How to remove UniversalToolSearch adware and the ads it delivers

What is UniversalToolSearch?

UniversalToolSearch is an adware-type application with browser hijacker characteristics. It operates by delivering intrusive advertisement campaigns and promoting fake search engines by making modifications to browser settings. Additionally, adware and browser hijackers usually have data tracking capabilities that are employed to collect browsing-related information.

Since most users download/install UniversalToolSearch unintentionally, it is classified as a Potentially Unwanted Application (PUA). One of the methods used to distribute this app is proliferation via fake Adobe Flash Player updates. These bogus software updaters/installers spread PUAs, trojans, ransomware, and other malware.

Adware delivers pop-ups, coupons, banners, surveys, full-page, and other intrusive ads. These significantly diminish the browsing experience by limiting website visibility and browsing speed. Furthermore, they are dangerous, since they promote various misleading, untrusted, rogue, deceptive/scam, compromised, and malicious sites. Intrusive advertisements can also be triggered (when clicked) to execute scripts designed to download/install software (e.g., PUAs) without users' permission.

Browser hijackers assign fake search engine addresses as the homepage, default search engine, and new tab/window URLs. Therefore, with this software installed, new browser tabs/windows opened and web searches made via the URL bar redirect to the promoted search engine address.

Rogue search engines are seldom able to provide search results, and so they tend to redirect (or cause redirection chains leading) to Google, Yahoo, Bing, and other genuine sites.

Browser hijackers can reset any changes users attempt to make to their browsers and restrict/deny access to the browser settings outright. Therefore, recovering a hijacked browser is impossible without removing the software affecting it.

Most PUAs (adware and browser hijackers included) can track data. Information of interest includes: URLs visited, pages viewed, search queries typed, IP addresses, geolocations, and even personally identifiable details. Furthermore, PUA developers monetize this sensitive data by sharing it with and/or selling it to third-parties (potentially, cyber criminals).

In summary, the presence of this unwanted software on devices can result in system infections, serious privacy issues, financial loss, and identity theft. To ensure device integrity and user privacy, all dubious applications and browser extensions/plug-ins must be eliminated immediately upon detection.

Threat Summary:

Name	UniversalToolSearch
Threat Type	Adware, Mac malware, Mac virus
Detection Names	Avast (MacOS:Adload-AD [Trj]), BitDefender (Adware.MAC.AdLoad.AEP), ESET-NOD32 (A Variant Of OSX/TrojanDownloader.Adload.AD), Kaspersky (Not-a-virus:HEUR:AdWare.OSX.Cimpli.l), 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.

LauncherSetup, DefaultExplorer, SubVideoTube, and AnalyzerWindow are some examples of other apps within the adware category. They may seem legitimate and offer "useful" features, however, the functionality rarely works as promised, and, in most cases, does not work at all.

In fact, most PUAs have nonoperational features. The only purpose of this unwanted software is to generate profit for the developers. Rather than delivering any real value, PUAs run intrusive ad campaigns, cause redirects, hijack browsers, and collect private data.

How did UniversalToolSearch install on my computer?

PUAs are distributed via download/installation set-ups of other products. This deceptive marketing tactic of packing regular software with unwanted or malicious additions is called "bundling".

Rushing download/installation processes (e.g. ignoring terms, skipping steps and settings, etc.) increases the risk of inadvertently allowing bundled content into the system.

Some PUAs have "official" download sites. Intrusive advertisements proliferate these applications as well. Once clicked, they can execute scripts to download/install PUAs without users' consent.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

You are advised to research all software before download/installation. Use only official and verified download channels. Unofficial and free file-hosting websites, Peer-to-Peer sharing networks (BitTorrent, Gnutella, eMule), and other third party downloaders commonly offer harmful and bundled content, and are therefore untrusted and should be avoided.

When downloading/installing, read the terms, study all possible options, use the "Custom/Advanced" settings and opt-out of additional apps, tools, features, and so on.

Intrusive advertisements typically seem legitimate, however, they can redirect to dubious and malicious sites (e.g. gambling, pornography, adult-dating, and many others). If you encounter ads or redirects of this kind, inspect the system and remove all dubious applications and browser extensions/plug-ins immediately.

Installed programs must be activated and updated with tools or implemented functions that are provided by the official developers. No other third party, unofficial tools should be used.

Note that it is illegal to activate licensed software with ‘cracking’ tools. Files and programs should be downloaded from official websites and via direct download links. Avoid third party installers and the tools/sources mentioned above.

Do not open website links or files in irrelevant emails that are received from unknown, suspicious addresses. These bogus emails are often disguised as official and important. Regularly, scan your computer with reputable, up-to-date antivirus or anti-spyware software.

If your computer is already infected with UniversalToolSearch, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for macOS to automatically eliminate this adware.

Files related to UniversalToolSearch adware that need to be removed:

• ~/Library/Application Support/com.UniversalToolSearch/UniversalToolSearch
• ~/Library/Application Support/com.UniversalToolSearchDaemon/UniversalToolSearch
• ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.UniversalToolSearch.plist
• ~/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.UniversalToolSearchDaemon.plist

IMPORTANT NOTE! Rogue setups/apps that promote UniversalToolSearch adware 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 "UniversalToolSearch" 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.

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

Video showing how to remove UniversalToolSearch adware using Combo Cleaner:

UniversalToolSearch adware removal:

Remove UniversalToolSearch-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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