpli
Distribution	Free software installers, torrent downloads, fake update tools and malicious popup ads
Symptoms	You keep getting redirected to unfamiliar web-sites, you experience a ton of of unwanted ads, there is an unexpected application in the ‘Applications’ section of the Finder, unwanted internet browser toolbars, your Mac settings are being altered without your request, your web-browser slows to a crawl.
Removal	AboutDynamic removal guide

How to Remove AboutDynamic adware (removal tutorial)

The answer is right here on this page. We have put together simplicity and efficiency. It will help you easily to clean your MAC of AboutDynamic adware. Moreover, you can choose manual or automatic removal solution. If you are familiar with the computer then use manual removal, otherwise use the free antimalware utility designed specifically to delete adware. Of course, you may combine both methods. Certain of the steps will require you to reboot your machine or close this web page. So, read this guidance carefully, then bookmark this page or open it on your smartphone for later reference.

To remove AboutDynamic, perform the following steps:

1. Remove profiles created by AboutDynamic
2. Check the list of installed apps
3. Remove AboutDynamic related files and folders
4. Scan your Mac with MalwareBytes
5. Remove AboutDynamic from Safari, Chrome, Firefox
6. How to stay safe online

Remove profiles created by AboutDynamic

AboutDynamic 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 software.

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. If there is Profiles in the list, then click on it, then select a profile related to AboutDynamic.

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

Check the list of installed apps

In the next step, you need to check the list of installed software on your Mac device and delete all unused, unknown and suspicious applications.

Open Finder and click “Applications”.

Carefully browse through the list of installed software and delete all suspicious and unknown apps.

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

Remove AboutDynamic related files and folders

Now you need to try to find AboutDynamic 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.

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

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

Some files created by AboutDynamic 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 AboutDynamic 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: com.machelper.plist, search.plist, installapp.plist, com.net-preferences.plist, macsearch.plist, com.google.defaultsearch.plist, and com.AboutDynamic.service.plist. Most often, PUPs, adware and browser hijackers create several files with similar names.

Check for AboutDynamic 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.AboutDynamic.system, then this folder must be deleted. Move all suspicious folders and files to the Trash.

Check for AboutDynamic 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 AboutDynamic 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.AboutDynamic.system.plist, com.installapp.system.plist, com.macsearch.system.plist, com.machelper.system.plist and com.search.system.plist. In most cases, adware software, browser hijackers and potentially unwanted programs create several files with similar names.

Scan your Mac with MalwareBytes

We recommend using MalwareBytes AntiMalware (MBAM). You can download and install MalwareBytes Anti-Malware (MBAM) to locate and remove AboutDynamic related programs from your Mac computer. When installed and updated, the malicious software remover automatically finds and deletes all security threats present on the MAC.

Installing the MalwareBytes AntiMalware (MBAM) is simple. First you’ll need to download MalwareBytes from the following link. Save it on your Microsoft Windows desktop.

When the downloading process is finished, run it and follow the prompts. Press the “Scan” button to perform a system scan for the AboutDynamic adware. A system scan may take anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes, depending on your MAC. When a threat is found, the count of the security threats will change accordingly. Wait until the the scanning is done. You may remove threats (move to Quarantine) by simply press the “Quarantine” button.

The MalwareBytes Anti Malware (MBAM) is a free program that you can use to get rid of all detected folders, files, malicious services and so on.

Remove AboutDynamic from Safari, Chrome, Firefox

Remove unwanted extensions is a easy way to remove AboutDynamic adware and return internet browser’s settings which have been modified by adware.

Google Chrome	Mozilla Firefox
Click on ‘three dots menu’ button at the top right corner of the Chrome window. When the drop-down menu appears, select ‘More tools’ and click on ‘Extensions’. Click ‘Remove’ to uninstall an extension. Click ‘Remove’ in the dialog box. You can also try to remove AboutDynamic by reset Google 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 problems with AboutDynamic adware removal, you need to reset Mozilla 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

If you surf the Internet, you cannot avoid malvertising. But you can protect your browser against it. Download and run an ad blocker program. AdGuard is an adblocker which can filter out a huge number of of the malicious advertising, blocking dynamic scripts from loading harmful content.

1. Please go to the link below to download AdGuard.
   
   

   AdGuard for Mac download
   3677 downloads
   Author: © Adguard
   Category: Security tools
   Update: January 17, 2018
   
2. After downloading is done, run the downloaded file. You will see the “Setup Wizard” program window. Follow the prompts.
3. When the installation is finished, press “Skip” to close the installation application and use the default settings, or press “Get Started” to see an quick tutorial that will help you get to know AdGuard better.
4. In most cases, the default settings are enough and you don’t need to change anything. Each time, when you start your MAC, AdGuard will start automatically and stop intrusive advertisements, block malicious and misleading webpages.

To sum up

Now your machine should be free of the AboutDynamic adware. We suggest that you keep MalwareBytes Anti Malware (MBAM) (to periodically scan your MAC OS for new adware softwares and other malicious software) and AdGuard (to help you stop unwanted popups and harmful web-sites). Moreover, to prevent any adware software, please stay clear of unknown and third party software.

If you need more help with AboutDynamic related issues, go to here.