The Patext Virus
The Patext virus is a software that initiates page redirects and causes the appearance of different ads in your web browser. The Patext virus is classified as a browser hijacker.
The name of the software category stems from its ability to integrate with your browser and ‘hijack’ it by tampering with some of its settings. For instance, you may have noticed that Patext has changed the default search engine of your browser. And on top of that it has likely also set a new homepage, in addition to adding its own toolbar and plugin.
And the worst part is that no matter how much you try, you won’t be able to change those settings back to your preferred ones. That can only be done after removing the browser hijacker from your system.
Patext for Mac
Patext for Mac has the capacity to integrate with most popular browsers such as Safari, Chrome and Firefox. Furthermore, Patext for Mac can generate large amounts of online ads while you browse the web. In fact, the first thing users tend to notice when infected by software of this type is the unusual quantity of popups, banners and other kinds of ads in their browser.
It is also very common for browser hijackers to redirect your searches to various sponsored websites, which, too, can be quite annoying. And all of this is done in the name of generating revenue for the browser hijacker developers. Typically, this happens through Pay Per Click and Pay Per View remuneration methods. Hence, the advertising tactics of programs like this tends to be rather aggressive.
What is Patext?
Clearly, Patext is a type of advertising tool used to promote certain products/services/websites/etc. However, users often confuse Patext with viruses and malware. The good news is that unlike Trojans, ransomware and other actual viruses, a browser hijacker like this cannot harm your system in any way.
The worst you can expect from it is a potential system slowdown due to the constant background activity that takes its toll on your machine’s RAM and CPU. Another thing to look out for when dealing with such software are the ads themselves. You really don’t want to be clicking around on them as you risk being exposed to unsafe web locations and potentially landing an infection of some sort. This is actually also why we recommend removing softwares like Patext and Expecting value line 1 column 1 (char 0) altogether, and for that we have a designated removal guide available for free just below this article.
The Patext App
The Patext app may have ended up being installed on your computer alongside a different program. The Patext app can be distributed with the help of program bundles that can be downloaded for free. This is a common distribution method for browser hijackers, as the installation can go unnoticed.
But there is a simple way of protecting yourself from such scenarios. All you have to do is opt for the advanced or custom setup of any new program and uncheck the boxes opposite any unwanted additional components.
SUMMARY:
| Name | Patext |
| Type | Adware/Browser Hijacker |
| Detection Tool |
Remove Patext Virus from Mac
In some instances, it might be possible to remove Patext quickly as long as you correctly locate and uninstall its extensions from the Mac browser. The short instructions below explain how to do that:
- Launch the hijacked Mac browser and click on its menu.
- From the menu, select Preferences (for Safari) or Add-ons/Extensions if you are using other browsers.
- Once you reach the extensions page, search for entries that have been installed by Patext, seem to have a relation to it or generally look as potentially unwanted.
- Select these extensions one by one and remove them from the problematic browser by clicking on the respective remove/trash bin button.
- Do a browser restart and use the browser for a while to see if there are signs of the hijacker.
In case that Patext starts spamming you and redirecting you again, then use the more detailed instructions in the advanced removal guide below.
Prepare for the removal
In order to be able to remove any entries and processes related to Patext from your system, it is required that Safari is quit during the next few steps.
The browser hijacker may sometimes prevent the affected browser from quitting normally and if this is your case, it is best to use the Force Quit option that is found in Safari’s Apple menu.
Stop any Patext-related processes
WARNING! READ CAREFULLY BEFORE PROCEEDING!
Patext may run one or more processes that support its activity in the background of the system. Therefore, your job in this step is to find these processes and stop them. The easiest way to do that is to go to Finder, and navigate to the Activity Monitor by using this path: 
When the Activity Monitor app launches, review all the processes in there and try to locate the ones that are part of the problematic hijacker program. Highlight these processes one by one and click the “i” button found at the top left of the Activity Monitor window. An information box for the selected process that looks like this should open:
Once you see this box, click on the Sample button at the bottom to create a sample file of the process in question.
Save that sample on your Desktop and check it for dangerous code by running it in the free online virus scanner available here:
Once you see the results, you can easily decide if the sampled process is legitimate or it needs to be stopped.
A dangerous process can be stopped by right-clicking on it and selecting the End Process option. Once you are done with that, it is also important to delete the sample file of the dangerous process from the Desktop.
Important! Stopping legitimate system and app-related processes may lead to general instability and performance issues. To prevent that, please, scan every process that you believe could be problematic and research it online to find out more information about its origin and legitimacy.
Perform a Safari Shift-launch
Shift-launching is a function that prevents Safari from automatically loading pages and sites that have been loaded during previous browsing sessions. This also stops the sites pushed by the browser hijacker to appear once Safari starts.
To perform a Safari Shift-launch, press and hold the Shift keyboard key and start Safari simultaneously.
If unwanted pages still get loaded somehow, Force Quit the browser, temporarily disconnect your Mac from the Internet and try to shift-launch it again.
The Wi-Fi connection can be switched off from your Mac’s Menu while stopping the Ethernet connection requires you to only unplug the Internet cable from the computer. Once you are done with the next steps, you can restore your Internet connection in the same way.
Remove the Patext extensions from Safari
With Safari shift-launched, click on Safari menu>>>Preferences:
Next, in Preferences, select Extensions:
Review the extensions that are currently installed in the browser and decide which ones might be potentially unwanted or could be responsible for hijacking your results. Then, uninstall these extensions by clicking on the Uninstall button. Do not hesitate to remove any extensions that you don’t want to keep or aren’t using as these are usually third-party components that only customize the web experience but are not really required for the normal operation of your Mac OS.
Revoke all changes made by Patext
Patext may make various changes in the settings of Safari and other browsers that you have installed on your Mac. That’s why we recommend you apply the instructions below for all browsers you are using.
In Safari, select Preferences from the Safari Menu and click on the Privacy tab:
Now click on Remove All Website Data and confirm with Remove Now.
Important! All stored website data will be deleted after you confirm this action. A sign-in will be required for all websites that need some form of authentication.
Still in the Preferences menu, hit the General tab:
Check the Homepage URL for any changes and if you don’t trust the address that is written there, change it to a homepage address you prefer.
Nex,t select the History menu and click on Clear History. If possible, we recommend you clear All History as this will prevent accidentally opening a hijacker-related web page again.
How to Remove Patext From Firefox in OSX:
Open Firefox, click on 
(top right) ——-> Add-ons >>>Extensions.
Remove any extension that you find problematic. Then Refresh Your Firefox Settings.
How to Remove Patext From Chrome in OSX:
Start Chrome, click 
—–>More Tools —–> Extensions.
There, find the extension that is hijacking your results and select 
.
Click 
again, and proceed to Settings —> Search. Select Manage Search Engines and Delete everything but the search engines you normally use. After that Reset Your Chrome Settings.
In case the manual instructions in this guide aren’t enough to fully remove Patext, know that you can use the anti-virus program we recommend for scanning your Mac with it and removing any hidden components that might be causing your problems.
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