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

What is RemoteView

RemoteView is an adware application aimed at Mac OS systems. Adware is a part of malicious software. RemoteView is created to bombard you with endless advertisements and pop up windows that could potentially be dangerous for your MAC. If you get adware on your MAC computer, it can alter web-browser settings and install malicious browser addons.

Another reason why you need to remove RemoteView is its online data-tracking activity. It can analyze the location and which Internet web pages you visit, and then present ads to the types of content, goods or services featured there. Adware software makers can gather and sell your browsing information and behavior to third parties.

So, if you happen to encounter the adware, then be quick and take effort to remove it as quickly as possible. Follow the few simple steps below to get rid of RemoteView adware. Let us know how you managed by sending us your comments please.

How does RemoteView get on your MAC OS

Adware software usually is bundled within certain free programs that you download off of the Web. So, think back, have you ever download and run any free software. 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 setup screens, as well as to always select the ‘Manual’ or ‘Advanced’ installation method, when installing anything downloaded from the Internet.

Threat Summary

Name	RemoteView, RemoteView 1.0 app
Type	adware, PUA (potentially unwanted application), Mac malware, Mac virus
Detection Names	MacOS.Agent-MT, Osx.Adware.Cimpli, ApplicUnwnt, Adware/Adload!OSX, Program:MacOS/Vigram.A, Adware.MAC.Generic, OSX.Trojan.Gen and Trojan-Downloader.OSX.Adload
Distribution	Freeware installers, dubious pop-up ads, fake updaters and torrent downloads
Symptoms	When you go to a web-page, you’re constantly redirected to another website that you do not intend to visit, advertising popups won’t go away, your MAC system starts automatically installing unwanted apps, an unexpected toolbar appears in your browser, your web browser start page has changed and you cannot change it back, slow Internet browsing speeds.
Removal	RemoteView removal guide

How to remove RemoteView adware

There are several steps to removing the RemoteView adware, because it installs itself so deeply into the MAC OS. You need to remove all suspicious and unknown applications, then get rid of harmful extensions from the Safari, Chrome and Firefox and other web browsers you’ve installed. Finally, you need to reset your web browser settings to remove any changes the adware has made, and then check your Apple Mac with MalwareBytes Free to ensure the adware is fully removed. It will take a while.

To remove RemoteView, execute the steps below:

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

Remove unwanted profiles on Mac device

RemoteView can make changes to the Mac system such as malicious changes to browser settings, and the addition of malicious system profiles. You need to check the system preferences, find and remove malicious profiles and ensure your settings are as you expect.

Click the System Preferences icon ( ) in the Dock, or choose Apple menu ( ) > System Preferences.

In System Preferences, click Profiles, then select a profile related to RemoteView.

Click the minus button ( – ) located at the bottom-left of the Profiles screen to remove the profile.
Note: if you do not see Profiles in the System Preferences, that means there are no profiles installed on your Mac device, which is normal.

Check the list of installed apps

One of the first things to attempt for removal of adware software is to check your Mac computer installed applications screen and look for undesired and dubious applications. If there are any applications you do not recognize or are no longer using, you should uninstall them. If that doesn’t work, then you may need to run malicious software removal tool such as MalwareBytes Free.

Open Finder and click “Applications”.

It will open a list of all software installed on your MAC. Scroll through the all list, and uninstall any suspicious and unknown software. Right click to dubious program and select “Move to Trash”. Another solution is drag the program from the Applications folder to the Trash.

Most important, scroll through the all list, and move to trash any unknown applications. Don’t forget, select Finder -> Empty Trash.

Remove RemoteView related files and folders

Now you need to try to find RemoteView 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.

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

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

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

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

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

Scan your Mac with MalwareBytes

We suggest using MalwareBytes. You can download and install MalwareBytes Anti Malware (MBAM) to search for and delete RemoteView related applications from your Mac device. When installed and updated, the malware remover automatically searches for and deletes all security threats present on the MAC OS.

1. Visit the following page to download the latest version of MalwareBytes for Mac OS.
   
   

   Malwarebytes Anti-malware (Mac)
   20983 downloads
   Author: Malwarebytes
   Category: Security tools
   Update: September 10, 2020
   
2. Once the download is finished, close all programs and windows on your MAC system. Open a folder in which you saved it. Run the downloaded file and follow the prompts.
3. Click the “Scan” button . MalwareBytes Anti Malware (MBAM) program will scan through the whole MAC for the RemoteView adware. A system scan can take anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes, depending on your MAC OS. When a threat is detected, the number of the security threats will change accordingly.
4. After finished, it will open the Scan Results. You may remove threats (move to Quarantine) by simply click “Quarantine”.

Remove RemoteView from Safari, Chrome, Firefox

If you’re still getting RemoteView adware software, then you can try to delete it by deleting harmful plugins.

Google Chrome	Mozilla Firefox
In the top right hand corner, click on ‘three vertical dots’, and this will open up the main menu on Chrome. When the drop-down menu appears, choose ‘More tools’ and click on ‘Extensions’. Click ‘Remove’ to uninstall an extension. Click ‘Remove’ in the dialog box. You can also try to remove RemoteView adware 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 RemoteView adware software 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 browse the Internet, you can’t avoid malicious advertising. But you can protect your web browser against it. Download and run an adblocker program. AdGuard is an ad blocker that can filter out lots of of the malvertising, blocking dynamic scripts from loading harmful content.

Visit the page linked below to download AdGuard.

When the downloading process is done, start the downloaded file. You will see the “Setup Wizard” screen. Follow the prompts.

Each time, when you start your machine, AdGuard will run automatically and stop intrusive pop ups, block harmful and misleading websites.

To sum up

Now your machine should be clean of the RemoteView adware. We suggest that you keep MalwareBytes (to periodically scan your MAC for new adware softwares and other malware) and AdGuard (to help you block unwanted advertisements and malicious web-sites). Moreover, to prevent any adware software, please stay clear of unknown and third party software.

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