How to uninstall apps that open finderprize web pages

What is finderprize?

finderprize is a family of deceptive websites. Typically, visitors to these sites are provided with dubious content, which urge them to install potentially unwanted applications (PUAs) such as browser hijackers, adware (or even malicious programs including ransomware, Trojans), participate in surveys, and so on.

No finderprize websites can be trusted and people do not generally visit these web pages intentionally - they are opened through clicked deceptive advertisements, other untrustworthy websites, or by installed PUAs.

At the time of research, finderprize loaded a survey scam, which criminals designed to extort personal information from unsuspecting visitors. Websites of this type often claim that visitors can win (or have won) a prize, and encourage them to participate in a survey.

Scammers behind these pages attempt to trick visitors into providing sensitive, personal information (including credit card details) that are then misused to generate revenue. Note that finderprize also loads a deceptive page claiming that the installed Adobe Flash Player is out of date and encouraging users to install a new version through fake Adobe Flash Player installers.

In most cases, these installers deploy various browser hijackers, adware-type apps or other PUAs, however, in some cases they infect systems with malicious programs such as Trojans, ransomware or other high-risk malware. Most browser hijackers promote fake search engines by changing browser settings.

They also collect data such as users' IP addresses, geolocations, entered search queries, URLs of visited websites, and other browsing-related information. In some cases, they record personal, sensitive data. The developers sell the details to third parties who might be cyber criminals and misuse them to generate revenue in other ways.

Adware-type apps often operate as information tracking tools. They feed users with unwanted advertisements (pop-up ads, coupons, banners, surveys). When clicked, these open dubious pages or execute scripts that download/install potentially unwanted or even malicious applications.

Trojans are malicious programs that often infect systems with more software of this kind. In this way, they cause chain infections. Ransomware-type programs prevent victims from accessing their files by encryption. In most cases, it is impossible to decrypt files without specific tools held only by the cyber criminals who designed the ransomware.

It is very likely that finderprize will load other untrusted websites - these pages cannot be trusted and should be ignored.

Threat Summary:

Name	finderprize pop-up
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Mac malware, Mac virus.
Detection Names (finderprize47[.]live)	G-Data (Phishing), Fortinet (Spam), Spamhaus (Spam), Full List (VirusTotal)
Related Domains	Full list below.
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. ▼ Download Combo Cleaner for Mac 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.

Other examples of families of untrustworthy websites similar to finderprize include prizeseeker, hndry and noname. They load deceptive pages that extort personal information from visitors, and deceive them into downloading/installing unwanted or even malicious applications.

These pages are opened by PUAs that are installed on browsers and/or operating systems. In most cases, users download and install these applications inadvertently.

How did potentially unwanted applications install on my computer?

Unwanted apps are usually distributed through deceptive advertisements that cause download/installation of them by running certain scripts and via the set-ups of other programs. In the second case, people are tricked into downloading/installing PUAs when they leave settings such as "Custom" and "Advanced" unchecked and unchanged.

PUAs are commonly distributed by including them the into set-ups of other programs as 'additional offers'. By leaving the aforementioned settings unchanged, people allow the rogue apps to be downloaded and installed with regular software (they agree by default with additional downloads/installations). This PUA distribution method is known as "bundling".

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

Download software from official, trustworthy websites and do not use third party downloaders/installers, Peer-to-Peer networks (e.g., torrent clients, eMule), unofficial websites or other similar channels/tools. Check "Advanced", "Custom" and other settings of the download/installation setup.

Dismiss offers to download or install unwanted software before completing the process. Intrusive advertisements that are displayed on dubious pages tend to open potentially malicious or untrusted websites, and they might also appear on legitimate pages. In any case, do not click them.

Remove any unwanted apps (extensions, add-ons, plug-ins) already installed on the browser immediately. Also remove software of this kind that is 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.

List of domains that are part of the finderprize group:

• finderprize21[.]live
• finderprize22[.]live
• finderprize24[.]live
• finderprize26[.]live
• finderprize27[.]live
• finderprize28[.]live
• finderprize29[.]live
• finderprize30[.]live
• finderprize31[.]live
• finderprize47[.]live

finderprize loads survey scam (GIF):

 

finderprize loads a download page of a fake Adobe Flash Player installer (GIF):

 

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▼ 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 finderprize 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.

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