What Is ForwardLean?
ForwardLean is the name of an adware program specifically designed for Mac. Its primary purpose is to display a variety of advertisements on your device for profit. Unfortunately, these ads often lead to questionable and potentially dangerous websites.
Read this article to learn more about the software and discover effective methods to remove it.
ForwardLean – Details
| Name | ForwardLean |
| Type | Rogue App / PUP / Auto-Downlaod / Redirect for Mac |
| Short Description | Aims to modify the settings on your computer in order to trigger the download of third-party software and display unwanted content and ads. |
| Symptoms | Your Mac starts displaying various types of content, which may even be malicious, resulting in a slowdown in performance. Auto-download of other PUPs may begin. |
| Distribution Method | Via mail software. Fake Updates. Bundled downloads. Web pages that may advertise it. |
| Detection Tool |
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User Experience | Join Our Forum to Discuss ForwardLean. |
Why Do I See ForwardLean On My Mac?
You may start encountering the ForwardLean adware on your Mac due to various reasons, including downloading software from sources other than the official App Store.
ForwardLean Virus – How Did I Get Infected
ForwardLean employs different strategies to infect computers. One method involves being bundled with other programs during installation, where it pretends to be a free additional feature. Another method is through malvertising, which is particularly dangerous as it can install the program on your device without your knowledge by exploiting scareware websites.
ForwardLean Mac – What Does It Do?
ForwardLean can modify various settings on your Mac, including the home page, new tab, and default search engine of your web browsers. This is done to bombard you with different types of advertisements, including:
- Highlighted text on visited pages.
- Interruptive banner ads.
- Redirects.
- Pop-ups with video and/or sound.
- Altered search results that display ads instead of relevant sites.
- Intrusive push notifications.
ForwardLean may also track your online activities using various tracking objects, such as cookies. These objects gather data from your web browser, which can potentially include personally identifiable information. The extracted details may include:
- IP and Mac addresses.
- Mouse movements.
- Browsing history.
- Searches made.
- Bookmarked websites.
- Visited websites.
- Mouse clicks.
- Various personally identifiable information you may enter.
Is ForwardLean a Mac Virus?
ForwardLean is not classified as a virus but rather as adware for Mac. It may belong to the Adload family of threats.
Can ForwardLean Be Dangerous?
Yes, ForwardLean can be risky. It can lead to dangerous websites that lack HTTPS or SSL, or contain malicious URLs. Examples include:
- Fraudulent survey sites.
- Phishing pages.
- Rogue software download sites.
- Tech support fraud pages.
- URLs containing virus-infected files or scripts.
Therefore, it is essential to remove ForwardLean from your Mac as soon as possible.
How to Remove ForwardLean from Mac
To remove ForwardLean adware from your Mac, follow the steps underneath this article. They include scanning your Mac using a professional anti-malware software. By following these steps, you can effectively remove ForwardLean adware from your Mac and prevent further disruptions.
Ventsislav Krastev
Ventsislav is a cybersecurity expert at SensorsTechForum since 2015. He has been researching, covering, helping victims with the latest malware infections plus testing and reviewing software and the newest tech developments. Having graduated Marketing as well, Ventsislav also has passion for learning new shifts and innovations in cybersecurity that become game changers. After studying Value Chain Management, Network Administration and Computer Administration of System Applications, he found his true calling within the cybersecrurity industry and is a strong believer in the education of every user towards online safety and security.
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Steps to Prepare Before Removal:
Before starting to follow the steps below, be advised that you should first do the following preparations:
- Backup your files in case the worst happens.
- Make sure to have a device with these instructions on standy.
- Arm yourself with patience.
- 1. Scan for Mac Malware
- 2. Uninstall Risky Apps
- 3. Clean Your Browsers
Step 1: Scan for and remove ForwardLean files from your Mac
When you are facing problems on your Mac as a result of unwanted scripts and programs such as ForwardLean, the recommended way of eliminating the threat is by using an anti-malware program. SpyHunter for Mac offers advanced security features along with other modules that will improve your Mac’s security and protect it in the future.
Quick and Easy Mac Malware Video Removal Guide
Bonus Step: How to Make Your Mac Run Faster?
Mac machines maintain probably the fastest operating system out there. Still, Macs do become slow and sluggish sometimes. The video guide below examines all of the possible problems that may lead to your Mac being slower than usual as well as all of the steps that can help you to speed up your Mac.
Step 2: Uninstall ForwardLean and remove related files and objects
1. Hit the ⇧+⌘+U keys to open Utilities. Another way is to click on “Go” and then click “Utilities”, like the image below shows:
2. Find Activity Monitor and double-click it:
3. In the Activity Monitor look for any suspicious processes, belonging or related to ForwardLean:
4. Click on the "Go" button again, but this time select Applications. Another way is with the ⇧+⌘+A buttons.
5. In the Applications menu, look for any suspicious app or an app with a name, similar or identical to ForwardLean. If you find it, right-click on the app and select “Move to Trash”.
6. Select Accounts, after which click on the Login Items preference. Your Mac will then show you a list of items that start automatically when you log in. Look for any suspicious apps identical or similar to ForwardLean. Check the app you want to stop from running automatically and then select on the Minus (“-“) icon to hide it.
7. Remove any leftover files that might be related to this threat manually by following the sub-steps below:
- Go to Finder.
- In the search bar type the name of the app that you want to remove.
- Above the search bar change the two drop down menus to “System Files” and “Are Included” so that you can see all of the files associated with the application you want to remove. Bear in mind that some of the files may not be related to the app so be very careful which files you delete.
- If all of the files are related, hold the ⌘+A buttons to select them and then drive them to “Trash”.
In case you cannot remove ForwardLean via Step 1 above:
In case you cannot find the virus files and objects in your Applications or other places we have shown above, you can manually look for them in the Libraries of your Mac. But before doing this, please read the disclaimer below:
1. Click on "Go" and Then "Go to Folder" as shown underneath:
2. Type in "/Library/LauchAgents/" and click Ok:
3. Delete all of the virus files that have similar or the same name as ForwardLean. If you believe there is no such file, do not delete anything.
You can repeat the same procedure with the following other Library directories:
→ ~/Library/LaunchAgents
/Library/LaunchDaemons
Tip: ~ is there on purpose, because it leads to more LaunchAgents.
Step 3: Remove ForwardLean – related extensions from Safari / Chrome / Firefox
ForwardLean-FAQ
What is ForwardLean on your Mac?
The ForwardLean threat is probably a potentially unwanted app. There is also a chance it could be related to Mac malware. If so, such apps tend to slow your Mac down significantly and display advertisements. They could also use cookies and other trackers to obtain browsing information from the installed web browsers on your Mac.
Can Macs Get Viruses?
Yes. As much as any other device, Apple computers do get malware. Apple devices may not be a frequent target by malware authors, but rest assured that almost all of the Apple devices can become infected with a threat.
What Types of Mac Threats Are There?
According to most malware researchers and cyber-security experts, the types of threats that can currently infect your Mac can be rogue antivirus programs, adware or hijackers (PUPs), Trojan horses, ransomware and crypto-miner malware.
What To Do If I Have a Mac Virus, Like ForwardLean?
Do not panic! You can easily get rid of most Mac threats by firstly isolating them and then removing them. One recommended way to do that is by using a reputable malware removal software that can take care of the removal automatically for you.
There are many Mac anti-malware apps out there that you can choose from. SpyHunter for Mac is one of the reccomended Mac anti-malware apps, that can scan for free and detect any viruses. This saves time for manual removal that you would otherwise have to do.
How to Secure My Data from ForwardLean?
With few simple actions. First and foremost, it is imperative that you follow these steps:
Step 1: Find a safe computer and connect it to another network, not the one that your Mac was infected in.
Step 2: Change all of your passwords, starting from your e-mail passwords.
Step 3: Enable two-factor authentication for protection of your important accounts.
Step 4: Call your bank to change your credit card details (secret code, etc.) if you have saved your credit card for online shopping or have done online activiites with your card.
Step 5: Make sure to call your ISP (Internet provider or carrier) and ask them to change your IP address.
Step 6: Change your Wi-Fi password.
Step 7: (Optional): Make sure to scan all of the devices connected to your network for viruses and repeat these steps for them if they are affected.
Step 8: Install anti-malware software with real-time protection on every device you have.
Step 9: Try not to download software from sites you know nothing about and stay away from low-reputation websites in general.
If you follow these reccomendations, your network and Apple devices will become significantly more safe against any threats or information invasive software and be virus free and protected in the future too.
More tips you can find on our MacOS Virus section, where you can also ask any questions and comment about your Mac problems.
About the ForwardLean Research
The content we publish on SensorsTechForum.com, this ForwardLean how-to removal guide included, is the outcome of extensive research, hard work and our team’s devotion to help you remove the specific macOS issue.
How did we conduct the research on ForwardLean?
Please note that our research is based on an independent investigation. We are in contact with independent security researchers, thanks to which we receive daily updates on the latest malware definitions, including the various types of Mac threats, especially adware and potentially unwanted apps (PUAs).
Furthermore, the research behind the ForwardLean threat is backed with VirusTotal.
To better understand the threat posed by Mac malware, please refer to the following articles which provide knowledgeable details.