ControlFraction Adware - How to remove

ControlFraction is Mac adware and spyware. It spreads by hiding inside the installers of other apps. Once installed, it causes redirects, pop-up ads, logs your usage data, etc. It messes with your web browsing because it’s trying to get you to visit sites that it promotes and ads that it makes money from.

ControlFraction can be tricky to delete, as you need to change the settings that it set.

About ControlFraction:

Classification	Adware, browser hijacker.
How ControlFraction changes the Mac	It forces web browsers to open certain websites, it logs user data, it can return after being deleted, it can download more adware.
How it is installed	Advertised deceptively, downloaded and installed with another app.
How to remove ControlFraction	Find and delete malicious apps and extensions manually and with an anti-malware app (Combo Cleaner, Malwarebytes, others), repair the settings changed by ControlFraction.

Problems with ControlFraction

Browser-hijacking adware

ControlFraction is a bad app. It can do some potentially harmful things:

• spy on your browsing activities and collect data, including your browsing history, search terms, and even login credentials,
• change your search engine, open new tabs with unexpected sites (ads),
• download and install more adware,
• return after being deleted.

ControlFraction isn’t just an app, it’s a collection of settings, including new configuration profiles that force your internet browsers to open certain sites, a network proxy configuration that forces your internet to go through a certain server, and startup items that run certain apps when you log in to your Mac.

In other words, ControlFraction’s goal is to make money by showing you advertisements, forcing you to go to promoted websites, and collecting data about you.

ControlFraction is similar to OperativeProgram, TotalConsoleSearch, OperativeFraction, and other Mac AdLoad infections. If you scan it with an anti-malware app, it may be detected as Adware, Adload, Malware, Trojan, etc.

Installed deceptively

Macs are not free of malware, unfortunately. As much as Apple tries to protect its users, scammers find ways around those protections. Scammers use social engineering to trick us into downloading and installing trojans that hide malware, such as ControlFraction, inside of them.

One popular example of such a trojan is the Adobe Flash Update scam. Fake Flash update warnings are created by scammers who then promote them with ads. The warnings offer what look like updates but are actually a malware bundles.

In other words, you likely did not install ControlFraction knowingly. It must have been embedded inside of an app that you installed at some point. Do you remember installing any apps recently?

It is also possible that ControlFraction was downloaded by a trojan that was already present on your Mac. But this is unlikely. Still, you should scan your Mac to check.

How to remove ControlFraction

To get rid of ControlFraction, you will need to find it and other malware and delete them. You should also check a few settings that ControlFraction may have changed. More detailed instructions can be found below.

Find and remove malware

You need to find the ControlFraction app, extension, and other bad apps and extensions and delete them.

• You can delete apps by going into Finder -> Applications and dragging unwanted items to Trash.
• You can find extensions in System Preferences -> Extensions. Also, check your browser extensions. For example, open Safari, click the menu item Safari -> Preferences, then Extensions.

Use an anti-malware app, such as Combo Cleaner or Malwarebytes, to find and remove ControlFraction and other malware. Use safe mode if needed – Support.apple.com.

Safe mode can be useful because it stops unwanted apps from running. If something can’t be deleted because it’s running, use safe mode.

Delete suspicious files

There’s the option to look for and delete all of ControlFraction’s files. Finder -> Go -> Computer, type in “ControlFraction”, and delete everything.

Also, Finder -> Go -> Go to Folder and type in the names of these folders: ~/Library/LaunchAgents, ~/Library/Application Support, /Library/Application Support, /Library/LaunchDaemons.

Then, look for suspicious files that may have been added by ControlFraction:

• recently added files,
• files that don’t belong to any of your apps,
• files whose preview reveals suspicious addresses, like Safefinder.com, Searchsnow.com, Searchbaron.com, etc.

Don’t delete the files that are used by your legitimate apps because the apps might lose some settings and that could be inconvenient.

Repair your settings

ControlFraction likely made some changes to your settings (configuration profiles, an internet proxy, startup items). Undoing those settings is part of removing ControlFraction.

Open System Preferences:

• Profiles. Delete all unfamiliar profiles (select, then click the minus ‘-‘ button).
• Users & Groups -> Login Items. Remove unwanted items.
• Network -> Advanced -> Proxies. If a proxy is configured that you did not configure, uncheck it and click OK.

Finally, check your browser settings, such as your new tab and your default search engine.

Automatic Malware removal tools

Remove browser hijackers

How to remove ControlFraction Adware from Safari:Top

Remove malicious extensions

• Click on Safari menu on the top left corner of the screen. Select Preferences.
  
• Select Extensions and uninstall ControlFraction Adware and other suspicious extensions.
  
• If your homepage was changed, click on Safari menu on the top left corner of the screen. Select Preferences and choose General tab. Enter preferable URL to the homepage field.
  

(Optional) Reset your browser’s settings(older versions) If you are still experiencing any issues related to ControlFraction Adware, reset the settings of your browser to its default settings.

• Click on Safari menu on the top left corner of the screen. Select Reset Safari…
  
• Select which options you want to reset (usually all of them come preselected) and click on the Reset button.
  

If you cannot reset your browser settings and the problem persists, scan your system with an anti-malware program.

TopHow to remove ControlFraction Adware from Google Chrome on Mac:

• Open Chrome browser.
• Enter in the url field “chrome://extensions” address and hit Enter.
• Find ControlFraction Adware on the extensions list and click on the recycle bin icon next to it.
• Click on 'Chrome' button at the top left corner. Select 'Preferences' on a drop-down menu box.
• Find 'Search' options on Settings tab. If your search engine is changed, click 'Manage Search Engines' and set your preferred search engine.
• On the same page find 'Show home button' checkbox and change your homepage.

(Optional) Reset your browser’s settings If you are still experiencing any issues related to ControlFraction Adware, reset the settings of your browser to its default settings.

• On the 'Preferences' menu window, scroll down to the bottom and find 'Reset settings' button. Click it.
• Confirm your selection and click 'Reset' on the following window.

If you cannot reset your browser settings and the problem persists, scan your system with an anti-malware program. Top

How To remove ControlFraction Adware from Firefox on Mac OS:

• Click on the menu button on the top right corner of a Mozilla window and select the “Add-ons” icon (Or press cmd+Shift+A on your keyboard).
• Go through Extensions list, remove everything ControlFraction Adware related and items you do not recognise. If you do not know the extension and it is not made by Mozilla, Google, Microsoft, Oracle or Adobe then you probably do not need it.
• Enter “about:preferences” in URL bar and hit enter.
• Open Search settings tab.
• If your search engine is changed, click 'Default Search Engines' and set your preferred search engine.
• If your homepage was changed, click on the Firefox menu in the top right corner, select Preferences-> General. Enter a preferable URL to the home page field.

(Optional) Reset your browser’s settings If you are still experiencing any issues related to ControlFraction Adware, reset the settings of your browser to its default settings.

• Click on the menu button on the top right corner of a Mozilla Firefox window. Click on the Help button.
• Choose Troubleshooting Information on the Help menu.
• Click on the Refresh Firefox button.
• Click on the Refresh Firefox button on the confirmation box. Mozilla Firefox will close and change the settings to default.

If the problem persists, scan your system with an anti-malware program to identify malicious entries.