How to Fix Safari Gets Redirected to Bing on Macbook

Feeling annoyed by the fact that the Safari browser gets redirected to Bing on your Macbook?

Google has been the most used search engine and known for giving out accurate and relevant search results.

However, there are reports that macOS users are having problems using google. Most users reported that whenever they try to search from Google’s website Safari gets redirected to Bing on Macbook, which is frustrating especially if it doesn’t produce the correct search results.

Apple is known to be safer compared to Windows in terms of virus attacks and malware. But this is not always the case. The issue on Safari being redirected to Bing all time is a case of a malware attack that prompts your browser to use Bing’s search engine instead of your preferred search engine.

Today, we are going to show you a few simple methods to help you fix problems with Safari getting redirected to Bing on Macbook.

Let’s get started!

• 1. Clear Safari’s History and Browser Cache
• 2. Remove Unwanted Extensions and Check Safari’s Homepage Settings
• 3. Remove Unwanted Applications from your Macbook
• 4. Look for Adware Generated Files on Finder
• 5. Check your Login Items
• 6. Scan your Macbook using Malwarebytes

 

1. Clear Safari’s History and Browser Cache

If your browser is behaving strangely and not working as it used to, it is a good idea to clear your browser’s history and cache. This will reset all your settings on different websites and can stop Safari from redirecting to Bing.

Follow the steps below to clear your browser’s history and cache:

1. Open Safari, then go to the menu bar, which is located at the top of your screen.
2. On the menu bar, find and open the History tab.

 

3. Under the History tab, find Clear History which is on the bottom part of the selection screen.

 

4. After clicking Clear History, A prompt will appear asking you the timeframe that you want to delete Safari’s browsing history.
5. Now, you can select your preferred time frame, which is before Safari redirects to Bing. You can also choose all history that completely clears all of your browsing histories.
6. After selecting your preferred time frame, click on Clear History, and wait for the process to finish.

 

7. Now to clear Safari’s cache, click on the Safari tab located at the upper part of your screen.
8. On the drop-down menu, click on Preferences.

 

9. In preferences, click on the Advanced tab.
10. On the bottom part of the Advanced tab, you will find “Show Develop Menu in Menu bar“. Make sure to make it checked then close the preferences menu.
11. On the menu bar, click on Develop and select Empty Caches. Restart Safari and check if the Bing redirect problem is solved.

 

 

2. Remove Unwanted Extensions and Check Safari’s Homepage Settings

Now that you have cleared your history and cache, the next thing that you should do is to check if any unnecessary extensions are installed on your browser and check Safari’s homepage settings to make sure that it is set to ‘Apple.com’.

To do this, follow the guide below:

1. On the menu bar, find the Safari tab and click it. It is placed on the upper part of your screen.
2. Under the Safari tab, click on Preferences.

 

3. On preferences, click on the Extensions tab. Here you can check the extensions installed on your browser and uninstall unwanted browser extensions that you do not recall of installing.

 

4. After uninstalling browser extensions, go to the General tab.
5. Find the text box named Homepage and make sure that you are using Apple.com or Google.com as your default page when starting Safari.

 

 

3. Remove Unwanted Applications from your Macbook

If you are still experiencing random redirects to Bing, then you can try checking if there are unnecessary applications installed on your Macbook which can be related to Bing’s search engine redirect.

To do this, follow these steps:

1. Close your browser and go to Finder.
2. On the side menu, click on Applications. This will show all the programs currently installed on your Macbook.
3. Find unwanted applications like MX player or NicePlayer. Also, uninstall apps you don’t remember installing.
4. After uninstalling unnecessary applications, restart your Macbook and see if the issue with Safari getting redirected to Bing is resolved.

 

 

4. Look for Adware Generated Files on Finder

Malware and viruses often save files on your Macbook which causes unwanted pop-ups of ads, unusual behaviour on your computer, and sometimes your Macbook may run slow due to adware and other viruses.

To check for adware generated files, follow these simple steps:

1. On your Macbook, Open Finder.
2. Click on the Go to Folder button on the navigation menu.
3. On the text box, enter /Library/LaunchAgents and click Go.

 

4. Inside the LaunchAgents folder, check the files and remove any suspicious files like installmac.AppRemoval.plist or kuklorest.update.plist. Usually, adware install files with the same end-string as (.plist).

 

 

5. Check your Login Items

In some cases, malware and viruses plant itself on login items so it can immediately start whenever you turn on your Macbook. So checking your ‘Login items’ for suspicious accounts and entries can help you in fixing redirecting issues on Safari.

Check out the guide below:

1. Go to your Macbook’s System preferences and click on Users & Groups.
2. Click on your User Account, on the middle section of the screen you will find the password and login items option. Click on login items.
3. Check every login item and remove any suspicious items on the list.

 

4. To remove suspicious items on the list, check the box on the left side of each login item and click on the “–” button below the list.

 

 

6. Scan your Macbook using Malwarebytes

If the manual configuration of your browser’s settings did not work, you might need to use some software to get rid of the redirecting issue on Safari. Malwarebytes is a useful tool for identifying malicious files and programs installed on your Macbook.

To scan your Macbook using Malwarebytes, follow the steps below:

1. Firstly, download Malwarebytes for macOS.
2. After downloading Malwarebytes, install the software on your Macbook.
3. Launch Malwarebytes software. A user agreement form will pop-up. Read it carefully and click on Agree.

 

4. Now, on the main page, click on Scan. This will initiate a system check of your Macbook.

 

5. Wait for the scan to complete and restart your computer.

After doing all the methods above, you can try to restart your Macbook and see if the issue is fixed. Luckily this bing redirect issue is common on mac users, and the solution for it is quite simple.

Keep in mind that Bing is a legitimate search engine. But, some hackers use Bing’s brand name to potentially trick users into installing unwanted programs onto their Macbooks. Bing is also a good search engine but not at the same level compared to Google.

If you have any questions, please leave a comment below, and we will try to help you out as long as we can. Also, if you have any suggestions or know another workaround to fix this issue, then let us know, and we will credit in this article the next time we update it. 

 

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