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

What is AddSystem

AddSystem is an adware application that targets Mac computers. Adware is a type of malicious software designed to throw advertisements up on the web-browser screen. The AddSystem adware generates revenue for its creator by frequently displaying unwanted ads, fake alerts, push notifications and pop up deals. You might experience a change in your homepage or search engine, new tabs opening or even a redirect to shady web sites.

The worst is, AddSystem can be used to gather lots of user info about you to get profit. It can analyze your browsing, and gain access to your user data and, later, can sell it to third party companies. Thus, there are more than enough reasons to remove adware from your MAC.

How does AddSystem get on your machine

Adware usually spreads as a part of some free applications that users download off of the World Wide Web. So, think back, have you ever download and run any free apps. 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 choose the ‘Manual’ or ‘Advanced’ install option, when installing anything downloaded from the Net.

Threat Summary

Name	AddSystem, “AddSystem 1.0 app”
Type	adware, PUP (potentially unwanted program), Mac virus, Mac malware
Detection Names	Osx.Adware.Cimpli, OSX.Trojan.Gen, Program:MacOS/Vigram.A, MacOS.Agent-MT, Adware.MAC.Generic, ApplicUnwnt, Adware/Adload!OSX and Trojan-Downloader.OSX.Adload
Distribution	Freeware installers, misleading pop-up advertisements, fake software updaters and torrent downloads
Symptoms	Every time you perform an Internet search, your internet browser is redirected to another web page, undesired advertising links appear on web-pages that you are visiting, there is an unexpected program in the ‘Applications’ section of the Finder, new extensions suddenly installed on your browser, your web-browser homepage has modified and you cannot modify it back, speed test good but internet slow.
Removal	AddSystem removal guide

How to remove AddSystem adware

If you have consistent pop ups or undesired ads, slow MAC system, freezing computer problems, you are in need of adware removal assistance. The step-by-step tutorial below will guide you forward to get AddSystem removed and will help you get your MAC system operating at peak capacity again.

To remove AddSystem, complete the following steps:

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

Remove unwanted profiles on Mac device

AddSystem 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 related to AddSystem.

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

Uninstall AddSystem related applications through the Finder

Go to the Finder and remove questionable applications, all programs you don’t remember installing. It’s important to pay the most attention to apps you have recently installed. If you don’t know what a program does, look for the answer on the Web.

Open Finder and click “Applications”.

It will display a list of all software installed on your MAC OS. Scroll through the all list, and delete any questionable and unknown programs. Right click to questionable program and choose “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, choose Finder -> Empty Trash.

Remove AddSystem related files and folders

Now you need to try to find AddSystem 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.

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

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

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

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

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

Scan your Mac with MalwareBytes

If you are still having problems with the AddSystem removal or just wish to check your Mac device occasionally for adware software and other malicious software, then download MalwareBytes Anti Malware (MBAM). It’s free for home use, and finds and deletes various unwanted software that attacks your MAC system or degrades MAC performance. MalwareBytes Anti Malware can remove browser hijackers, toolbars, PUPs and adware as well as malicious software, including ransomware and trojans.

MalwareBytes Free can be downloaded from the following link.

When the downloading process is done, close all software and windows on your machine. Open a directory in which you saved it. Run the saved file and follow the prompts.

Once setup is done, you’ll see window as shown in the figure below.

Now click the “Scan” button . MalwareBytes Anti-Malware (MBAM) application will scan through the whole MAC OS for the AddSystem adware software. A scan can take anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes, depending on the count of files on your MAC system and the speed of your Apple Mac. When a threat is detected, the number of the security threats will change accordingly. Wait until the the scanning is complete.

When the scan get completed, a list of all threats detected is created. Next, you need to click “Quarantine” button.

The Malwarebytes will now get rid of AddSystem .

Remove AddSystem from Safari, Chrome, Firefox

If you have ‘AddSystem ‘ removal problem, then remove unwanted add-ons can help you. In the steps below we’ll show you the way to remove harmful addons without reinstall. This will also help to remove AddSystem from your internet browser.

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 delete AddSystem 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 AddSystem 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

Use an ad blocking tool like AdGuard will protect you from malicious advertisements and content. Moreover, you may find that the AdGuard have an option to protect your privacy and stop phishing and spam web-pages. Additionally, adblocker applications will allow you to avoid annoying popups and unverified links that also a good way to stay safe online.

1. AdGuard can be downloaded from the following link.
   
   

   AdGuard for Mac download
   3687 downloads
   Author: © Adguard
   Category: Security tools
   Update: January 17, 2018
   
2. When the download is finished, run the downloaded file. You will see the “Setup Wizard” program window. Follow the prompts.
3. Once the installation is finished, press “Skip” to close the installation program and use the default settings, or click “Get Started” to see an quick tutorial which will allow 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 launch your MAC OS, AdGuard will launch automatically and stop annoying advertisements, block malicious and misleading web-sites.

Finish words

After completing the few simple steps outlined above, your computer should be clean from this adware and other malware. The Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox and Safari will no longer display the AddSystem ads when you browse the World Wide Web. Unfortunately, if the tutorial does not help you, then you have caught a new adware software, 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 AddSystem adware.