Remove Brkdown.com from Mac computer

Proper methods to delete Brkdown.com

Brkdown.com is described as dubious websites that performs as various scams. This scam claims that user’s device has been infected with multiple viruses and in order to eliminate it they must download or install certain software. Cyber security experts categorized it as potentially unwanted program which is bundled into setups of other software. Such type of application intrude by stealth without users permission and bring some adware or browser hijacker type virus inside PC.

Usually such pages are accessed through redirects caused by intrusive adverts, mistyped URLs or by PUAs. The version of “Your Apple iPhone is severely damaged” runs on Brkdown.com site which inform visitors that their mobile phones have been affected with 19 viruses. According to the scam, such viruses originating from recently visited corrupted websites. Users are advised to download or install “mobile security application” otherwise users may lose their WhatsApp messages, stored photos and installed private apps.

Additionally, all such information provided by Brkdown.com is bogus and they only use it to trick visitors into downloading or installing unreliable software. In one way or another, users are advised not to trust on such scams as they might lead to system infections, financial losses and even identity theft. Furthermore, unwanted apps can have unspecified abilities. Adware deliver intrusive adverts into various forms which diminish the browsing experience. Once clicked, those adverts redirect to harmful sites or even secretly download or install software.

Browser hijacker’s types PUAs modify certain browser settings in order to promote dubious search engines. What’s more, PUAs also have data tracking abilities. They can gather users browsing relating information (search engine histories, IP addresses, geo-locations etc) and other personally identifiable details and shared those details with third parties who misuse those received data in order to generate revenue which could be risky for user’s privacy. Therefore, it is strongly recommended to remove Brkdown.com and all suspicious applications immediately from the computer.

Text presented in the variant of the “Your Apple iPhone is severely damaged” scam run on brkdown[.]com:

Your Apple iPhone is severely damaged by 19 viruses!

 

We have detected that your Browser is (59%) DAMAGED by BROWSER TROJAN VIRUSES picked up while surfing recent corrupted sites.

 

Immediately install mobile security application or sensitive data like your Facebook account, WhatsApp messages, photos and private applications will be infected and stolen.

 

[Install] [Cancel]

Distribution of Brkdown.com:

As it mentioned, users attach Brkdown.com as additional with their apps. They hide the information about this in custom/advanced, manual or other similar sections of download/installation processes. Users are unaware of this, they install such program attached with some PUP altogether unintentionally. The intrusion occurs without their consent when people leave aforementioned settings unchanged. Unwanted downloads or installations of PUAs can also be caused by clicking on deceptive advertisements. once down, those ads can execute scripts without having user’s permission.

Harmful impacts of Brkdown.com:

• It can compromise the target system and make several unwanted changes inside it without users knowing.
• It replaces the homepage and default search engine with malicious codes.
• It can corrupt system files and windows registries as well as create duplicate files.
• It gathers user’s personal and confidential information and shared with hackers.
• This dubious threat slow down overall performance and make your PC totally useless.

Remove Brkdown.com

If your computer is already infected with PUAs then we recommend user running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for macOS that has the ability to eliminate them completely and safely. Here given below are some more removal instructions that will help users to perform malware removal process.

Threat specification

Name: Brkdown.com

Type: Phishing, Scam, Mac malware, Mac virus

Fake Claim: Scam claims users’ devices have been infected and they must download/install certain software to remove the viruses.

Symptoms: Your Mac becomes slower than normal, you see unwanted pop-up ads, and 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.

Removal: To remove Brkdown.com, we recommend you to go through given below removal instructions that have been provided under this article.

Remove Files and Folders Related to Brkdown.com

Open the “Menu” bar and click the “Finder” icon. Select “Go” and click on “Go to Folder…”

Step 1: Search the suspicious and doubtful malware generated files in /Library/LaunchAgents folder

Type /Library/LaunchAgents in the “Go to Folder” option

In the “Launch Agent” folder, search for all the files that you have recently downloaded and move them to “Trash”. Few of the examples of files created by browser-hijacker or adware are as follow, “myppes.download.plist”, “mykotlerino.Itvbit.plist”, installmac.AppRemoval.plist”, and “kuklorest.update.plist” and so on.

Step 2: Detect and remove the files generated by the adware in “/Library/Application” Support folder

In the “Go to Folder..bar”, type “/Library/Application Support”

Search for any suspicious newly added folders in “Application Support” folder. If you detect any one of these like “NicePlayer” or “MPlayerX” then send them to “Trash” folder.

Step 3: Look for the files generated by malware in /Library/LaunchAgent Folder:

Go to Folder bar and type /Library/LaunchAgents

You are in the “LaunchAgents” folder. Here, you have to search for all the newly added files and move them to “Trash” if you find them suspicious. Some of the examples of suspicious files generated by malware are “myppes.download.plist”, “installmac.AppRemoved.plist”, “kuklorest.update.plist”, “mykotlerino.ltvbit.plist” and so on.

Step4: Go to /Library/LaunchDaemons Folder and search for the files created by malware

Type /Library/LaunchDaemons in the “Go To Folder” option

In the newly opened “LaunchDaemons” folder, search for any recently added suspicious files and move them to “Trash”. Examples of some of the suspicious files are “com.kuklorest.net-preferences.plist”, “com.avickUpd.plist”, “com.myppes.net-preference.plist”, “com.aoudad.net-preferences.plist” and so on.

Step 5: Use Combo Cleaner Anti-Malware and Scan your Mac PC

The malware infections could be removed from the Mac PC if you execute all the steps mentioned above in the correct way. However, it is always advised to be sure that your PC is not infected. It is suggested to scan the work-station with “Combo Cleaner Anti-virus”.

Once the file gets downloaded, double click on combocleaner.dmg installer in the newly opened window. Next is to open the “Launchpad” and press on “Combo Cleaner” icon. It is advised to wait until “Combo Cleaner” updates the latest definition for malware detection. Click on “Start Combo Scan” button.

A depth scan of your Mac PC will be executed in order to detect malware. If the Anti-virus scan report says “no threat found” then you can continue with guide further. On the other hand, it is recommended to delete the detected malware infection before continuing.

Now the files and folders created by the adware is removed, you have to remove the rogue extensions from the browsers.

Remove Brkdown.com from Internet Browsers

Delete Doubtful and Malicious Extension from Safari

Go to “Menu Bar” and open “Safari” browser. Select “Safari” and then “Preferences”

In the opened “preferences” window, select “Extensions” that you have recently installed. All such extensions should be detected and click the “Uninstall” button next to it. If you are doubtful then you can remove all the extensions from “Safari” browser as none of them are important for smooth functionality of the browser.

In case if you continue facing unwanted webpage redirections or aggressive advertisements bombarding, you can reset the “Safari” browser.

“Reset Safari”

Open the Safari menu and choose “preferences…” from the drop-down menu.

Go to the “Extension” tab and set the extension slider to “Off” position. This disables all the installed extensions in the Safari browser

Next step is to check the homepage. Go to “Preferences…” option and choose “General” tab. Change the homepage to your preferred URL.

Also check the default search-engine provider settings. Go to “Preferences…” window and select the “Search” tab and select the search-engine provider that you want such as “Google”.

Next is to clear the Safari browser Cache- Go to “Preferences…” window and select “Advanced” tab and click on “Show develop menu in the menu bar.“

Go to “Develop” menu and select “Empty Caches”.

Remove website data and browsing history. Go to “Safari” menu and select “Clear History and Website Data”. Choose “all history” and then click on “Clear History”.

Remove Unwanted and Malicious Plug-ins from Mozilla Firefox

Delete Brkdown.com add-ons from Mozilla Firefox

Open the Firefox Mozilla browser. Click on the “Open Menu” present in the top right corner of the screen. From the newly opened menu, choose “Add-ons”.

Go to “Extension” option and detect all the latest installed add-ons. Select each of the suspicious add-ons and click on “Remove” button next to them.

In case if you want to “reset” the Mozilla Firefox browser then follow the steps that has been mentioned below.

Reset Mozilla Firefox Settings

Open the Firefox Mozilla browser and click on “Firefox” button situated at the top left corner of the screen.

In the new menu, go to “Help” sub-menu and choose “Troubleshooting Information”

In the “Troubleshooting Information” page, click on “Reset Firefox” button.

Confirm that you want to reset the Mozilla Firefox settings to default by pressing on “Reset Firefox” option

The browser will get restarted and the settings changes to factory default

Delete Unwanted and Malicious Extensions from Google Chrome

Open the chrome browser and click on “Chrome menu”. From the drop down option, choose “More Tools” and then “Extensions”.

In the “Extensions” option, search for all the recently installed add-ons and extensions. Select them and choose “Trash” button. Any third-party extension is not important for the smooth functionality of the browser.

Reset Google Chrome Settings

Open the browser and click on three line bar at the top right side corner of the window.

Go to the bottom of the newly opened window and select “Show advanced settings”.

In the newly opened window, scroll down to the bottom and choose “Reset browser settings”

Click on the “Reset” button on the opened “Reset browser settings” window

Restart the browser and the changes you get will be applied

The above mentioned manual process should be executed as it is mentioned. It is a cumbersome process and requires a lot of technical expertise. And hence it is advised for technical experts only. To be sure that your PC is free from malware, it is better that you scan the work-station with a powerful anti-malware tool. The automatic malware removal application is preferred because it doesn’t requires any additional technical skills and expertise.

Download the application and execute it on the PC to begin the depth scanning. Once the scanning gets completed, it shows the list of all the files related to Brkdown.com. You can select such harmful files and folders and remove them immediately.