IOS /MAC Defender Alert - Tech Support Scam - How to remove

IOS /MAC Defender Alert is a fake security warning used by tech support scammers. It says that your computer is in trouble and then encourages you to contact a phone number that’s answered by scammers. While IOS /MAC Defender Alert shows up on webpages, it also automatically downloads a file that contains the whole IOS /MAC Defender Alert message. If you get repeated IOS /MAC Defender Alert pop-ups, this file might be present on your computer.

About IOS /MAC Defender Alert:

Type of threat	Scam.
The appearance of IOS /MAC Defender Alert	Gray and red full-page warning with an audio track that claims a virus infection by Zepto, error #0x3e7, and urges the victim to call a phone number to contact “Apple tech support”.
Problems and dangers	Scammers want to get remote access to the computer, steal information, and charge money for bogus support.
How to deal with IOS /MAC Defender Alert	Close the page, scan your computer for malicious files with anti-malware tools (Combo Cleaner, Malwarebytes, others), get your money back and prevent any unauthorized charges.

IOS /MAC Defender Alert is a scam

How IOS /MAC Defender Alert tries to scare people

IOS /MAC Defender Alert is a tech support scam aimed at macOS users. It is a webpage that looks like some kind of a warning about your Mac being under attack. The tab name is “System under attack !!”. IOS /MAC Defender Alert was made by some scammer in order to scare people.

There are plenty of macOS tech support scams, such as Zeus Virus Detected !!!, Your System is Infected!, and others. Apple recognizes that and warns its users to be careful of the various malicious messages.

The scammer hopes to get people to call the phone number displayed on the IOS /MAC Defender Alert webpage. This number changes, so far I’ve seen +41 43 505 10 95 and +32 78 25 11 40.

To scare users, IOS /MAC Defender Alert displays dishonest, alarmist threats that are common for scams:

1. Claims that Zepto Virus was detected on your computer in the registry. Displays an error code #0x3e7.
2. Urges you to not shut down your computer or else your hard disk will be erased.
3. Claims that you have recently downloaded malware from a site that you visited.
4. IOS /MAC Defender Alert claims that your internet connection was blocked.
5. IOS /MAC Defender Alert asks you to immediately call a provided phone number to contact “Apple technical support”.

To make it all look more serious, IOS /MAC Defender Alert also plays audio with the scam text and obnoxious warning noises.

Sings of it being a scam

Most likely, your computer is fine. Scams like IOS /MAC Defender Alert display the same warning on each and every machine they appear on. All they care about is scaring people.

Now, here’s why all the above warnings claimed by IOS /MAC Defender Alert are wrong and give away the deception:

1. “Zepto Virus” has long been used by scams as a threat. Also, the registry is not even a thing in Macs; it’s Windows PCs that use a registry.
2. Scams ask you to not shut down your computer because they need to keep the fake warning on your screen. The truth is, unexpected shutdowns happen all the time and they are not harmful. And if your computer truly was infected, shutting it down is the best thing to do – malware can’t harm a computer that’s off.
3. When antivirus programs detect malware, they don’t speculate where it came from. Instead, they quarantine the malware and then ask you if you want to delete it.
4. IOS /MAC Defender Alert and other scams cannot block your internet. They say that to stop you from looking for information and find out that this is a scam. Also, antivirus programs do not usually restrict your ability to use your computer.
5. The phone number provided by IOS /MAC Defender Alert does not belong to Apple. Apple and other companies do not usually display their phone numbers with malware warnings.

Finally, IOS /MAC Defender Alert may display a login pop-up that asks you to type in your username and password. Don’t do it. It’s a phishing scheme used by scammers to steal people’s credentials.

How to deal with the IOS /MAC Defender Alert

Close IOS /MAC Defender Alert

Close the pop-up

If you saw IOS /MAC Defender Alert once, that’s probably just a coincidence. Maybe the site you were on was infected with malicious ads or redirects. You can let the administrators of the site know what happened – they probably don’t even know that their site is showing scam pop-ups.

If your screen was locked by IOS /MAC Defender Alert, you can quit it by quitting your web browser or another program that is showing IOS /MAC Defender Alert. You can quit an app by pressing Alt+Cmd+Esc all at once, selecting the program that you want to quit, and then pressing the Force Quit button.

To prevent IOS /MAC Defender Alert from opening again, hold the Shift key while opening your browser next time. This will stop it from reopening the old tabs.

Remove the malicious file

When I downloaded IOS /MAC Defender Alert, it downloaded a Zip file with the alert and its sound effect. This file is malicious and detected by real antivirus scanners as such – VirusTotal. Thus, I recommend scanning your computer with an anti-malware app, such as Combo Cleaner, Malwarebytes, and others. The pop-up may be detected as Cryxos, Kotka, FakeAlert, EvilCursor, or HTML:Script-inf.

If you contacted the scammers

If you contacted the scammers, then they have got your phone number. Watch out for scam calls. Be suspicious of any caller that asks you to confirm your information.

Likely, the people behind IOS /MAC Defender Alert wanted you to give them remote access to your Mac and got you to download some software for this. Uninstall that software.

If the scammers connected to your computer, they might have installed some spyware on it. Scan your computer with an anti-malware tool.

Scammers are always looking for passwords, payment data, and other potentially valuable info. Set new passwords for your accounts.

If you paid for tech support to the people behind IOS /MAC Defender Alert, contact your bank and ask to reverse the payment. Keep watching your account for unauthorized charges.

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