Search.searchbenny.com Redirect (Mac)

What is search.searchbenny.com?

search.searchbenny.com is a dubious site claiming to be a legitimate Internet search engine. On initial inspection, the website may seem identical to regular search engines such as Google or Bing, however, it is promoted using deceptive browser-hijacking software 'installers' that specifically target Mac users. Furthermore, search.searchbenny.com gathers various browsing-related information.

Deceptive software installers stealthily assign the default search engine, homepage, and new tab URL browser settings to search.searchbenny.com. Furthermore, a number of 'helper objects' (browser extensions and/or apps) are installed to prevent users from rolling back these changes.

Helper objects reassign the settings to search.searchbenny.com when users attempt to change them. This behavior leads to continual unwanted browser redirects, significantly diminishing the Internet browsing experience.

Internet browsing activity is continually monitored, since this browser hijacker records various data (IP addresses, search queries, website URLs visited, pages viewed, etc.) that might be personally identifiable. In addition, developers of search.searchbenny.com share this information with third parties who can misuse personal data to generate revenue.

Data tracking can lead to serious privacy issues or even identity theft and, therefore, you are strongly advised to uninstall all recently-installed suspicious apps and never to visit search.searchbenny.com.

Search.searchbenny.com shares many similarities with search.genieo.com, coldsearch.com, searchiincognito.com, and tens of other dubious websites claiming to improve the Internet browsing experience by providing certain features. In fact, the only purpose of websites such as search.searchbenny.com is to generate revenue for the developers.

None provide any real value for users - they merely generate intrusive online advertisements, gather personal data, and cause unwanted browser redirects.

How did search.searchbenny.com install on my computer?

As mentioned above, search.searchbenny.com is promoted using deceptive software installers. This bogus distribution method is called 'bundling'. Developers hide potentially unwanted programs or modification of browser settings within the 'Custom/Advanced' download or installation settings.

Therefore, users who rush these processes, and skip most/all steps, often install rogue applications inadvertently, thereby exposing their systems to risk of further infection and putting their privacy at risk.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications?

To prevent installation of browser-hijacking apps, express caution during the download and installation of any software. Select the 'Custom/Advanced' settings, rather than 'Quick/Typical/Regular', otherwise potentially unwanted programs (that should be cancelled) will remain concealed.

Deceptive application installer promoting search.searchbenny.com:

Website promoting search.searchbenny.com:

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Quick menu:

• What is search.searchbenny.com?
• STEP 1. Remove search.searchbenny.com related files and folders from OSX.
• STEP 2. Remove search.searchbenny.com redirect from Safari.
• STEP 3. Remove search.searchbenny.com browser hijacker from Google Chrome.
• STEP 4. Remove search.searchbenny.com homepage and default search engine from Mozilla Firefox.

Video showing how to remove adware and browser hijackers from a Mac computer:

Search.searchbenny.com redirect removal:

Remove search.searchbenny.com-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 browser hijacker-related files and folders

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

Check for browser hijacker 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 browser hijackers - "installmac.AppRemoval.plist", "myppes.download.plist", "mykotlerino.ltvbit.plist", "kuklorest.update.plist", etc. Browser hijacker commonly installs several files with the exact same string.

Check for browser hijacker 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 browser hijacker 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 browser hijackers - "installmac.AppRemoval.plist", "myppes.download.plist", "mykotlerino.ltvbit.plist", "kuklorest.update.plist", etc. Browser hijacker commonly installs several files with the exact same string.

Check for browser hijacker 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 browser hijackers, continue to remove rogue extensions from your Internet browsers.

Remove browser hijackers from Internet browsers

Remove Safari browser hijackers:

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.

Change your homepage:

In the "Preferences" window, select the "General" tab. To set your homepage, type the preferred website URL (for example: www.google.com) in the Homepage field. You can also click the "Set to Current Page" button if you wish to set your homepage to the website you are currently visiting.

Change your default search engine:

In the "Preferences" window, select the "Search" tab. Here you will find a drop-down menu labeled "Search engine:" Simply select your preferred search engine from the drop-down list.

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

Remove Google Chrome browser hijackers:

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".

Change your homepage

Click the Chrome menu icon (at the top right corner of Google Chrome) and select "Settings". In the "On startup" section, disable the malicious extension (if present), look for a browser hijacker URL below the "Open a specific or set of pages" option. If present, click on the three vertical dots icon and select "Remove".

Change your default search engine:

To change your default search engine in Google Chrome: Click the Chrome menu icon (at the top right corner of Google Chrome), select "Settings", in the "Search engine" section, click "Manage search engines...", in the opened list look for a browser hijacker URL, when located click the three vertical dots near this URL and select "Delete".

• 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".

Change your homepage

To reset your homepage, click the Firefox menu (at the top right corner of the main window), then select "Settings", in the opened window disable malicious extension (if present), remove the browser hijacker URL and enter your preferred domain, which will open each time you start Mozilla Firefox.

Change your default search engine:

In the URL address bar, type "about:config" and press Enter. Click "Accept the Risk and Continue".

In the search filter at the top, type: "extensionControlled". Set both results to "false" by either double-clicking each entry or clicking the button.

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

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