How to Uninstall MacKeeper
Open the Finder., Click Applications., Open MacKeeper., Click MacKeeper., Click Preferences., Click the General tab., Uncheck the "Show MacKeeper icon in menu bar" box., Close the Preferences window., Click MacKeeper., Click Quit., Click and drag...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Open the Finder.
It's a blue face icon in your dock, which is the row of apps typically found at the bottom of the screen. , This option is in the sidebar on the left side of the Finder window., It's a white and blue robot icon in the Applications folder., It's the left-most option in the menu bar at the top of your Mac's screen.
Doing so will invoke a drop-down menu., This option should be toward the bottom of the drop-down menu., It's near the top of the Preferences window., This box is at the bottom of the General page.
The MacKeeper icon will no longer display in your Mac's menu bar., To do so, click the red circle in the top-left corner of the window., It's in the top-left corner of your Mac's screen., Doing so will quit MacKeeper., The Trash app is on the far-right side of your Mac's dock.
The MacKeeper icon is in the same place (the Applications folder) as when you first opened it. , Simply removing your finger from the mouse will accomplish this.
You should see a pop-up window from MacKeeper appear.
You may have to enter your administrator account password and click OK before the pop-up window appears. , It's in the top-right corner of the pop-up window., Once it does, the base program will be completely gone from your Mac; unfortunately, lingering MacKeeper files can still impact your Mac use, so you'll need to remove those next.,, It's in the menu bar at the top of the screen., This option is at the bottom of the Go drop-down menu.
Clicking it will invoke a text field., This command will take you to the Application Support folder, which is where the residual MacKeeper folder is stored., It's somewhere in the Application Support folder.
If you don't see this folder in the Application Support folder, the process of uninstalling MacKeeper also deleted the folder. , Doing so will prompt a drop-down menu.
You can also hold down ⌘ Command and click the folder to prompt this menu. , This option is at the bottom of the drop-down menu., Doing so will remove this folder from the Application Support folder., While the uninstall process typically removes most MacKeeper files, check the following locations for the pertaining files by using the Go to Folder function you used earlier: ~/Library/Caches/
- Delete the "com.mackeeper.MacKeeper" and/or "com.mackeeper.MacKeeper.Helper" file(s) if either of them are here. ~/Library/LaunchAgents/
- Delete the "com.mackeeper.MacKeeper.Helper.plist" file if it's here. ~/Library/LaunchDaemons/
- Delete the "com.mackeeper.MacKeeper.plugin.AntiTheft.daemon.plist" file if it's here. , A pop-up menu will appear., It's an option in the pop-up menu., This will rid your Mac of all files stored in the Trash, including the MacKeeper folder(s)., This will allow you to change your Safari settings from the menu bar.
If Safari is open but overflowing with ads, you can force-quit it by pressing ⌘ Command+⌥ Option+Esc, clicking Safari in the pop-up menu, and clicking Force Quit.
You'll then hold down ⇧ Shift while opening Safari to prevent the ads from appearing on your current tab. , This menu item is in the top-left corner of the screen., It's toward the top of the drop-down menu., This option is near the top-right side of the Preferences window.
If you see a message that says "Extensions can be enabled in the Develop menu" here, click the Advanced tab to the right and then click the "Show Develop menu in menu bar" box.
This will force your extensions to display in the Extensions tab. , One of MacKeeper's more nefarious alterations to your system comes in the form of extensions it adds without your permission.
To remove an extension, select it by clicking it, then click Remove., It's to the left of the Extensions tab you're currently on., The search bar is in the upper-right side of the Privacy tab; typing "mac" in here will scan for any cookies that start with "mac"
which will most likely comprise of MacKeeper cookies., It's in the bottom-left side of the Privacy tab.
Doing so will remove any MacKeeper temporary browsing files from your Safari browser, thereby preventing MacKeeper ads from disrupting your browsing experience., To do so, click the Apple menu in the top-left corner of the screen and then click Restart....
When your computer restarts, you shouldn't see any MacKeeper announcements or advertising on your Mac's desktop or within the Safari browser. -
Step 2: Click Applications.
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Step 3: Open MacKeeper.
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Step 4: Click MacKeeper.
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Step 5: Click Preferences.
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Step 6: Click the General tab.
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Step 7: Uncheck the "Show MacKeeper icon in menu bar" box.
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Step 8: Close the Preferences window.
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Step 9: Click MacKeeper.
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Step 10: Click Quit.
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Step 11: Click and drag the MacKeeper icon over to the Trash.
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Step 12: Drop MacKeeper in the trash.
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Step 13: Click Uninstall MacKeeper.
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Step 14: Wait for MacKeeper to finish uninstalling.
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Step 15: Re-open the Finder if you closed it.
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Step 16: Click the Go menu item.
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Step 17: Click Go to Folder.
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Step 18: Type in ~/Library/Application Support/
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Step 19: then click Go.
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Step 20: Locate the "MacKeeper Helper" folder.
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Step 21: Use two fingers to click the "MacKeeper Helper" folder.
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Step 22: Click Move to Trash.
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Step 23: Click OK when prompted.
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Step 24: Look for any remaining MacKeeper files.
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Step 25: Use two fingers to click the Trash.
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Step 26: Click Empty Trash.
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Step 27: Click Empty Trash when prompted.
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Step 28: Open Safari if it isn't already open.
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Step 29: Click Safari.
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Step 30: Click Preferences.
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Step 31: Click the Extensions tab.
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Step 32: Remove any extensions you didn't personally install.
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Step 33: Click the Privacy tab.
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Step 34: Click the search bar and type in mac.
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Step 35: Click Remove All.
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Step 36: Restart your Mac.
Detailed Guide
It's a blue face icon in your dock, which is the row of apps typically found at the bottom of the screen. , This option is in the sidebar on the left side of the Finder window., It's a white and blue robot icon in the Applications folder., It's the left-most option in the menu bar at the top of your Mac's screen.
Doing so will invoke a drop-down menu., This option should be toward the bottom of the drop-down menu., It's near the top of the Preferences window., This box is at the bottom of the General page.
The MacKeeper icon will no longer display in your Mac's menu bar., To do so, click the red circle in the top-left corner of the window., It's in the top-left corner of your Mac's screen., Doing so will quit MacKeeper., The Trash app is on the far-right side of your Mac's dock.
The MacKeeper icon is in the same place (the Applications folder) as when you first opened it. , Simply removing your finger from the mouse will accomplish this.
You should see a pop-up window from MacKeeper appear.
You may have to enter your administrator account password and click OK before the pop-up window appears. , It's in the top-right corner of the pop-up window., Once it does, the base program will be completely gone from your Mac; unfortunately, lingering MacKeeper files can still impact your Mac use, so you'll need to remove those next.,, It's in the menu bar at the top of the screen., This option is at the bottom of the Go drop-down menu.
Clicking it will invoke a text field., This command will take you to the Application Support folder, which is where the residual MacKeeper folder is stored., It's somewhere in the Application Support folder.
If you don't see this folder in the Application Support folder, the process of uninstalling MacKeeper also deleted the folder. , Doing so will prompt a drop-down menu.
You can also hold down ⌘ Command and click the folder to prompt this menu. , This option is at the bottom of the drop-down menu., Doing so will remove this folder from the Application Support folder., While the uninstall process typically removes most MacKeeper files, check the following locations for the pertaining files by using the Go to Folder function you used earlier: ~/Library/Caches/
- Delete the "com.mackeeper.MacKeeper" and/or "com.mackeeper.MacKeeper.Helper" file(s) if either of them are here. ~/Library/LaunchAgents/
- Delete the "com.mackeeper.MacKeeper.Helper.plist" file if it's here. ~/Library/LaunchDaemons/
- Delete the "com.mackeeper.MacKeeper.plugin.AntiTheft.daemon.plist" file if it's here. , A pop-up menu will appear., It's an option in the pop-up menu., This will rid your Mac of all files stored in the Trash, including the MacKeeper folder(s)., This will allow you to change your Safari settings from the menu bar.
If Safari is open but overflowing with ads, you can force-quit it by pressing ⌘ Command+⌥ Option+Esc, clicking Safari in the pop-up menu, and clicking Force Quit.
You'll then hold down ⇧ Shift while opening Safari to prevent the ads from appearing on your current tab. , This menu item is in the top-left corner of the screen., It's toward the top of the drop-down menu., This option is near the top-right side of the Preferences window.
If you see a message that says "Extensions can be enabled in the Develop menu" here, click the Advanced tab to the right and then click the "Show Develop menu in menu bar" box.
This will force your extensions to display in the Extensions tab. , One of MacKeeper's more nefarious alterations to your system comes in the form of extensions it adds without your permission.
To remove an extension, select it by clicking it, then click Remove., It's to the left of the Extensions tab you're currently on., The search bar is in the upper-right side of the Privacy tab; typing "mac" in here will scan for any cookies that start with "mac"
which will most likely comprise of MacKeeper cookies., It's in the bottom-left side of the Privacy tab.
Doing so will remove any MacKeeper temporary browsing files from your Safari browser, thereby preventing MacKeeper ads from disrupting your browsing experience., To do so, click the Apple menu in the top-left corner of the screen and then click Restart....
When your computer restarts, you shouldn't see any MacKeeper announcements or advertising on your Mac's desktop or within the Safari browser.
About the Author
Timothy Richardson
Experienced content creator specializing in crafts guides and tutorials.
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