There is a surging incident of cyber scamming in which the offenders are pretending as staff from MacOS Support. The trick starts with a browser redirect where the Mac user’s internet program is diverted to a misleading pop-up page. In this instance, the pop-up is having a title “Trojan Spyware Alert – Error Code: #0x898778.” Users who are deceived with this scam pop-up ended up downloading a remote desktop application and gives an attacker complete control over the computer.
How it started?
The display of “Trojan Spyware Alert – Error Code: #0x898778” is usually triggered by a visit to malicious websites that were made to issue fake alerts in order to lure web users to call a scam technical support service. Visiting sites, especially those that are involved in piracy is the common source of the bogus pop-up.
In other cases, accidental installation of adware program is the root of the pop-up or redirect. This unwanted application has carried our changes on the internet program to constantly display the pop-up each time that the web user is surfing the internet.
The scam pop-up alert
Displaying “Trojan Spyware Alert – Error Code: #0x898778” pop-up window on the computer is a trick commonly applied by online scammers to generate profit by exploiting the weakness of some Mac users. For this instance, the pop-up contains the following message aims to lure Mac user to contact a bogus Mac support company:
MacOS Security
Trojan Spyware Alert – Error Code: #0x898778
Access to this PC has been blocked for security reasons.
Contact Mac Support: +1-(888)-585-7736 (Toll Free)
Once connected, the people behind this scam will instruct Mac users to download and open a remote desktop application. By doing so, the attackers can gain full control on the computer and may instill additional threat to the Mac system.
In the end, this “Trojan Spyware Alert – Error Code: #0x898778” scam will charge Mac users for the technical support service and additional billing may incur for the installed security or optimization suites, which was used to fix the Mac computer.
Procedures to Remove "Trojan Spyware Alert - Error Code #0x268d3" from Mac
This section contains comprehensive guide for Mac users. It will help you remove malicious browser hijacker from internet application.
Procedures on this page are written in a manner that can be easily understand and execute by Mac users.
Quick Fix - Scan the System with Combo Cleaner
Combo Cleaner is a trusted Mac utility application with complete antivirus and optimization features. It is useful in dealing with adware, malware, and PUP's. Moreover, it can get rid of malicious browser hijacker like "Trojan Spyware Alert - Error Code #0x268d3". You may need to purchase full version if you require to maximize its premium features.
1. Download the tool from the following page:
2. Double-click the downloaded file and proceed with the installation.
3. In the opened window, drag and drop the Combo Cleaner icon onto your Applications folder icon.
4. Open your Launchpad and click on the Combo Cleaner icon.
5. Wait until antivirus downloads it's latest virus definition updates and click on "Start Combo Scan" to start removing "Trojan Spyware Alert - Error Code #0x268d3".
6. Free features of Combo Cleaner include Disk Cleaner, Big Files finder, Duplicate files finder, and Uninstaller. To use antivirus and privacy scanner, users have to upgrade to a premium version.
Proceed with the rest of the removal steps if you are comfortable in manually removing malicious objects associated with the threat.
Step 1 : Double-check with MBAM Tool for Mac
1. Download Malwarebytes Anti-malware for Mac from the link below.
2. Run Malwarebytes Anti-malware for Mac. It will check for updates and download if most recent version is available. This is necessary in finding recent malware threats including "Trojan Spyware Alert - Error Code #0x268d3".
3. If it prompts to close all running web browser, please do so. Thus, we advise you to PRINT this guide for your reference before going offline.
4. Once it opens the user interface, please click on Scan button to start scanning your Mac computer.
5. After the scan, Malwarebytes Anti-malware for Mac will display a list of identified threats, "Trojan Spyware Alert - Error Code #0x268d3" is surely part of it. Be sure to select all items in the list. Then, click Remove button to clean the computer.
Check if your internet browser application is no longer being bothered by "Trojan Spyware Alert - Error Code #0x268d3". If the browser hijacker still persists, please continue with the steps below to reset internet programs to default settings.
Step 2 : Reset Internet Browser Program
Cleaning your internet browser from clutter and unwanted add-on/extension is a must when dealing with "Trojan Spyware Alert - Error Code #0x268d3" fake alert. The procedure below discuss on resetting various browsers to its default state.
Clear the Safari Internet Browser (Mac)
1. Open your Safari browser application.
2. In the Safari menu, click on Preferences from the drop-down list.
3. On Preferences window, please select the Privacy tab.
4. Click on Manage Website Data button.
5. Select unwanted/suspicious entry and click the Remove button. If you choose to Remove All, you may be logout from most visited websites and online services. Therefore, we advise to remove suspicious item one at a time to prevent changing behavior towards your favorite websites.
6. If it prompts, please confirm your actions.
7. Next, we will need to clear the Cache. Back at the Safari Preferences window, choose Advanced tab.
8. Navigate to the bottom and activate Show Develop menu in menu bar.
9. Go to Safari menu, choose on Develop from the drop down list and click on on Empty Caches.
10. Next thing to do is to restore the Homepage to your preference and remove the one from "Trojan Spyware Alert - Error Code #0x268d3" fake alert.
11. Back at the Safari Preferences window, click on General tab.
12. Under Homepage section, type your desired URL to be the default start-up page.
13. Lastly, make sure to have the right Search Engine.
14. Go back to Safari Preferences window and click on Search tab.
15. Select your desired Search tool under the Search engine section.
16. You may not restart Safari browser.
Restore Google Chrome to Default Settings
Resetting Google Chrome to default settings is helpful in deleting hard-to-remove extension that produces the "Trojan Spyware Alert - Error Code #0x268d3" scam alert. This method is highly advisable to perform if you have difficulty in removing unwanted extension.
1. Open Google Chrome Internet browser.
2. On the address bar, type chrome://settings/reset and press Enter key.
3. Under Reset and clean up section, choose Restore settings to their original defaults.
4. Click Reset settings button to clear all entries related to "Trojan Spyware Alert - Error Code #0x268d3" scam pop-up.
5. Close the existing tab and restart Google Chrome. That should have removed "Trojan Spyware Alert - Error Code #0x268d3" extension and associated objects.
Reset Mozilla Firefox to Default
This section describes how to remove unwanted extension from Firefox that may be related to "Trojan Spyware Alert - Error Code #0x268d3" fake pop-up alert. This process can fix many browser issues by restoring Firefox to factory settings without affecting your essential information (bookmarks, browsing history, passwords, and Internet cookies) on the browser. If you desire to remove only specific extension, please see manual removal of add-on from Firefox.
1. Input the string about:support on Firefox web address and press Enter on keyboard.
2. You will now see the Troubleshooting Information page of Mozilla Firefox.
3. You will notice a section on upper-right corner of the screen stating Give Firefox a tune up. Click the Refresh Firefox button.
4. If confirmation window appears, click Refresh Firefox to continue.
5. Firefox browser will close and start the resetting process. When done, it will display a list of restored data. "Trojan Spyware Alert - Error Code #0x268d3" fake alert should be gone by now. Click Finish to open a fresh version of Firefox.
