How to remove PublicCharacterSearch adware

What is PublicCharacterSearch?

The purpose of PublicCharacterSearch is to generate revenue for the developers by serving ads, promoting a fake search engine and gathering various data. This app functions both as adware and a browser hijacker. People often download these apps unintentionally and, therefore, they are categorized as potentially unwanted applications (PUAs).

This particular app is distributed by disguising it as the installer of Adobe Flash Player (it is installed through a fake installer).

Typically, advertising-supported software such as PublicCharacterSearch displays advertisements that conceal underlying content of visited pages. For example, coupons, banners, surveys, and pop-ups. When clicked, these tend to open various untrusted websites or even execute scripts designed to download and install more unwanted software.

As mentioned, PublicCharacterSearch operates as adware but also as a browser hijacker. Therefore, it promotes the address of a fake search engine by assigning it as the address of the default search engine, homepage, and new tab.

Typically, users are forced to visit this address when they open a browser, new tab or enter search queries (as long as the browser hijacker is installed). Both browser hijackers and adware-type apps can record data such as visited web pages, entered search queries, geolocations, IP addresses, etc.

They might also collect sensitive, confidential details. Furthermore, people behind apps such as PublicCharacterSearch can sell all gathered information to third parties (potentially, cyber criminals) who then misuse it to generate revenue in other ways.

Fake Adobe Flash Player installers can be used to distribute PUAs such as PublicCharacterSearch and also malware, including ransomware, Trojan-type software, and other malicious programs. If PublicCharacterSearch is installed on your browser or computer, remove it immediately.

Threat Summary:

Name	Ads by PublicCharacterSearch
Threat Type	Adware, Mac malware, Mac virus.
Detection Names	Avast (MacOS:Adload-AD [Trj]), AVG (MacOS:Adload-AD [Trj]), ESET-NOD32 (A Variant Of OSX/TrojanDownloader.Adload.AE), Kaspersky (Not-a-virus:HEUR:AdWare.OSX.Cimpli.k), Full List (VirusTotal).
Additional Information	This application belongs to the Adload malware family.
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.

PublicCharacterSearch is similar to AimSearch, QuestSearch, InfoSearch and many other apps of this type. Most of these apps are advertised as useful and legitimate, however, they serve ads and collect user-system information. Most are useless and can be the reason behind problems relating to online privacy, browsing safety, and even identity theft.

Therefore, adware and other software of this kind should never be trusted.

How did PublicCharacterSearch install on my computer?

PublicCharacterSearch is commonly installed inadvertently through a fake installer, which supposedly installs Adobe Flash Player. These apps are downloaded/installed by clicking deceptive ads that execute certain scripts, or by downloading and installing programs that have PUAs included into their set-ups as 'additional offers'.

Generally, information about additionally-included apps can be found in settings such as "Advanced", "Custom", and so on, however, may people leave them unchanged, thereby inadvertently allowing PUAs to infiltrate. This distribution method is known as "bundling".

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

You are advised to download software only from trustworthy, official websites and through direct links. It is not safe to use third party downloaders/installers), Peer-to-Peer networks such as torrent clients, eMule (or other networks of this type), unofficial pages, etc. Commonly, these channels/tools are monetized by promoting PUAs or malicious programs.

Check all "Custom" and "Advanced" settings and decline offers to download or install additional, unwanted apps before completing the process. Do not click intrusive ads that appear on dubious web pages, since they can open various untrusted websites or even download and install unwanted apps.

Remove all unwanted, unknown apps (extensions, add-ons, plug-ins) that are installed on the browser. The same should be applied to software of this kind that is installed on the computer (operating system). If your computer is already infected with PublicCharacterSearch, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for macOS to automatically eliminate this adware.

Files related to PublicCharacterSearch adware that need to be removed:

• ~/Library/Application Support/com.PublicCharacterSearch/PublicCharacterSearch
• ~/Library/Application Support/com.PublicCharacterSearchDaemon/PublicCharacterSearch
• ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.PublicCharacterSearch.plist
• ~/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.PublicCharacterSearchDaemon.plist

IMPORTANT NOTE! Rogue setups/apps that promote the PublicCharacterSearch website are designed to create a new device profile. Therefore, before taking any further removal steps, perform these actions:

1) Click the "Preferences" icon in the menu bar and select "Profiles".

2) Select the "PublicCharacterSearch" profile and delete it.

3) Perform a full system scan with Combo Cleaner anti-virus suite.

After performing these actions, you can proceed with further removal steps for this adware/browser hijacker.

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 PublicCharacterSearch?
• STEP 1. Remove PublicCharacterSearch related files and folders from OSX.
• STEP 2. Remove PublicCharacterSearch ads from Safari.
• STEP 3. Remove PublicCharacterSearch adware from Google Chrome.
• STEP 4. Remove PublicCharacterSearch ads from Mozilla Firefox.

Video showing how to remove PublicCharacterSearch adware using Combo Cleaner:

PublicCharacterSearch adware removal:

Remove PublicCharacterSearch-related potentially unwanted applications from your "Applications" folder:

Click the Finder icon. In the Finder window, select "Applications". In the applications folder, look for "MPlayerX", "NicePlayer", or other suspicious applications and drag them to the Trash. After removing the potentially unwanted application(s) that cause online ads, scan your Mac for any remaining unwanted components.

Remove adware-related files and folders

Click the Finder icon, from the menu bar. Choose Go, and click Go to Folder...

Check for adware generated files in the /Library/LaunchAgents/ folder:

In the Go to Folder... bar, type: /Library/LaunchAgents/

In the "LaunchAgents" folder, look for any recently-added suspicious files and move them to the Trash. Examples of files generated by adware - "installmac.AppRemoval.plist", "myppes.download.plist", "mykotlerino.ltvbit.plist", "kuklorest.update.plist", etc. Adware commonly installs several files with the exact same string.

Check for adware generated files in the ~/Library/Application Support/ folder:

In the Go to Folder... bar, type: ~/Library/Application Support/

In the "Application Support" folder, look for any recently-added suspicious folders. For example, "MplayerX" or "NicePlayer", and move these folders to the Trash.

Check for adware generated files in the ~/Library/LaunchAgents/ folder:

In the Go to Folder... bar, type: ~/Library/LaunchAgents/

In the "LaunchAgents" folder, look for any recently-added suspicious files and move them to the Trash. Examples of files generated by adware - "installmac.AppRemoval.plist", "myppes.download.plist", "mykotlerino.ltvbit.plist", "kuklorest.update.plist", etc. Adware commonly installs several files with the exact same string.

Check for adware generated files in the /Library/LaunchDaemons/ folder:

In the "Go to Folder..." bar, type: /Library/LaunchDaemons/

In the "LaunchDaemons" folder, look for recently-added suspicious files. For example "com.aoudad.net-preferences.plist", "com.myppes.net-preferences.plist", "com.kuklorest.net-preferences.plist", "com.avickUpd.plist", etc., and move them to the Trash.

Scan your Mac with Combo Cleaner:

If you have followed all the steps correctly, your Mac should be clean of infections. To ensure your system is not infected, run a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus. Download it HERE. After downloading the file, double click combocleaner.dmg installer. In the opened window, drag and drop the Combo Cleaner icon on top of the Applications icon. Now open your launchpad and click on the Combo Cleaner icon. Wait until Combo Cleaner updates its virus definition database and click the "Start Combo Scan" button.

Combo Cleaner will scan your Mac for malware infections. If the antivirus scan displays "no threats found" - this means that you can continue with the removal guide; otherwise, it's recommended to remove any found infections before continuing.

After removing files and folders generated by the adware, continue to remove rogue extensions from your Internet browsers.

Remove malicious extensions from Internet browsers

Remove malicious Safari extensions:

Open the Safari browser, from the menu bar, select "Safari" and click "Preferences...".

In the preferences window, select "Extensions" and look for any recently-installed suspicious extensions. When located, click the "Uninstall" button next to it/them. Note that you can safely uninstall all extensions from your Safari browser - none are crucial for regular browser operation.

• If you continue to have problems with browser redirects and unwanted advertisements - Reset Safari.

Remove malicious extensions from Google Chrome:

Click the Chrome menu icon (at the top right corner of Google Chrome), select "More Tools" and click "Extensions". Locate all recently-installed suspicious extensions, select these entries and click "Remove".

• If you continue to have problems with browser redirects and unwanted advertisements - Reset Google Chrome.

Remove malicious extensions from Mozilla Firefox:

Click the Firefox menu (at the top right corner of the main window) and select "Add-ons and themes". Click "Extensions", in the opened window locate all recently-installed suspicious extensions, click on the three dots and then click "Remove".

• If you continue to have problems with browser redirects and unwanted advertisements - Reset Mozilla Firefox.

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