Pop-ups can be ads, notices, offers, or other alerts that open over or under your browser window, in another tab, or in your current window. Some pop-ups use tactics—like warnings or prizes—to trick you into believing they’re from Apple or another trusted company, so you’ll share personal or financial information. Others might claim to offer free downloads, software updates, or plugins, to try to trick you into installing unwanted software. Unless you’re confident of an ad’s legitimacy, you should avoid interacting with pop-ups or webpages that seem to take over your screen.
Here are additional tips that can help you manage pop-ups and other unwanted interruptions. If you see pop-ups on your Mac that just won’t go away, you might have inadvertently downloaded and installed adware (advertising-supported software) or other unwanted software. Certain third-party download sites might include programs that you don’t want with the software that you install. If you think that you might have malware or adware on your Mac, update to the of macOS. If your Mac is already running the latest version, restart it.