Are you seeing pop-ups with the following text “Immediate Action Required“, showing up while you’re browsing?
Beware that such messages typically indicate that you may have adware (PUP) installed on your system without your knowledge. Pop-ups claiming that your system is infected, an X number of viruses are detected and so on, may also be triggered by a tech-support scam.
If you’re dealing with a tech-support scam, you will also see a presumably toll-free phone number. Scammers are using fake virus detections and warning such as “Immediate Action Required” to create the sense of urgency and to make you dial the specific phone number. There’s no telling what could happen next, especially if you permit remote assistance.
Continue reading to learn more about the “Immediate Action Required” warning, and what to do to clear your system from it.
Threat Summary
| Name | Immediate Action Required |
| Type | Tech Support Scam, Adware, PUP |
| Short Description | Each browser you have could get affected. You will witness intrusive fake warnings about viruses detected on your system. |
| Symptoms | Fake warnings about viruses in the form of pop-ups, browser lock screens are also possible. |
| Distribution Method | Freeware Installations, Bundled Packages, Suspicious Pages |
| Detection Tool | See If Your System Has Been Affected by malware Download Malware Removal Tool |
| User Experience | Join Our Forum to Discuss Immediate Action Required. |
How Is Immediate Action Required Distributed?
Browsing the web hides its potential risks, especially if you’re visiting suspicious websites. Also note that clicking on advertisements or targeted content could have hidden links that redirect you to such sites. Websites can be filled with advertisements and redirect links and you could land on a page which has the “Immediate Action Required” fake warning.
Freeware applications, regarded as PUPs (potentially unwanted programs) could also distribute tech-support scams. PUPs and rogue programs could cause the scareware message to appear in your browsers. Free download websites usually feature tons of third-party installations and bundled installers, so you should be extra careful when intending to download software from such places.
Immediate Action Required – More Details
“Immediate Action Required” is one of a few messages related to a tech support scam. Note that different phone numbers may be promoted, and the message itself may vary. Both Windows and macOS users are affected by similar tech support scams.
An instance of such a scam targeted against Windows users is the following Microsoft Windows Scam – “Your system is heavily damaged by (4) Four virus!”. macOS users are also not spared, as there have been multiple reports for the “AppleCare: Your system is infected with 3 viruses!” Scam.
Scammers are using fake virus detections and warning such as “Immediate Action Required” to create the sense of urgency and to make you dial the specific phone number. There’s no telling what could happen next, especially if you permit remote assistance. To make their scams more believable, scammers tend to feature the logos of trustworthy companies such as Microsoft and Apple. However, seeing the logo of a popular company shouldn’t trick you in any way, since these companies do not deploy such methods to alert their users of issues. This is what tech support scammers do in their desperate attempts to fool users.
There could be plenty more phone numbers associated with the “Immediate Action Required” scam, depending on the URL addresses and landing pages involved. The criminals that are on the other end of the telephone line will try to trick you into believing that they are part of some sort of an official tech support team of Microsoft or Apple. Of course, that’s a lie. The most common pop-up related to sites with the “Immediate Action Required” message on the landing page looks like this:
It states the following:
Your system is infected with 3 viruses!
Your Mac [or computer] is infected with 3 viruses. Our security check found traces of 2 malware and 1 phishing/spyware. System damage: 28.1% – Immediate removal required!
The immediate removal of the viruses is required to prevent further damage, loss of Apps, Photos or other files. Traces of 1 Phishing/spyware were found on your Mac with OSX.Personal and banking information are at risk.
To avoid more damage click on ‘Scan Now’ immediately. Our deep scan will provide help immediately!
1 minute and 29 seconds remaining before damage is permanent.( Scan Now )
If you click on the “Scan Now” button, a new window may appear with a fake scan in progress and the results will definitely say your machine is infected. Then you will be prompted to download and install a tool to remove the supposed malware. That tool may be a PUP or may be bundled with trojanized applications. The fake scan results may also claim that the program was unable to remove the viruses, and that you need to call a phone number to fix your system. You shouldn’t call such phone numbers.
NOTE. There is also an equivalent message for Android and iPhone mobile devices that appear with an almost identical message:
The message on the left states:
We detect that your Samsung Galaxy S6 is 28.1% DAMAGED because of three harmful viruses from recent adult sites.
Soon it will damage your phone’s SIM card and will corrupt
your contacts, photos, data, applications, etc.If you do not remove the virus now , it will cause severe
damage to your phone. Here’s what you NEED to do
(step by step ):Step 1: Tap the button and install APP for free on Google Play!
Step 2: Open the app to speed up and fix your browser now!
REPAIR FAST NOW
The message on the right is for iPhones and it states:
We detect that your Apple iPhone is 28.1% DAMAGED because of three harmful viruses from recent adult sites.
Soon it will damage your phone’s SIM card and will corrupt
your contacts, photos, data, applications, etc.If you do not remove the virus now , it will cause severe
damage to your phone. Here’s what you NEED to do
(step by step ):Step 1: Tap the button and install APP for free on Google Play!
Step 2: Open the app to speed up and fix your browser now!
WARNING!
If you witness any of the warning messages described above, you should proceed towards finding the cause of the issue.
Remove Immediate Action Required Scam
In order to remove the Immediate Action Required scam along with all associated files that enable its appearance in the browser, you should complete several removal steps. The removal guide below you will show you all necessary steps in their precise order. You can choose between manual and automatic removal approaches. In order to get rid of any PUPs and rogue programs causing the “Immediate Action Required” pop-ups, you can combine the steps.
Milena Dimitrova
An inspired writer and content manager who has been with SensorsTechForum since the beginning. Focused on user privacy and malware development, she strongly believes in a world where cybersecurity plays a central role. If common sense makes no sense, she will be there to take notes. Those notes may later turn into articles! Follow Milena @Milenyim
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- Guide 1: How to Remove Immediate Action Required from Windows.
- Guide 2: Get rid of Immediate Action Required from Mac OS X.
- Guide 3: Remove Immediate Action Required from Google Chrome.
- Guide 4: Erase Immediate Action Required from Mozilla Firefox.
- Guide 5: Uninstall Immediate Action Required from Microsoft Edge.
- Guide 6: Remove Immediate Action Required from Safari.
- Guide 7: Eliminate Immediate Action Required from Internet Explorer.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer
How to Remove Immediate Action Required from Windows.
Step 1: Boot Your PC In Safe Mode to isolate and remove Immediate Action Required
Step 2: Uninstall Immediate Action Required and related software from Windows
Here is a method in few easy steps that should be able to uninstall most programs. No matter if you are using Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista or XP, those steps will get the job done. Dragging the program or its folder to the recycle bin can be a very bad decision. If you do that, bits and pieces of the program are left behind, and that can lead to unstable work of your PC, errors with the file type associations and other unpleasant activities. The proper way to get a program off your computer is to Uninstall it. To do that:
Follow the instructions above and you will successfully uninstall most programs.Step 3: Clean any registries, created by Immediate Action Required on your computer.
The usually targeted registries of Windows machines are the following:
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
You can access them by opening the Windows registry editor and deleting any values, created by Immediate Action Required there. This can happen by following the steps underneath:
Tip: To find a virus-created value, you can right-click on it and click "Modify" to see which file it is set to run. If this is the virus file location, remove the value.Before starting "Step 4", please boot back into Normal mode, in case you are currently in Safe Mode.
This will enable you to install and use SpyHunter 5 successfully.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer
Get rid of Immediate Action Required from Mac OS X.
Step 1: Uninstall Immediate Action Required 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:
- 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 Immediate Action Required 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:
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 2: Scan for and remove malware from your Mac
When you are facing problems on your Mac as a result of unwanted scripts, programs and malware, the recommended way of eliminating the threat is by using an anti-malware program. Combo Cleaner offers advanced security features along with other modules that will improve your Mac’s security and protect it in the future.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer
Remove Immediate Action Required from Google Chrome.
Step 1: Start Google Chrome and open the drop menu
Step 2: Move the cursor over "Tools" and then from the extended menu choose "Extensions"
Step 3: From the opened "Extensions" menu locate the unwanted extension and click on its "Remove" button.
Step 4: After the extension is removed, restart Google Chrome by closing it from the red "X" button at the top right corner and start it again.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer
Erase Immediate Action Required from Mozilla Firefox.
Step 1: Start Mozilla Firefox. Open the menu window
Step 2: Select the "Add-ons" icon from the menu.
Step 3: Select the unwanted extension and click "Remove"
Step 4: After the extension is removed, restart Mozilla Firefox by closing it from the red "X" button at the top right corner and start it again.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer
Uninstall Immediate Action Required from Microsoft Edge.
Step 1: Start Edge browser.
Step 2: Open the drop menu by clicking on the icon at the top right corner.
Step 3: From the drop menu select "Extensions".
Step 4: Choose the suspected malicious extension you want to remove and then click on the gear icon.
Step 5: Remove the malicious extension by scrolling down and then clicking on Uninstall.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer
Remove Immediate Action Required from Safari.
Step 1: Start the Safari app.
Step 2: After hovering your mouse cursor to the top of the screen, click on the Safari text to open its drop down menu.
Step 3: From the menu, click on "Preferences".
Step 4: After that, select the 'Extensions' Tab.
Step 5: Click once on the extension you want to remove.
Step 6: Click 'Uninstall'.
A pop-up window will appear asking for confirmation to uninstall the extension. Select 'Uninstall' again, and the Immediate Action Required will be removed.
Windows Mac OS X Google Chrome Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Safari Internet Explorer
Eliminate Immediate Action Required from Internet Explorer.
Step 1: Start Internet Explorer.
Step 2: Click on the gear icon labeled 'Tools' to open the drop menu and select 'Manage Add-ons'
Step 3: In the 'Manage Add-ons' window.
Step 4: Select the extension you want to remove and then click 'Disable'. A pop-up window will appear to inform you that you are about to disable the selected extension, and some more add-ons might be disabled as well. Leave all the boxes checked, and click 'Disable'.
Step 5: After the unwanted extension has been removed, restart Internet Explorer by closing it from the red 'X' button located at the top right corner and start it again.
