Avoid downloads from Websitetrafficgo and other scam sites
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on (updated)
What is Websitetrafficgo?
websitetrafficgo is a scam site used to advertise dubious software. Scammers designed this website to display a fake virus alert message and, thus, people who who arrive at this web page often believe that their computers are infected. Visitors are encouraged to remove the 'detected virus' with a program called Smart Mac Booster.
Do not take the Websitetrafficgo scam seriously or download software advertised through the site. The same applies to any other similar scam pages.
Once opened, websitetrafficgo displays a pop-up window, a fake notification about a 'detected virus'. According to the pop-up, a previously-visited website has infected the Mac computer with a virus.
When the pop-up is closed, websitetrafficgo displays a table that contains device information such as name and version of operating system and browser, visitor's IP address, location, and internet service provider. These details are used to make this scam seem more believable.
Visitors are encouraged to scan their systems by clicking the "Scan Now" button, which starts a fake scan that detects a virus called "Bankworm". To remove it, users are encouraged to click the "REMOVE VIRUS NOW" button. This leads to a download page of Smart Mac Booster, an application that should not be trusted.
We recommend that you immediately close the websitetrafficgo scam site if opened. This site is not malicious, however, it is used to trick people into downloading potentially unwanted applications (PUAs). Note that Smart Mac Booster might be one of a number of apps that are advertised on this scam page.
Browsers often open websitetrafficgo due to PUAs installed on browsers or operating systems. Generally, PUAs feed users with intrusive advertisements. For example, they display coupons, banners, surveys, pop-ups, and so on. In most cases, these ads hide underlying content of visited websites - this can be very annoying.
Furthermore, if clicked, they open dubious websites or run scripts that download or even install other unwanted apps. PUAs also collect user-system information such as users' IP addresses, entered search queries, addresses of visited websites, geolocations and other, possibly personal details.
Developers of these apps share the information with other parties (potentially cyber criminals) who misuse it to generate revenue.
| Name | websitetrafficgo pop-up |
| Threat Type | Mac malware, Mac virus |
| Fake Claim | This scam page claims that it has detected a virus and encourages visitors to remove it immediately |
| Promoted Unwanted Application | Smart Mac Booster |
| Related Domain | sweeps7587.websitetrafficgo36[.]live |
| Serving IP Address (sweeps7587.websitetrafficgo36[.]live) | 5.189.252.12 |
| Detection Names (play3101.tiptoptrack54[.]live) | Spamhaus (Spam), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal) |
| Symptoms | Your Mac becomes slower than normal, you see unwanted pop-up ads, you are redirected to dubious websites. |
| Distribution methods | Deceptive pop-up ads, free software installers (bundling), fake flash player installers, torrent file downloads. |
| Damage | Internet browser tracking (potential privacy issues), display of unwanted ads, redirects to dubious websites, loss of private information. |
| Malware Removal (Mac) | To eliminate possible malware infections, scan your Mac with legitimate antivirus software. Our security researchers recommend using Combo Cleaner. |
websitetrafficgo is virtually identical to Tiptoptrack, Truefalserdr, Checkingforward, and many other scam sites. These are used to trick people into downloading and installing unwanted apps that supposedly remove viruses. Scam websites should never be trusted, and nor should apps that are promoted through them.
PUAs responsible for opening scam pages are all very similar. They are advertised as useful, legitimate apps, however, most are useless and designed only to help developers to generate revenue. Furthermore, installed PUAs might cause problems with privacy, browsing safety, or worse, they could be used to steal identities.
How did potentially unwanted applications install on my computer?
In many cases, people download and install PUAs through intrusive ads or when developers use a deceptive marketing method called "bundling". As mentioned, if clicked, some ads cause unwanted downloads or even installations. Bundling is a method that developers use to trick people into downloading and installing unwanted software with other, regular programs.
Information about additional downloads/installations can be found in "Custom", "Advanced" and other parts of the download or installation set-ups, however, people often leave these settings unchanged, thus allowing download and installation of additional applications by default.
How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications?
The safest way to download software is to use official, trustworthy websites and direct download links. Third party downloaders, installers, Peer-to-Peer networks such as torrent clients, eMule, unofficial websites and other tools or sources should not be used. Set-ups that contain "Advanced", "Custom" and other similar settings should be handled properly.
Check all available settings and dismiss offers to download or install unwanted software. Note that intrusive ads (especially if displayed on untrustworthy websites) usually lead to potentially malicious pages relating to gambling, pornography, adult dating, and so on.
They can cause unwanted downloads or installations. If you experience unwanted redirects or ads, uninstall all unknown or unwanted extensions, plug-ins, and add-ons installed on the browser. The same applies to programs of this type installed on the operating system.
If your computer is already infected with PUAs, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for macOS to automatically eliminate them.
Text in the "VIRUS FOUND" pop-up:
VIRUS FOUND
A website you visited today has infected your Mac with a virus.
Press OK to begin the repair process.
Screenshot of the second websitetrafficgo web page:
Text in this web page:
VIRUS FOUND
A website you have visited today has infected your Mac with a virus. A full system scan is now required to find and remove harmful files or applications from your Mac OS X 10_14_6 device.
DEVICE INFORMATION
Brand: Apple
Device: Mac OS X 10_14_6
Browser: Safari 12.1.2
IP: -
Provider: -
Location: - LT
Scan Now
Screenshot of the third websitetrafficgo web page:
Text in this web page:
DOWNLOAD REQUIRED
Please download the Advanced Mac Cleaner application to remove Bankworm from your Mac.
VIRUS INFORMATION
Virus Name: Bankworm
Risk: HIGH
Infected File: /os/apps/worm.icv
VIRUS REMOVAL
Application: Advanced Mac Cleaner
Rating: 9.9/10
Price: Free
REMOVE VIRUS NOW
Appearance of websitetrafficgo scam (GIF):
Smart Mac Booster download web page:
Smart Mac Booster app:
Instant automatic Mac malware removal:
Manual threat removal might be a lengthy and complicated process that requires advanced IT skills. Combo Cleaner is a professional automatic malware removal tool that is recommended to get rid of Mac malware. Download it by clicking the button below:
▼ DOWNLOAD Combo Cleaner for Mac
By downloading any software listed on this website you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. Limited seven days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by Rcs Lt, the parent company of PCRisk.com read more.
Quick menu:
- What is websitetrafficgo pop-up?
- How to identify a pop-up scam?
- How do pop-up scams work?
- How to remove fake pop-ups?
- How to prevent fake pop-ups?
- What to do if you fell for a pop-up scam?
How to identify a pop-up scam?
Pop-up windows with various fake messages are a common type of lures cybercriminals use. They collect sensitive personal data, trick Internet users into calling fake tech support numbers, subscribe to useless online services, invest in shady cryptocurrency schemes, etc.
While in the majority of cases these pop-ups don't infect users' devices with malware, they can cause direct monetary loss or could result in identity theft.
Cybercriminals strive to create their rogue pop-up windows to look trustworthy, however, scams typically have the following characteristics:
- Spelling mistakes and non-professional images - Closely inspect the information displayed in a pop-up. Spelling mistakes and unprofessional images could be a sign of a scam.
- Sense of urgency - Countdown timer with a couple of minutes on it, asking you to enter your personal information or subscribe to some online service.
- Statements that you won something - If you haven't participated in a lottery, online competition, etc., and you see a pop-up window stating that you won.
- Computer or mobile device scan - A pop-up window that scans your device and informs of detected issues - is undoubtedly a scam; webpages cannot perform such actions.
- Exclusivity - Pop-up windows stating that only you are given secret access to a financial scheme that can quickly make you rich.
Example of a pop-up scam:
How do pop-up scams work?
Cybercriminals and deceptive marketers usually use various advertising networks, search engine poisoning techniques, and shady websites to generate traffic to their pop-ups. Users land on their online lures after clicking on fake download buttons, using a torrent website, or simply clicking on an Internet search engine result.
Based on users' location and device information, they are presented with a scam pop-up. Lures presented in such pop-ups range from get-rich-quick schemes to fake virus scans.
How to remove fake pop-ups?
In most cases, pop-up scams do not infect users' devices with malware. If you encountered a scam pop-up, simply closing it should be enough. In some cases scam, pop-ups may be hard to close; in such cases - close your Internet browser and restart it.
In extremely rare cases, you might need to reset your Internet browser. For this, use our instructions explaining how to reset Internet browser settings.
How to prevent fake pop-ups?
To prevent seeing pop-up scams, you should visit only reputable websites. Torrent, Crack, free online movie streaming, YouTube video download, and other websites of similar reputation commonly redirect Internet users to pop-up scams.
To minimize the risk of encountering pop-up scams, you should keep your Internet browsers up-to-date and use reputable anti-malware application. For this purpose, we recommend Combo Cleaner Antivirus for macOS.
What to do if you fell for a pop-up scam?
This depends on the type of scam that you fell for. Most commonly, pop-up scams try to trick users into sending money, giving away personal information, or giving access to one's device.
- If you sent money to scammers: You should contact your financial institution and explain that you were scammed. If informed promptly, there's a chance to get your money back.
- If you gave away your personal information: You should change your passwords and enable two-factor authentication in all online services that you use. Visit Federal Trade Commission to report identity theft and get personalized recovery steps.
- If you let scammers connect to your device: You should scan your computer with reputable anti-malware (we recommend Combo Cleaner Antivirus for macOS) - cyber criminals could have planted trojans, keyloggers, and other malware, don't use your computer until removing possible threats.
- Help other Internet users: report Internet scams to Federal Trade Commission.
Outstanding!
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