Genesis Mass Mac

Genesis Mass

Genesis Mass is a type of malware recognized as a browser hijacker that steals the settings of popular Mac browsers. Once Genesis Mass infects the user’s Safari, Chrome, or Firefox browser, it changes the settings of its homepage and starts to initiate aggressive page-redirects.

Genesis Mass

Those page redirects are intended to improve the ratings and traffic of certain sites, the owners of which pay the hijacker’s creators for the promotional services. A change in the default search engine of the affected browser may also occur after a hijacker gets installed in your Mac. This is also done with the purpose of getting you redirected to some promoted sites. The search results provided by the new search engine that has gotten installed in your browser would likely favor advertised sites, while pushing the most relevant results further down the page, or maybe even to the second page of the search results. Not only could this make your overall browsing experience quite frustrating, but it could also increase the risk of visiting an unsafe site that contains hazards such as phishing elements or pirated uploads that may be loaded with viruses such as Trojans, Worms, or Ransomware.

Genesis Mass for Mac

Genesis Mass for Mac is a Mac browser add-on that behaves aggressively and constantly tries to redirect your searches and browser traffic. The main goal of Genesis Mass for Mac is to get you to visit the sites of its sponsors, who pay commissions for getting promoted.

This advertising model is quite common online and oftentimes results in significant profits. However, when a hijacker such as Genesis Mass, Search Marquis, QSearch is applying it, the whole experience could be quite frustrating and it could also lead to certain security risks. The main problem is, as we already mentioned, the possibility of getting infected with malware. You cannot know if a given hijacker advert or page redirect would actually lead you to a reliable site. For all you know, the site you are getting redirected to could be infested with all kinds of viruses or could be used for phishing purposes. Therefore, the advisable course of action is to uninstall the unwanted app ASAP.

What is Genesis Mass?

Genesis Mass is a commonly encountered browser hijacker for Mac systems that infects the browser and overrides its settings. Genesis Mass changes the search engine and the toolbar settings in order to turn the browser into an ad-generating tool and causes it to promote certain sites.

If you need help removing this invasive app, you will find the needed uninstallation instructions within the guide we have posted below for those of our readers who want to learn how to rid their Mac computers of unwanted software.

The Genesis Mass app

The Genesis Mass app is a malware application labeled as a browser hijacker because it targets the browser and hijacks its search engine and homepage. The purpose of the Genesis Mass app is to make a profit via advertising some sites that earn money through paid ads.

Even if this unwanted software isn’t harmful in and of itself, we strongly recommend that you remove it using our help from the guide below so that it won’t bother you anymore 

SUMMARY:

NameGenesis Mass
TypeBrowser Hijacker
Danger LevelMedium (nowhere near threats like Ransomware, but still a security risk)
Detection Tool

Remove Genesis Mass from Mac

Step1

The first thing you need to do is to Quit Safari (if it is opened). If you have trouble closing it normally, you may need to Force Quit Safari:

You can choose the Apple menu and click on Force Quit.

Alternatively you can simultaneously press (the Command key situated next to the space bar), Option (the key right next to it) and Escape (the key located at the upper left corner of your keyboard).

If you have done it right a dialog box titled Force Quit Applications will open up.

In this new dialog window select Safari, then press the Force Quit button, then confirm with Force Quit again.

Close the dialog box/window.

Step2

WARNING! READ CAREFULLY BEFORE PROCEEDING!

Start Activity Monitor by opening up Finder, then proceed to activity-monitor

Once there, look at all the processes: if you believe any of them are hijacking your results, or are part of the problem, highlight the process with your mouse, then click the “i” button at the top. This will open up the following box:

chromeinfo

Now click on Sample at the bottom:

chromesample

Do this for all processes you believe are part of the threat, and run any suspicious files in our online virus scanner, then delete the malicious files:

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    Step3

    The next step is to safely launch Safari again. Press and hold the Shift key while relaunching Safari. This will prevent Safari’s previously opened pages from loading again. Once Safari is opened up, you can release the Shift key.

    On the off chance that you are still having trouble with scripts interrupting the closing of unwanted pages in Safari, you may need to take some additional measures.

    First, Force Quit Safari again.

    Now if you are using a Wi-Fi connection turn it off by selecting Wi-Fi off in you Mac’s Menu. If you are using a cable internet (Ethernet connection), disconnect the Ethernet cable.

    Step4

    Re-Launch Safari but don’t forget to press and hold the Shift button while doing it, so no previous pages can be opened up. Now, Click on Preferences in the Safari menu,

    Preferences in Safari

    and then again on the Extensions tab,

    extensions in safari

    Select and Uninstall any extensions that you don’t recognize by clicking on the Uninstall button. If you are not sure and don’t want to take any risks you can safely uninstall all extensions, none are required for normal system operation.
    Step5

    The threat has likely infected all of your browsers. The instructions below need to be applied for all browsers you are using.

    Again select Preferences in the Safari Menu, but this time click on the Privacy tab,
    Privacy in Safari

    Now click on Remove All Website Data, confirm with Remove Now. Keep in mind that after you do this all stored website data will be deleted. You will need to sign-in again for all websites that require any form of authentication.

    Still in the Preferences menu, hit the General tab

    General Tab in Safari

    Check if your Homepage is the one you have selected, if not change it to whatever you prefer.
    Default Home Page

    Select the History menu this time, and click on Clear History. This way you will prevent accidentally opening a problematic web page again.

    firefox-512 How to Remove Genesis Mass From Firefox in OSX:

    Open Firefoxclick on mozilla menu (top right) ——-> Add-onsHit Extensions next.

    pic 6

    The problem should be lurking somewhere around here –  Remove it. Then Refresh Your Firefox Settings.


    chrome-logo-transparent-backgroundHow to Remove Genesis Mass From Chrome in OSX:

     Start Chrome, click chrome menu icon —–>More Tools —–> Extensions. There,  find the malware and  select  chrome-trash-icon.

    pic 8

     Click chrome menu icon again, and proceed to Settings —> Search, the fourth tab, select Manage Search Engines.  Delete everything but the search engines you normally use. After that Reset Your Chrome Settings.

    If the guide doesn’t help, download the anti-virus program we recommended or try our free online virus scanner. Also, you can always ask us in the comments for help!


    About the author

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    Brandon Skies

    Brandon is a researcher and content creator in the fields of cyber-security and virtual privacy. Years of experience enable him to provide readers with important information and adequate solutions for the latest software and malware problems.

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