Clario Tech Limited owns MacKeeper, a macOS-only software.
You might have heard of MacKeeper because of the controversy surrounding it. Users heavily criticized the company for using aggressive affiliate marketers and false advertising.
The company also faced a class-action lawsuit in 2014 as it allegedly tried to deceive people into making payments for unneeded fixes. In the course of conducting this assessment, I discovered that the software manufacturer settled the lawsuit in 2015 and paid out claims worth $2 million.
Since then, the organization has altered its ways. It continues to offer quality services on cleaning, privacy, security, and performance by protecting computers from adware, malware, and viruses.
So far, 56+ million users in 247+ countries have downloaded MacKeeper apps.
This MacKeeper evaluation will help you determine if the software is a good fit for your needs.
Table of Contents
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The MacKeeper Features
Here is a list of main features that MacKeeper offers to its users:
Duplicate Finder
It could be that you’re suddenly running out of storage so your machine has started lagging. This feature detects any copies of files such as double downloads or similar photos which take up unnecessary space in your Mac.
When testing for this MacKeeper review, I noticed that the tools list them for you including the size and how many times they appear, even if they are under different names.
After presenting them you can manually review them to determine which ones to keep, transfer to external storage, or delete.
That way, you’ll free up more space in your hard disk. Note that the system only removes unnecessary after your confirmation.
Login Items
Your Mac device shouldn’t take so long to start up unless there’s something slowing it down. This solution does an excellent job of reducing your computer’s booting time.
It shows you all the items that launch once you hit that “on” button. From here, you can remove the apps that slow down your machine or add the necessary ones as in the login items by using the minus and a plus sign.
Smart Uninstaller
MacKeeper reviews highlight smart uninstaller as a handy tool to have.
This is why:
Merely deleting the apps from your folder isn’t enough because it leaves their components intact. MacKeeper scans your device and removes leftover apps, browser extensions, plugins, and widgets from your machine.
This helps in freeing up space and also improving your Mac’s performance.
Safe Cleanup
You can use this tool to scan your hard disk including caches, logs, languages, and trash. It also lists all the junk folders and files present in your storage, together with their sizes.
Track My Mac
“Track My Mac” is not a default feature in the program. You have to turn it on manually to get the basic anti-theft protection. It works by enabling location tracking, allowing you to find your device when you log in to your MacKeeper account.
You can configure this feature to take a picture of anyone who tries to log in to your Mac with a wrong password. By default, the company has set it to take a snapshot after each error.
However, you can change the setting so that it waits for a second, fourth, or even tenth failed login attempt. Photos appear on both your online account and your device. The Track My Mac also allows you to configure a keystroke that would make the lock screen appear quickly.
Note that MacKeeper plans to discontinue this service as of 1st June 2021.
The good news is that you’ll still be able to find your machine via “Find my App.” It’s an inbuilt feature, so you don’t need to install it.
ID Theft Guard
Protect yourself from identity theft using this solution. If you are wondering if a data breach has exposed your email account, you can find out by using the “ID Theft Guard.”
Note that, you can’t just use any email address. To use the scanner, you would have to add in the confirmation code that the program has sent to the particular email address that you used to register.
MacKeeper scan results show you the entire list of accounts that hackers might have gotten access to. It also provides you with an option to see specific passwords with issues.
You can then change them to enhance your security and mark each as secured in this app. You can set MacKeeper to continually monitor the email address and send you instant reports regarding any data leaks.
Private Connect VPN
The MacKeeper application also includes an integrated VPN for a secure connection especially if you use public Wi-Fi.
Here is what this platform can do for you:
The minute you switch on your internet via the VPN, it encrypts all your sensitive data which then travels through a safe tunnel to a server of choice. That prevents anyone from snooping around your web traffic.
Additionally, all the requests that you make through your internet connection will appear to come from the server instead of your own IP address. This hides you from any trackers trying to find your location.
With it, you can securely make payments to your bank. Shopping from anywhere also becomes a breeze without the worry that hackers might gain access to your financial details.
This VPN will also give you access to the content that isn’t available in your region, for instance, TV shows or websites. The available servers list is based on the distance from your current location, instead of giving you an option to select the country alphabetically.
As at the time of doing this review of MacKeeper it had 296 locations in 50 countries. Note that all the sites are physical rather than virtual to avoid compromising on speed.
The locations include South America and Africa, which are most privacy companies underserve. There are also servers available in countries that are not VPN-friendly, including Turkey, Russia, and China.
MacKeeper utilizes military-grade encryption. That means the top of the range technology such as AES-256.
In other words, hackers have no chance of trying to break into the top-notch algorithm.
There’s more:
This tool is flexible in terms of connection. You can set it to automatic or manual connectivity.
Update Tracker
While doing this MacKeeper review I realized that the software tracks updates for you. It categorizes this feature as a performance enhancer. However, it is more of a security tool.
Security researchers are continuously creating and releasing patches to fix up holes and breaches. Not applying those security patches compromises your Mac.
This update tracker updates the system every five minutes. It conducts a four-part scan and installs any necessary updates automatically to fix the problems. You can also run this function separately.
Antivirus
MacKeeper is a fully functional and real-time antivirus tool.bt You can use it to detect malware and malicious files.
If you’re worried that someone might be spying on you via your camera or mic this solution can help. The MacKeeper virus scan will alert you right away in case of such occurrences.
This feature also shows you all items in quarantine. Therefore, it gives you the chance to review them in case some of the files that have undergone disinfection contain important data. You can restore them again from this special storage.
Adware Cleaner
While writing this MacKeeper software review, I discovered that this tool aims to identify and remove malicious software that could attack your system with apps.
Mac has sufficient security to ensure no adware enters your operating system, as long as you stay clear of pirated content. The best thing about it is that it sends you alerts every time it spots a suspicious program.
Memory Cleaner
If you have memory-hogging apps Mackeeper will help you manage the situation better. The “Memory Cleaner” unloads the RAM and helps in speeding up the performance of your machine.
However, note that this app is only useful if there is only 4GB Ram in your system. In addition, you must have multiple tabs opened on Google Chrome.
On-Demand Experts
MacKeeper understands that not everyone can be a techie, the same way everyone can’t be a doctor or artist. The company has experts to help you troubleshoot any issues regarding the software.
I tried out the service before writing this Mackeeper remote assistance review.
It was nothing short of outstanding. The team is available on standby 24/7 and they are great.
Shredder
This feature works in the same way as the Smart Uninstall. If there are files in your Mac that you want to permanently delete, then this tool will remove them and make them non-recoverable.
*Note that this feature isn’t present in the Mac 5 generation. It only works on gen 3, 10.13, and below.
How Much Does MacKeeper Cost?
There are various plans and pricing of MacKeeper to choose from.
Firstly, there is an option to use the software for free, but it only allows you to do a “Find and Fix”
However, if you want to use features like Memory Cleaner or integrated VPN, and more you’ll have to subscribe to a premium account.
Unfortunately, MacKeeper doesn’t offer a trial version r You can only clean or uninstall apps or junk once before switching to the paid version.
The good news is:
The company offers a 14-day money-back guarantee in all of its plans. If you exceed the 14 days, then you may be able to get a partial refund, depending on how many days you used the software.
Now, let’s have a look at the pricing and plans of MacKeeper:
- One Month Plan: The MacKeeper basic plan starts at $14.95/month. This is a one-month plan and is monthly billed.
- Six Month Plan: This plan starts at $9.94/month and is billed every six months.
- Twelve Month Plan: This plan starts at $7.95/month and is annually billed.
- Twenty-Four Month Plan: This plan starts at $4.95/month and is billed every two years.
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Customer Support
MacKeeper’s client support is fantastic. You have the option to contact them through live chat on their website, email them your concerns, or call them via the phone. All channels are available 24/7 and the reps reply very fast and offer competent help.
How to Delete MacKeeper?
Many users have complained about how hard it is to uninstall this software, and that led to plenty of negative customer reviews. However, it looks like the company has learned a lot from its previous mistakes.
It has been making changes to satisfy the customers, and the recent version of MacKeeper is not as tricky to uninstall. After those negative comments, MacKeepers now a step-by-step guide to delete the app from your Mac on their website.
However, before proceeding further, it is essential to note that all the files and folders you have had encrypted through this software will not open once you uninstall this app.
To regain access to those files and folders, you would have to re-install the software and decrypt everything before you uninstall MacKeeper again.
Therefore, make sure you decrypt your files and folders before you start following these steps.
Removing MacKeeper Icon from Menu Bar
On the menu bar of your Mac, there won’t be a quit command when clicking on the MacKeeper menu. This might make you believe you can’t quit. Even trying to force-quit it won’t work. To remove the icon from the menu bar, follow these steps:
- Start MacKeeper from the application folder.
- Click the menu bar of the software and choose preferences.
- Select the General tab.
- Now, find the ‘show MacKeeper icon in the menu bar’ and uncheck the box.
Uninstalling MacKeeper
Here are the simple steps for MacKeeper removal from your Mac:
- Start by quitting the MacKeeper application.
- Open the application folder.
- Click on MacKeeper and drag it to the trash can.
- The system might prompt you to add the administrator password. Simply enter it and select okay.
- MacKeeper software will be moved to the trash can.
- The screen will show you another pop-up, just like the administrator password one. It will ask you if you are sure you want to remove or uninstall this app.
- You will have to enter the password again and click okay.
These steps will remove the software from your Mac.
Is the MacKeeper Legit?
To be completely honest this macOS security software hasn’t had a very good history.
Lots of clients accused the company of leaking data, spamming, and deceiving users to pay for upgrades in the past.
Since then, a lot of people have wondered if MacKeeper is actually a virus.
Understandably so.
It’s not.
According to ESET Nod32 and Malwarebytes, MacKeeper is a Potentially Unwanted Program (PUP). However, it is unclear whether both of the antivirus software classified MacKeeper as PUP before it was launched or if they maintain their rating even now.
Mac users have all been familiar with the alleged MacKeeper scam. It had a reputation for being scareware, which means that the free version highlighted fake issues to scare the users into paying for fixing it. The company also faced a lawsuit because of this and their aggressive affiliates.
However, there has been some light on the horizon since Clario acquired the software. The company has been focusing on fixing the bad reputation of the tools.
Here’s some exciting news that I discovered while writing this review on MacKeeper.
In 2019, MacKeeper obtained the prestigious AppEsteem certification.
It’s essential to note that only brands that have completely cleaned up their history of using deceptive practices get this certification.
This is what that means for the consumer:
It protects you by eliminating deceptive practices by app manufacturers. In other words, it serves as a watchdog to make sure that vendors only release clean apps into the market.
Even better:
The MacKeeper ratings have slightly improved since then since there has been a reduction in the rough affiliates. That only means one thing – the scareware behavior has gone away as well.
Verdict
All in all, MacKeeper is a dependable software with lots of fantastic features. It gives you privacy, security and cleans your Mac for extra space which is beyond any average antivirus software.
MacKeeper security removes malware, detects spyware as well as ransomware. AVG test labs have tested MacKeeper for virus, malware, and other protection abilities and awarded it a score of 13/18.
This software is more expensive than many of the best antivirus software programs. However, it tops most software in this category with its robust features.
Additionally, the tool’s StopAd, ID Theft Guard, and VPN offer you security throughout your online browsing.
Overall, after testing for this MacKeeper antivirus review, I can say the software is an excellent option. However, if you want password management tools and firewalls, then this antivirus is not for you.
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