What is PathBrand

Did you notify Apple that BasketballGeneralManager.app might be carrying Adware?

Another good tool for finding & ridding things...

EtreCheck is a simple little app to display the important details of your system configuration and allow you to copy that information to the Clipboard. It is meant to be used with Apple Support Communities to help people help you with your Mac.

http://www.etresoft.com/etrecheck

Use the Note tool on the bottom of this editor's toolbar, as shown in the image, to copy and paste the output from EtreCheck.

Same here. Downloaded an update for Adobe Flash and this appeared. Also pop up screen saying "Installation Complete" seemed to lock my computer. Somehow I eventually was able to use my mouse again and moved the icon from the dock to the trash. Then went to finder and deleted the app and then immediately deleted it from the trash. Today it reappeared by itself so I repeated the process.

Pathbrand has made connecting to the internet a problem. It installed itself yesterday when I opened a regular email. The computer froze. I have trashed and deleted it but still have to restart the computer for it to work long enough to send an email and then it quits again. And nothing else will open.

Keith Barkley:

Before I download MalWareBytes, I'd like to add more history to this issue. Here's what happened at my house:

1) On May 16th,  one of the kids downloaded a free game from the App Store called BasketballGeneralManager.app (he has an account on my iMac, with parental controls set).  

2) The next time I woke the computer, there was a textbox on the login screen to the effect that “PublicAdviseSearch needs your AppleID password, or the app won’t work correctly”.  I closed this window without entering the password and logged in.

3) Then I noticed a new icon in the Dock, labeled PathBrand.app.  I looked in the Applications folder, and saw BasketballGeneralManager.app and PathBrand.app. I moved PathBrand.app into the Trash.  At that time, I assumed the password request had to do with that app.

4) Then my Internet access stalled, and I looked into the Activity Manager and found PublicAdviseSearch sending and receiving packets. The list showed two processes labeled PublicAdviseSearch and one process labeled PublicAdviseSearchDaemon, owned by launchd(1). Any attempt to kill these processes results in them relaunching a second or two later.

Only one device in the house is infected, so far.

Malwarebytes was successful in removing PublicAdviseSearch yesterday. But lo and behold, there it is in the Malwarebytes quarantine again. Without the software, I'd be right back.

Thank you very much for pointing it out!

You might need MalwareBytes to completely eradicate it.

Don't know but right/click on the icon and select Options > Show in Finder. And it will point to whatever it is.

I don't know. It appeared while I was loading Adobe. What about you?

May be safe to assume you got a free adware or some odd browser redirect extension?

They're often included gratis with flash player downloads. 🌞

To add to K Shaffer's post, DO NOT install adobe products that you get from non-adobe sites. Always go directly to Adobe.com.

"It installed itself yesterday when I opened a regular email. "

I don't believe this, tell us what really happened. But the answer is the same, use MalwareBytes.

Same thing happened to me.

I moved the Pathbrand to the trash and emptied it.

3 days later, PathBrand reappeared and took over my mouse.

Concerned about this, as I thought I was on ADOBE's page.

If you got there from a link in an email or another site it is suspect. Always www dot adobe dot com in your browser or do a google search for adobe.

how do I uninstall PathBrand?

Etrecheck stands a good chance of showing you it's hidden files, There is also Malwarebytes…

https://www.malwarebytes.com/mac/