treed

Yeah, there's probably not much we can do without being able to reproduce, and none of us have been able to do so on Catalina. If you can provide the full install.log file, there's a chance that might reveal something, but it also might not. I'd definitely encourage upgrading, though. It has repeatedly been found in the last year that older versions of macOS cannot be considered secure. There are known vulnerabilities that Apple has only patched in the latest system (Monterey), and older systems remain vulnerable. If you're not able to upgrade to Monterey for some reason, that doesn't mean you should stop using your Mac. For most people, it's very unlikely they'll run into any problems as long as they're cautious online. However, if you engage in any kind of risky activities, you're at much greater risk. (This doesn't just mean stuff like pirating software. Other "risky activities" can include things like journalist, working for a government agency, being involved with a human rights advocacy group, being part of a persecuted group in certain countries, etc. These things can increase your chances of being targeted by an attacker.)

Hi, all! We've just released Malwarebytes for Mac version 4.15 in beta. The primary change is an incremental improvement of our Security Advisor feature. This adds a few other Malwarebytes settings to the list of potentially insecure settings. We'll be expanding this further over time. Let us know if there's anything confusing or unclear. You can update to the beta within the app, with the Beta Application Updates feature turned on, or you can download the installer directly from here: http://cdn.mwbsys.com/packages/mmac.installer.consumer/7/4/7/8/74783872521bc86671c5a0637c5ea646/7a7b69eb-dc18-488b-bbc0-cb53f8592053.pkg Please reply here with any comments, questions, and problem reports!

Yes, but I'm unsure what the status of the Mobile Security app on maltelboy's iOS devices is.

I'm still not entirely clear on what's going on. Are you using the Malwarebytes Mobile Security app? If you open the Malwarebytes Mobile Security app, and look at the dashboard (see the icons along the bottom of the screen within the app), does it say "Malwarebytes PREMIUM" along the top, or does it say something else? If it says "Malwarebytes PREMIUM", can you describe what you see in the settings? (Tap the gear icon in the upper right corner of the dashboard.)

It's a long weekend here at Malwarebytes (we have Friday off), and our European dev team is already gone for the day. I've set myself a reminder to check in with them on this on Monday. This isn't something I've heard of before. Is it safe to assume that the machines are all updated at this point, so you don't have an easy way to reproduce the issue? Would you be willing to try reproducing by uninstalling, then installing an older client (I can send you one) and doing the update?

This is definitely normal. Malwarebytes for Mac is able to install updates with root permissions via a component that is running as root. (Running as root is an important requirement for any security software... without that, it can't detect or remove all malware.) There are some very important security restrictions placed on that update process to ensure that it cannot be tricked into installing something not cryptographically signed by Malwarebytes.

So, just to clarify one point: the iOS app is now able to support activation using a license purchased from our website, or via a partnership, such as via an Eero subscription. It sounds like the Eero documentation on our website has not been updated, and I will be checking into that. The iOS app cannot, however, be activated with a license key, as Mac, Windows, and Android can, due to Apple restrictions. To activate with a license key on iOS, you must associate that license key with a Malwarebytes account. I do not know if your Eero account will have automatically provisioned you with a Malwarebytes account, or not. Either way, I'd advise setting up or logging into an account here, using the same e-mail address as your Eero account: https://my.malwarebytes.com Make sure the license key you got from Eero is associated with that account. Then you can log into that Malwarebytes account within the iOS app to activate Premium. From your description of the settings in the Malwarebytes app, it sounds like you have already done this. I'm not clear exactly how or with what subscription. If it is via the now-canceled Eero subscription, that Premium service should go away as soon as that cancellation is processed. Regarding the Malwarebytes items shown in Settings -> Safari -> Extensions, can you provide a screenshot of what you're seeing? If you tap the switch next to the Ad Blocker item, is that what is not responding? If so, can you try restarting your phone?

In addition to Porthos' question, I'd ask what version of the Malwarebytes software you're installing, and is it the anti-malware software or Privacy?

There's no separate setting for rootkit scanning on Mac. It will detect and remove rootkits that can be removed without any need for enabling anything special.

It really depends on the malware. Context matters. A lot of malware samples people try to test with are out of context and would not be detected in that form... and, often, can't even be executed, because they're not complete. A good example is mach-o executable files, which are the core of most Mac apps. However, such an executable, on being removed from the app bundle, would not be executable, and would not be detected because it's expected to be found inside the app bundle.

I'm glad to hear that solved it!

Unfortunately, there's nothing I can share about upcoming features at this time.

I'm not sure what's going on, but transferring from an older Mac to a newer one doesn't work well in cases like this. You'd need to uninstall or deactivate on the older Mac first, then activate the license on the new Mac. Otherwise, it's going to look like you're trying to activate a 1-device license on two devices at the same time, which could give unexpected results. What I'd recommend doing is to uninstall Malwarebytes for Mac (by choosing the Uninstall option in the Help menu within the app). Then, reload the subscriptions page in your Malwarebytes account. If the device is still showing up there, remove it from the subscription within the account. Then, re-download Malwarebytes for Mac, reinstall it, and activate it with the license key listed on your account. Once you've done that, let me know if you have any problems.

Did you perhaps purchase a subscription to the iOS apps separately, within the app? If so, that subscription will not show up on your Malwarebytes account, and can only be managed by Apple or via your iOS device's settings. Open the Settings app, then tap the box showing your name and the text "Apple ID, iCloud, Media & Purchases". Then tap Subscriptions. Do you see an entry for Malwarebytes Mobile Security there?

Can you clarify a couple things? First, where did you get the notification about your credit card expiring? Was it via e-mail, or elsewhere? Second, are you certain it was referring to your credit card, or could it have said that your subscription was expiring? What expiration does it show for your subscription if you click the Subscriptions tab (shown at the top of the page, between Overview and Billing)? Please don't post a screenshot here, as it will contain your license key and other potentially sensitive information. Third, on the same Subscriptions tab, does it show your Mac's correct name as the active device, or does it show a different device? The fact that your Mac is asking you to activate indicates that it is definitely not currently using an active license.

Okay, I'm glad to hear that! Sounds like he was jumping to an incorrect conclusion based on your screenshot, without having consulted the console. If that's the case, there's currently nothing to indicate you're infected. 🙂

If you want him to speak directly to us, you could ask him to join this conversation here. If he does not want to do that, or that is otherwise not an option, ask him what he's seeing that indicates that you're infected with VSearch, then pass on his reply to us.

You'd need to get more information from him about why he says your computer is infected. If there's something he's seeing that we're missing, we'd love to hear about that, and if he's mistaken, we'd love to help you (and him) understand why. If you can get more information from him, that would be important.

You wouldn't be able to access the console. That's only for the admins who are managing your system. Assuming your IT guy is working for the company that is managing your system, he should have access.

Someone should be able to help you via support, but there are a few possibilities. It's possible the e-mail with the license key got directed into your junk folder, either in your e-mail client or by your e-mail server. (I've got filters on both, and I'm sometimes quite stumped as to why they mark certain messages as junk.) Another possibility is that you made a typo in entering your e-mail address. If that's the case, someone from support should be able to locate your purchase for you with some additional information. (That's not information you'd want to post here, though.) It's also entirely possible there could have been an error in the system. That's something I haven't heard of, but someone from support would be able to investigate and help get it solved.

That information only shows what Malwarebytes is scanning for at that moment. It does not mean that OSX.VSearch, or any of the other names that appear, has been found. I'm not clear on why your IT guy says you're infected with VSearch. If he's basing it on that screenshot, he's wrong. However, if he's managing your computer, and the Malwarebytes protection on it, then he has access to a console that will show him more information.

Those instructions can be found on our support site: https://support.malwarebytes.com/hc/en-us/articles/4543592674835-Activate-Premium-features-on-Malwarebytes-for-iOS

My comment above, from earlier today, only applies to iOS. That isn't relevant to the question of how to activate on a Mac. Are you trying to also activate on an iOS device (an iPhone or iPad)?

This is also no longer true for iOS devices, as of March 2. iOS devices can now be activated via a Malwarebytes account. (Not with a license key, though, as Apple forbids that for apps distributed via the App Store.)

If you're not sure how to deactivate on Windows, one way to do so is by removing the Windows machine from your license via your Malwarebytes account: https://my.malwarebytes.com There's also as way to do it from within the Windows app, but I'm not an expert on where to find this in the Windows app. 😀