Genieo? And other oddities here...

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I just found this installer for "Genieo" in my Downloads folder, dated a couple days ago, which I'm baffled over. I've never heard of it nor downloaded it, yet here it is. I've done some reading and apparently it is adware. I have no idea how this thing got here though.

I also just noticed that the "Guest User" on my iMac was enabled. That is even more baffling. I just noticed a week or 2 ago that it was enabled and disabled it then. At the time, I didn't recall even having enabled it, and here it is again enabled! My wife certainly didn't enable it, and no one else uses this. Anyone have any ideas on how to check my Console to see if the Guest account was actually used? A brief search for "Guest" didn't turn up anything.
 
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Oh I deleted it after reading up on it. I also found no traces of it ever being installed. I'm just baffled over how it even got in my Downloads folder.

Just cross-referenced my browsing history with the modified date/time of that installer (if I remember it right). I think I know where now. Downloaded a video off a gaming site. Shoot... I need to warn someone I shared that link with!
 

chscag

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I caught it trying to download along with a game I bought from masque.com. It was real sneaky in that it was attached to the download. You had to cancel that part of the download or it became part of the overall file download and then attaches itself to your browser. Very underhanded.
 
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Getting as bad as Windows this checking every download out fully before checking the tick box!
 

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Getting as bad as Windows this checking every download out fully before checking the tick box!

Funny, I saw this thread by accident and recognised the name Genieo, I knew had seen it somewhere on my MBP so i did a file search and found a .dmg installer with the same name in my downloads folder.
To my knowledge I have never opened this file yet I notice one other file; com.genieo.global.settings.plist this is an XMLPropertyList. Can't find any other trace of it, can I go ahead and delete it?
Do I need to look elsewhere to ensure it's not hiding.
As I say I'm sure I never ran the installer.
 
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I need to warn someone I shared that link with!

No worries - I didn't get it - run a thorough check, didn't find anything :Cool:
I don't know whether that's just pure luck, or having, perhaps, skipped a step (there were a few, to get to that clip), or the fact that my Downloads folder is not where the little bugger would expect it to be, or maybe Ghostery and AdBlock helped ...

Talking about thorough system check, anyone else find it a bit silly that, one cannot just double-click on a hidden folder to open it anymore, having to go through a secondary click to select 'open in a new tab' instead, as if it is any safer ;P ... or is it? A mild deterrent for someone, who doesn't know what they're doing, I suppose. I should never question Apple's wisdom before morning coffee ... lol ;)
 

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Rod, if it had been installed, you would know. It totally messes with your browser changing your default search engine among other things. Just delete what you found.
 
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It totally messes with your browser changing your default search engine among other things.

You know, I could never understand the logic, or lack thereof, behind this approach - what exactly, apart from intense hatred and disgust, they expect to generate out of such an intrusion?
Or are they getting paid per number of angry clicks?
 
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Ok, now I know I wasn't imagining this. I just found that my Guest User has been re-enabled again.

Ah... I think I just found out why. I did a little digging and learned that if "Find My Mac" is enabled in the iCloud settings, then the Guest account is enabled automatically. I don't have that on in my iCloud settings, but my wife did in hers. She's not logged in regularly, perhaps once a week or so, which explains why it got turned back on... she logged back in to her side yesterday.
 

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