Stop Smart.bytemarkup.xyz redirects

Smart.bytemarkup.xyz is a questionable website that displays various scams. Currently, it’s promoting a tech-support scam. When you get redirected to the site, you will see a “Windows Security Recommendation!” window that says you should download McAfee anti-virus in order to clean your computer. If you engage with this scam, you would eventually be redirected to a tech-support scam. It should be mentioned that McAfee has nothing to do with these scams, its name is merely misused by scammers. These scam pop-ups are harmless as long as you do not interact with them. However, victims who fall for this scam can end up losing hundreds of dollars.

 

 

Tech-support scams are often promoted on questionable websites like Smart.bytemarkup.xyz. As soon as you are redirected to this site, you will be greeted with an image imitating a legitimate Windows alert. The fake alert informs you that you should clean up your computer of junk programs after browsing the Internet. The fake alert will recommend that you install McAfee Internet Security by clicking “Start Instant Cleanup!”. McAfee is a legitimate anti-virus program but as we said already, the legitimate program has nothing to do with this scam. If you engage with this scam, you will be asked to type in your phone number, full name, and email address in order to “register your McAfee anti-virus to remove virus”. Supposedly, providing this information will give you a 1-year license. If you continue to engage with the scam, you will be taken to another window that asks you to call the shown phone number to “instantly activate your anti-virus”.

According to the new window (shown above), if you were to call the number, McAfee’s customer support would install and set up the program. They recommend assisted installation because the technicians would take care of everything. They mention that you can install and set up the program yourself but they don’t recommend the option. They correctly say that you would need to enter the license key but since you didn’t actually buy a McAfee subscription, you don’t have the license key. This would force victims who believe this whole thing to be legitimate to call the phone number.

If you were to call, you would be connected to professional scammers pretending to be legitimate McAfee technicians. They would pressure you to allow them remote access to your computer so they can supposedly set up the anti-virus program. If they get remote access, they will pretend to set up the program but will potentially steal your files/information and/or set a password for your computer. Once they’re done going through their script, the scammers will ask that you pay a couple of hundred dollars for the license and their services. If you refuse to pay and they have password-locked your computer, they would refuse to give you the password unless you agree to pay. If you want to see what these kinds of tech-support scams look like, there are a lot of videos on YouTube showing just that.

Tech-support scams are very common and they all follow a similar pattern. They first inform you that there’s an issue with your computer (e.g. virus, anti-virus license renewal, etc.) and then ask you to call tech support to get help. Even when the scammers operating these scams are not the same people, they follow more or less identical scripts in their scams. Fortunately for users, these scams are very easy to recognize. The biggest giveaway is a phone number. Whenever you come across a pop-up warning you about something and it has a pop-up, it’s a guaranteed scam. No legitimate company, such as McAfee, will ever show pop-ups like the ones displayed above and ask you to call the provided phone number. Furthermore, you should never trust alerts about issues on your computer if they appear in your browser. Your browser will never display legitimate virus or other issue alerts.

There are a couple of reasons why you could be redirected to Smart.bytemarkup.xyz and shown a tech-support scam. Either you were browsing a high-risk website and clicked on something, or your computer has some kind of infection installed. Adware is usually responsible for random redirects.

Random redirects may be a sign of adware

Depending on how often you get redirected, either your computer is infected with adware or you browse high-risk websites. In most cases, it’s the latter. If you browse high-risk websites on a regular basis without having an adblocker program installed on your device, you’ll be redirected all the time. We strongly suggest getting an adblocker because not only would it block redirects but also other intrusive ads and pop-ups.

If you’re redirected on a regular basis, your computer may be infected with adware. It’s not a serious infection, more of an annoyance than anything. These kinds of infections are usually installed via free software bundling. In short, the adware can come attached to free software as an extra offer. These extra offers are permitted to install alongside automatically without requiring explicit permission from users. The offers are technically optional but they need to be manually deselected to prevent their installation. Most users are unable to do that simply because they don’t notice them since the offers are hidden.

To correctly install free programs, you need to pay attention to the process. Most importantly, you need to opt for Advanced (Custom) settings when given the option instead of Default. Default settings will conceal all offers and allow their automatic installation. If you opt for Advanced settings, however, you will make all offers visible. You will also be given the option to deselect everything that’s been added. We always recommend deselecting all offers because otherwise, you will quickly fill your computer with junk.

Smart.bytemarkup.xyz removal

If you’re redirected to random websites on a regular basis, your computer may be infected with adware. The easiest way to remove Smart.bytemarkup.xyz adware would be to use anti-virus software like WiperSoft. Adware can be a pretty persistent infection and difficult to get rid of manually, so the use of anti-virus software is usually recommended. You should also install an adblocker program to block redirects when you’re browsing high-risk websites.