Search.lunaticake.com Redirect (Mac)

What is search.lunaticake.com?

Search.lunaticake.com is a deceptive website that has identical behavior to search.installmac.com, search.searchbenny.com, search.searchmoose.com, and a number of other sites.

The appearance of search.lunaticake.com is similar or identical to Google, Yahoo, Bing, and other popular Internet search engines and, therefore, some users may believe that this website is legitimate.

In fact, developers promote search.lunaticake.com using deceptive app 'installers' designed to modify web browser settings. In addition, search.lunaticake.com continually monitors browsing activity.

The aforementioned installers assign the Safari, Mozilla Firefox, and Google Chrome default search engine, homepage, and new tab URL browser settings to search.lunaticake.com.

Furthermore, installed 'helper objects' (apps/browser extensions) prevent users from rolling back these changes by automatically reassigning settings to search.lunaticake.com when attempts are made to change them. Therefore, users are continually redirected to search.lunaticake.com, significantly diminishing their Internet browsing experience.

In addition, search.lunaticake.com gathers IP addresses, search queries, and other similar browsing-related information. This data (some of which might be personally identifiable) is shared with third parties who often misuse personal details to generate revenue.

For this reason, you should never visit search.lunaticake.com. If you are continually redirected to this site without your consent, uninstall all recently-installed suspicious applications immediately.

There are tens of dubious websites similar to search.lunaticake.com. Research shows that maxwebsearch.com, myhomepage-7.info, and other similar sites, are designed only to generate revenue for the developers.

They deliver no significant value for users. Rather than providing the functionality promised, search.lunaticake.com, and other similar sites, generate intrusive online advertisements and cause unwanted browser redirects.

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

Search.lunaticake.com is promoted using a deceptive software marketing method called 'bundling'. Research shows that developers hide software modification details within the 'Custom/Advanced' download or installation settings.

Many users do not pay enough attention during these processes - they rush and skip most/all steps, often leading to inadvertent installation of PUPs (or in this case, permission to modify browser settings).

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications?

This situation can be prevented by taking two simple steps. Firstly, closely analyze the download and installation processes using the 'Custom' or 'Advanced' settings. Secondly, never accept offers to download or install additional programs, and do not allow installers to perform any modifications that seem irrelevant.

Website promoting search.lunaticake.com browser hijacker:

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Quick menu:

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

Video showing how to remove search.lunaticake.com browser hijacker using Combo Cleaner:

Search.lunaticake.com redirect removal:

Remove search.lunaticake.com related potentially unwanted applications from the "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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