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

What is AccessDefault

According to security experts, AccessDefault application is an adware. Adware is not as dangerous as like a computer virus or Ransomware, but its presence can bring constant pop-ups and/or unwanted advertising. Actually makers of adware software is associated with some third-party ad networks and by displaying advertising to users they generate money for yourself. These adverts not only bother your browsing experience but also redirect your web-browser to malicious and scam webpages.

Another reason why you need to remove AccessDefault is its online data-tracking activity. It can monetize its functionality by gathering confidential information from your browsing sessions. This sensitive info, afterwards, can be easily sold to third party companies. This puts your confidential information at a security risk. We advise to get rid of AccessDefault adware, as soon as you found this issue, as it can redirect your web-browser to web-resources which may load other unwanted applications on your Apple Mac.

How does AccessDefault get on your MAC

Adware come bundled with various freeware. This means that you need to be very careful when installing apps downloaded from the Internet. Be sure to read the Terms of Use and the Software license, choose only the Manual, Advanced or Custom install option, switch off all additional web browser addons and programs are offered to install.

Threat Summary

Name	AccessDefault, AccessDefault 1.0 app
Type	adware software, PUP (potentially unwanted program), Mac malware, Mac virus
Detection Names	MacOS.Agent-MT, Adware.MAC.Generic, ApplicUnwnt, Adware/Adload!OSX, Program:MacOS/Vigram.A, Trojan-Downloader.OSX.Adload, OSX.Trojan.Gen and Osx.Adware.Cimpli
Distribution	Free software installers, fake update tools, torrent downloads and suspicious pop up advertisements
Symptoms	Every time you perform an Internet search, your internet browser is redirected to another web-page, popup advertisements won’t go away, unexpected program installed without your consent, an unwanted toolbar appears in your web-browser, your web-browser startpage has changed without your permission, speed test good but internet slow.
Removal	AccessDefault removal guide

How to remove AccessDefault adware

Without a doubt, the adware is harmful to your MAC. So you need to quickly and completely get rid of the AccessDefault adware. To remove this adware, you can use the manual removal tutorial which are given below or free malware removal utility such as MalwareBytes AntiMalware (MBAM) (it is free). We advise you use automatic removal solution that will help you to get rid of adware easily and safely. Manual removal is best used only if you’re well versed in MAC OS or in the case where adware is not deleted automatically. Read this manual carefully, bookmark it or open this page on your smartphone, because you may need to close your internet browser or restart your MAC system.

To remove AccessDefault, complete the steps below:

1. Remove unwanted profiles on Mac device
2. Remove AccessDefault associated software by using the Finder
3. Remove AccessDefault related files and folders
4. Scan your Mac with MalwareBytes
5. Remove AccessDefault from Safari, Chrome, Firefox
6. How to stay safe online

Remove unwanted profiles on Mac device

AccessDefault 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. If there is Profiles in the list, then click on it, then select a profile associated with AccessDefault.

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

Remove AccessDefault associated software by using the Finder

In the next step, you need to check the list of installed software on your Mac computer and delete all unused, unknown and questionable programs.

Open Finder and click “Applications”.

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

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

Remove AccessDefault related files and folders

Now you need to try to find AccessDefault 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.

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

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

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

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

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

Scan your Mac with MalwareBytes

Manual AccessDefault removal requires some computer skills. Some files and system entries that created by the adware software can be not completely removed. We recommend that use MalwareBytes Free to scan the Mac. Moreover, this application will allow you to remove adware, toolbars, browser hijackers and PUPs that your MAC system may be affected too.

Visit the following page to download MalwareBytes.

Once the download is done, close all applications and windows on your Apple Mac. Open a directory in which you saved it. Run the saved file and follow the prompts.

Once setup is finished, you will see window as shown on the screen below.

Now click the “Scan” button . MalwareBytes Anti Malware application will scan through the whole MAC OS for the AccessDefault adware. This task can take some time, so please be patient. When a threat is found, the number of the security threats will change accordingly.

As the scanning ends, MalwareBytes Free will show a list of found items. Once you have selected what you wish to remove from your MAC OS click “Quarantine” button.

The Malwarebytes will now delete AccessDefault and move the selected items to the program’s quarantine.

Remove AccessDefault from Safari, Chrome, Firefox

Remove unwanted add-ons is a easy method to remove AccessDefault and revert back web-browser’s settings that have been changed by adware.

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. 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 get rid of AccessDefault 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 issues with AccessDefault adware software 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

To put it simply, you need to use an ad-blocker utility (AdGuard, for example). It will stop and protect you from harmful websites, unwanted ads and pop-ups. To be able to do that, the adblocker application uses a list of filters. Each filter is a rule that describes a malicious webpage, an advertising content, a banner and others. The ad blocking program automatically uses these filters, depending on the webpages you are visiting.

Download AdGuard on your MAC from the following link.

When downloading is complete, run the downloaded file. The “Setup Wizard” window will show up on the computer screen.

Follow the prompts. AdGuard will then be installed. A window will show up asking you to confirm that you want to see a quick guide. Click “Skip” button to close the window and use the default settings, or press “Get Started” to see an quick instructions that will help you get to know AdGuard better.

Each time, when you run your Apple Mac, AdGuard will launch automatically and stop unwanted popup advertisements, block harmful and misleading webpages.

To sum up

Now your machine should be clean of the AccessDefault adware. We suggest that you keep MalwareBytes Anti Malware (to periodically scan your MAC for new adwares and other malware) and AdGuard (to help you stop annoying pop up advertisements and harmful web-pages). Moreover, to prevent any adware, please stay clear of unknown and third party apps.

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