According to security researchers, FieldIndexer is an adware program. Adware is form of malware which displays unwanted advertising on a MAC system, redirects search requests to advertising webpages and gathers user info for marketing purposes. Adware can display banner advertisements, full-screen ads, pop ups, videos, or other varieties of online advertising. Adware software can attack your Apple Mac’s web-browsers such as the Firefox, Google Chrome and Safari. Maybe you approve the idea that the advertisements or pop-ups is just a small problem. But these undesired ads eat machine resources and slow down your MAC system performance.
Unwanted ads
Does adware steal your data? Adware software can gather privacy information, including:
- IP addresses;
- URLs visited;
- search queries/terms;
- clicks on links and ads;
- browser version information.
How does FieldIndexer get on your MAC
Adware usually is bundled with some free software that you download off of the World Wide Web. So, think back, have you ever download and run any free applications. In order to avoid infection, in the Setup wizard, you should be be proactive and carefully read the ‘Terms of use’, the ‘license agreement’ and other installation screens, as well as to always select the ‘Manual’ or ‘Advanced’ setup option, when installing anything downloaded from the Internet.
Threat Summary
| Name | FieldIndexer, Field Indexer 1.0 app |
| Type | adware, potentially unwanted application (PUA), pop up virus, pop-ups, pop up ads |
| Symptoms |
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| Removal | FieldIndexer removal guide |
How to Remove FieldIndexer adware (removal instructions)
When the adware gets installed on your MAC without your knowledge, it’s not easy to delete. In many cases, there is no Uninstall program which simply remove the FieldIndexer adware from your MAC. So, we advise using well-proven free specialized tool such as MalwareBytes Free. But the best solution to remove FieldIndexer adware software will be to perform several manual steps, after that additionally use antimalware utilities.
To remove FieldIndexer, follow the steps below:
- How to get rid of FieldIndexer without any software
- Automatic Removal of FieldIndexer
- How to stay safe online
- To sum up
How to get rid of FieldIndexer without any software
In most cases, it is possible to manually delete FieldIndexer adware. This solution does not involve the use of any tricks or removal tools. You just need to restore the normal settings of the MAC and internet browser. This can be done by following a few simple steps below. If you want to quickly get rid of FieldIndexer adware, as well as perform a full scan of your computer, we recommend that you run adware software removal utilities, which are listed below.
Removing the FieldIndexer, check the list of installed programs first
The process of adware removal is generally the same across all versions of Mac OS. To start with, it’s necessary to check the list of installed programs on your MAC system and delete all unused, unknown and questionable apps.
Open Finder and click “Applications” such as the one below.
You will see a list of programs installed on your MAC system. We recommend to pay maximum attention to the program you installed last. Most likely, it is the FieldIndexer adware. If you are in doubt, you can always check the program by doing a search for her name in Google, Yahoo or Bing. After the program which you need to delete is found, simply right click on its name, and select “Move to Trash”.
Don’t forget, select Finder, then “Empty Trash”.
Delete FieldIndexer adware from Mozilla Firefox
This step will allow you get rid of FieldIndexer ads, third-party toolbars, disable harmful plugins and return your default home page, newtab and search engine settings.
Start the Mozilla Firefox and press the menu button (it looks like three stacked lines) at the top right of the internet browser screen. Next, click the question-mark icon at the bottom of the drop-down menu. It will show the slide-out menu.
Select the “Troubleshooting information”. If you are unable to access the Help menu, then type “about:support” in your address bar and press Enter. It bring up the “Troubleshooting Information” page as shown in the following example.
Click the “Refresh Firefox” button at the top right of the Troubleshooting Information page. Select “Refresh Firefox” in the confirmation prompt. The Mozilla Firefox will begin a process to fix your problems that caused by the FieldIndexer adware. Once, it is finished, press the “Finish” button.
Remove FieldIndexer adware from Google Chrome
Unwanted ads or other symptom of having adware in your browser is a good reason to reset Chrome. This is an easy way to restore the Google Chrome settings and not lose any important information.
- First, start the Google Chrome and click the Menu icon (icon in the form of three dots).
- It will show the Chrome main menu. Choose More Tools, then click Extensions.
- You’ll see the list of installed extensions. If the list has the extension labeled with “Installed by enterprise policy” or “Installed by your administrator”, then complete the following instructions: Remove Chrome extensions installed by enterprise policy.
- Now open the Chrome menu once again, press the “Settings” menu.
- Next, press “Advanced” link, which located at the bottom of the Settings page.
- On the bottom of the “Advanced settings” page, click the “Reset settings to their original defaults” button.
- The Google Chrome will display the reset settings dialog box as shown on the image above.
- Confirm the browser’s reset by clicking on the “Reset” button.
- To learn more, read the post How to reset Google Chrome settings to default.
Delete FieldIndexer adware software from Safari
If you find that Safari internet browser settings like new tab, homepage and default search engine having been modified by FieldIndexer adware, then you may return your settings, via the reset browser procedure.
Run Safari web-browser. Next, choose Preferences from the Safari menu.
First, click the “Security” icon. Here, choose “Block pop-up windows”. It will stop some types of popups.
Now, click the “Extensions” icon. Look for questionable add-ons on left panel, choose it, then press the “Uninstall” button. Most important to delete all suspicious extensions from Safari.
Once complete, check your homepage and search provider settings. Click “General” icon. Make sure that the “Homepage” field contains the website you want or is empty.
Make sure that the “Search engine” setting shows your preferred search provider. In some versions of Safari, this setting is in the “Search” tab.
Automatic Removal of FieldIndexer
Cyber threat analysts have built efficient adware removal tools to aid users in removing unexpected pop ups and intrusive ads. Below we will share with you the best malicious software removal tools with the ability to scan for and delete adware.
Remove FieldIndexer adware with MalwareBytes Free
You can remove FieldIndexer automatically through the use of MalwareBytes Free. We advise this free malware removal tool because it can easily delete hijacker, adware, PUPs and toolbars with all their components such as files, folders and registry entries.
- Download MalwareBytes on your MAC OS from the following link.
Malwarebytes Anti-malware (Mac)
20994 downloads
Author: Malwarebytes
Category: Security tools
Update: September 10, 2020
- When downloading is complete, close all software and windows on your MAC OS. Open a file location. Run the downloaded file and follow the prompts.
- Click the “Scan” button to perform a system scan for the FieldIndexer adware. A system scan can take anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes, depending on your MAC.
- Once the system scan is finished, MalwareBytes Anti-Malware will display a list of all items detected by the scan. Review the report and then click “Remove Selected Items”.
How to stay safe online
We advise to install an adblocker application which can block misleading and other unwanted web-sites. The ad blocker utility such as AdGuard is a program that basically removes advertising from the Internet and stops access to malicious web sites. Moreover, security experts says that using ad blocker programs is necessary to stay safe when surfing the World Wide Web.
- Installing the AdGuard is simple. First you’ll need to download AdGuard on your MS Windows Desktop by clicking on the link below.
AdGuard for Mac download
3772 downloads
Author: © Adguard
Category: Security tools
Update: January 17, 2018
- When the download is done, start the downloaded file. You will see the “Setup Wizard” program window. Follow the prompts.
- Once the installation is done, click “Skip” to close the install program and use the default settings, or click “Get Started” to see an quick tutorial that will allow you get to know AdGuard better.
- In most cases, the default settings are enough and you do not need to change anything. Each time, when you start your MAC OS, AdGuard will start automatically and stop intrusive advertisements, block malicious and misleading web pages.
To sum up
Once you have finished the few simple steps above, your MAC system should be clean from this adware software and other malicious software. The Safari, Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox will no longer show the FieldIndexer ads when you surf the Internet. Unfortunately, if the guide does not help you, then you have caught a new adware, and then the best way – ask for help.
Please create a new question by using the “Ask Question” button in the Questions and Answers. Try to give us some details about your problems, so we can try to help you more accurately. Wait for one of our trained “Security Team” or Site Administrator to provide you with knowledgeable assistance tailored to your problem with the FieldIndexer adware.
