Apple.com-macos-fast-systems.live Pop-Ups

The Apple.com-macos-fast-systems.live website's sole purpose for existing is to carry out a popular online tactic. The site functions in an identical manner to all the other pages that use scare tactics to lure less technologically inclined users into downloading and installing dubious promoted applications. In fact, in most cases, the promoted software products are PUPs (Potentially Unwanted Programs) designed to deliver intrusive advertisements, modify the settings of the user's Web browsers, or both.

Visitors landing on the Apple.com-macos-fast-systems.live page will first be greeted by a pop-up window that tries to instill panic by stating that 'immediate action' is required. The pop-up will claim that it has found a malware threat - more specifically, an 'e.tre456_worm_osx' mac Trojan virus. Well, the hoax site undercuts its own message immediately, as its main page changes the still non-existent threats to three viruses - 2 malware and 1 phishing/spyware threat. Apparently, as a result of the intrusion, the user's Apple device has already suffered 28.1% of damage. We are not exactly sure what that percentage represents in terms of impact…

The fearmongering tactics of the misleading page continue with it now stating that if left unchecked, the still fake threats could result in loss of applications, photos or files. Personal and banking information also may be compromised, according to the false statements made by this deceptive page.

Potential victims are directed to click the 'Scan Now' button. Doing so will display a fake system scan that ultimately shows fake detections for three computer infections. Users will then be instructed to install a promoted PUP named 'Advanced Mac Cleaner.' There is one last twist in this tactic though, as the download link leads to a different PUP named 'Mac-Tweak-Pro.'

The tactics used by Apple.com-macos-fast-systems.live and the myriad other sites perpetuating this scheme are fairly obvious. Users should keep in mind that no site can perform system scans on its own. Furthermore, even if the promoted application was a legitimate one, you should still avoid installing it by following a suspicious link from a questionable site that you stumbled upon while browsing.