The Browser Hijackers are a widespread software category, the representatives of which seem to cause disturbance to many web users. The article that you are about to read will revolve around a specific Hijacker program known as Speedup Mac Pro. If you currently have this program on your PC, you may have noticed a number of changes to your main browser, be it Chrome, Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox or another one.
For instance, various ads, pop-ups, banners and page-redirect links might have started to appear all over your screen. The browser’s previous homepage may have been changed to some third-party website or the default search engine may have been replaced with a sponsored one. Additionally, you may have started to experience frequent page redirects to web locations that you’ve never had the intention to visit.
Since you are on this page, however, we assume that you’re most likely searching for a method to stop the irritating program from interfering with your browser and online settings. That’s why, in the next lines we will show you how to uninstall and remove Speedup Mac Pro completely. But before we point you to the removal guide below, let us give you some more information about the Browser Hijackers and their specifics.
What do you need to know about Browser Hijackers?
Generally, most of the programs that can be described as Browser Hijackers claim to provide some kind of free or useful functionality for the web users. Some of those programs claim to boost the internet experience or make the machine better and safer by adding some helpful feature.
Others may be promoted as optimization tools, intended to improve the general performance of the given machine. The truth is, however, that most Browser Hijackers mainly seek to do one thing – to generate income for their developers by using a variety of aggressive advertising methods. Most commonly these are Pay-Per-Click advertising models, which generate revenue every time the web users click on a certain, add, pop-up, banner or a sponsored page-redirect link. This is why your browser is partially taken over by the Hijacker, and by its never-ending ad-generating and page-redirecting activities.
Are programs like Speedup Mac Pro dangerous?
Many web users seem to refer to such applications as malware or viruses, taking into account the intrusive and obstructive activities performed by most Browser Hijackers. Here is the place to explain that there is a difference between real malware (such as Trojans, Ransomware, Spyware, etc.), and the Hijackers. Most Hijackers typically do not damage the computer or mess with its information. Additionally, it should be noted that programs like Speedup Mac Pro are, in most cases legitimate, and the people behind them are not some cyber criminals, but programmers from popular software developer companies.
Still, while a program like Speedup Mac Pro may not be able to cause any serious damage to your system, it may possibly threaten your safety. For example, the possible redirects to different third-party pages could open different shady websites with poor reputation. Hijackers are also able to affect the speed and the performance of your system and the affected browser, leading to sudden crashes, unresponsiveness and sluggishness. Some programs of this sort may also display and redirect you to fake warnings or web offers which prompt you to buy some questionable piece of software with doubtful features.
For these reasons, we advise you to remove Speedup Mac Pro, and uninstall its components from your machine. This will also help you to prevent landing more potentially unwanted programs and also keep your computer away from malicious viruses like Ransomware or Trojans.
SUMMARY:
| Name | Speedup Mac Pro |
| Type | Browser Hijacker |
| Danger Level | Medium (nowhere near threats like Ransomware, but still a security risk) |
| Symptoms | A change in the browser’s main homepage or the default search engine can indicate the presence of the browser hijacker. |
| Distribution Method | Software bundles, spam messages, free downloads, shareware sites, torrents, automatic installers. |
Remove Speedup Mac Pro
Step 1: Closing Safari (or any other browser that you may be using at the moment)
First, you will need to close your browser if it is still open. If you can’t do that normally, you will need to Force Quit it:
Open the Apple Menu and select Force Quit to do that. You can also use the ⌘ key + Option Key combination to open the Force Quit Applications dialog box. In this box, select the Safari browser (or whatever browser you are using) and then click on the Quit button. Confirm the action by selecting Force Quit again.
Step 2: Killing suspicious processes
Open Finder and go to Applications > Utilities and then open Activity Monitor. Now take a careful look at the processes there – look for any that seem suspicious, unknown and questionable. If you think that a given process may be the culprit behind the issue or may at least be related to it, highlight it with the mouse and select the i option at its top.
In the box that opens, click on Sample.
Scan the sample files with the online scanner we have on this page and if any of them get flagged as malicious, delete them and then kill their processes.
Step 3: Safely launching the browser
Hold the Shift from your keyboard and then launch Safari – holding Shift will prevent any previously opened pages to load again, just in case any of them were related to the problem.
If any problematic pages still load after you safe-launch the browser, then do the following:
Force-Quit the browser (Safari) again and then turn off your Wi-Fi connection by clicking on the Wi-Fi off option from the Mac Menu. If you are using cable Internet, simply disconnect the cable from your Mac.
Step 4: Uninstalling suspicious extensions
After you safe-launch Safari and are sure none of the previously opened pages load now, go to Preferences > Extensions.
Select and uninstall (by clicking on the Uninstall button) all extensions there that are unfamiliar to you or that you think may be suspicious. If you are not sure about a certain extension, it’s better to uninstall it – no extension is required for the normal functioning of the browser.
Step 5: Cleaning Safari
If you have other browsers aside from Safari, do the following:
In Safari, open Preferences from the browser’s menu and go to Privacy.
Select Remove All Website Data and then Remove Now. Note that this will delete all stored site data including any saved passwords and usernames. In other words, you will have to manually log-in to every site where you have a registration so make sure you remember your usernames and passwords.
Back in Preferences, click on General and see what your Safari’s homepage is. If it has been changed without your permission, change it back to what it used to be or to whatever you like it to be now.
Now go to the History menu and select the Clear History option.
Do the same to all other browsers you may have in your computer – here are examples with Chrome and Firefox.
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Cleaning Chrome
Open Chrome and open its main menu, then go to More Tools > Extensions. Click on the Remove button next to all of the extensions that you do not trust.
Next, from the main menu, go to Settings and type Manage Search Engines in the search bar. Open the result that shows up and then delete all search engines other than the one you normally use by clicking on the three-dot icon next to the other ones and selecting Remove from list.
Back in Settings, type Reset and clean up and open the option that shows up (Restore settings to their original defaults). Confirm by selecting Reset Settings.
Cleaning Firefox
Open Firefox and then open its main menu. Go to Add-ons and open the Extensions menu from the left. Look at the extensions and Remove the ones you do not trust.
Next, open the menu again, go to Help > Troubleshooting information and in the page that opens, select Refresh Firefox and then confirm the action in the window that opens.
