How to remove PositiveSearchGuide (Mac)

What is PositiveSearchGuide

PositiveSearchGuide is a malicious browser extension that targets macOS systems. It belongs to the category of browser hijackers, which are designed to take over the browser and control user’s surfing preferences. When installed, PositiveSearchGuide injects advertisements into websites, changes browser settings, and redirects search queries through search.initialunit.com, which then redirects to search.yahoo.com. This is likely done to generate advertising revenue by using Yahoo Search for its search results. PositiveSearchGuide can cause unwanted changes to browser settings, display unwanted advertisements, and redirect search queries. This can lead to a degraded browsing experience and potential privacy issues due to the interception of network traffic and the display of targeted ads based on collected data.

How PositiveSearchGuide infects Mac computers

PositiveSearchGuide is often offered through advertisements or bundled with other software, leaving users puzzled about where the software came from. Users should always pay attention when installing software because often, a software installer includes optional installs. Being cautious about what you agree to install can help prevent such infections.

1. Download PositiveSearchGuide Removal Tool
2. Remove PositiveSearchGuide from Login Items
3. Remove/Uninstall PositiveSearchGuide from Applications
4. Remove PositiveSearchGuide from browsers
5. Reset browser settings
6. Remove PositiveSearchGuide files and folders
7. Block PositiveSearchGuide ads and pop-ups
8. How to protect from threats, like PositiveSearchGuide

Remove PositiveSearchGuide manually for free

Note: PositiveSearchGuide sets up to start on macOS startup. Therefore, before starting the removal, perform these steps:

1. Open System Preferences, choose Users & Groups.
2. Choose your account (set up as Current User).
3. Click Login Items tab.
4. Find “PositiveSearchGuide” entry. Select it, and click the “-“ (minus) button to remove it.

Note 2: PositiveSearchGuide won’t quit just by closing it, therefor use Force Quit to end the process.

1. Press 3 buttons at the same time: Option, Command, and Esc (Escape). This is similar to Control-Alt-Delete on a Windows PC.
2. Choose PositiveSearchGuide in the list.
3. Click Force Quit button.

Here is a manual step-by-step tutorial for full PositiveSearchGuide removal from your computer. This works 99% and was checked with the latest versions of PositiveSearchGuide installer on operating systems with the latest updates and browser versions.

Remove PositiveSearchGuide from Applications

Remove PositiveSearchGuide from Mac:

1. In the Finder sidebar, click Applications.
2. PositiveSearchGuide might have an Uninstaller. If you see Uninstall PositiveSearchGuide or PositiveSearchGuide Uninstaller, double-click it and follow the onscreen instructions.
3. Otherwise, drag PositiveSearchGuide from the Applications folder to the Trash (located at the end of the Dock).
4. Then choose Finder > Empty Trash.

Cannot uninstall PositiveSearchGuide

If you can’t uninstall PositiveSearchGuide using instructions above, or it keeps coming back, you can use free AppCleaner for Mac to remove all residual data and libraries of PositiveSearchGuide. Follow instructions below:

1. Download free AppCleaner.
2. Drag PositiveSearchGuide from Applications folder to AppCleaner window.
3. Choose files and folders you want to remove along with PositiveSearchGuide.
4. Click Delete button.

Remove PositiveSearchGuide add-on from your browsers

Removing PositiveSearchGuide from Applications often does not bring the desired effect. It is a browser extension, and it may still be active in Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox. Here are instructions on how to remove the PositiveSearchGuide extension from your browsers manually.

Safari:

1. Start Safari on your Mac, click Safari to open drop-down menu and choose Preferences
2. Click Extensions tab.
3. Find PositiveSearchGuide extension.
4. Click Uninstall button to remove it.

Google Chrome:

1. Start Google Chrome browser
2. In address box type (or copy-paste) chrome://extensions.
3. Find PositiveSearchGuide extension.
4. Click the trash can icon to remove it.

Mozilla Firefox:

1. Start Mozilla Firefox browser.
2. In address box type (or copy-paste) about:addons.
3. Choose PositiveSearchGuide extension.
4. Click Disable or Remove button.

Reset browser settings

To finish PositiveSearchGuide removal, reset your browser settings to make sure, there are no leftover items in browser folders.

Reset Safari:

1. Start Safari on your Mac, click Safari to open drop-down menu and choose Preferences
2. Go to the Privacy section of Safari’s preferences.
3. Click Remove All Website Data button.
4. In opened window click Remove Now button to remove data stored by websites in Safari.
5. Go to the Advanced section of Safari’s preferences.
6. Click the Show Develop menu in menu bar option.
7. In the menu click Develop and select Empty Caches from this menu.
8. Again, go to Safari menu and choose Clear History….
9. Choose to clear all history and click Clear History button.

Reset Google Chrome:

1. Start Google Chrome browser
2. In address box type (or copy-paste) chrome://settings.
3. Scroll down and find Show advanced settings link.
4. Click on it and scroll down to the bottom again.
5. Click Reset settings button and click Reset to confirm.

Reset Mozilla Firefox:

1. Start Mozilla Firefox browser.
2. In address box type (or copy-paste) about:support.
3. Click Refresh Firefox… button.
4. Click Refresh Firefox to confirm.

Remove following files and folders of PositiveSearchGuide


~/Library/Application Support/.[random_string]/Services/com.PositiveSearchGuide.service.app
~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.PositiveSearchGuide.service.plist
/Library/Application Support/.[random_string]/System/com.PositiveSearchGuide.system
/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.PositiveSearchGuide.system.plist


Download AdGuard for Mac to block malicious pop-ups, that promote PositiveSearchGuide

AdGuard is the best ad-blocker, internet filtering, and internet security application for macOS. It can cut out unwanted banners from site pages, block pop-ups, stop redirects, and prevent users from visiting potentially dangerous resources. Use it to stop ads promoting PositiveSearchGuide in browsers.

Download AdGuard for Mac

How to protect Mac OSX from adware, like PositiveSearchGuide

Mac OSX is known to be one of the safest operating systems, and for a long time, there was no need for antivirus products for Mac. But with the growing popularity of Mac computers and notebooks and evolving technology, viruses, trojans, adware, toolbars, hijackers, and other malware paved the way for Mac users. We recommend you to use one of the best anti-malware for Mac available — Malwarebytes for Mac.

Download Malwarebytes for Mac