(In a separate test, I installed Java using the latest version of Safari, where it behaved in a similar fashion.)Īs with its Windows counterpart, the Java installer selects the option to install the Ask app by default. In my tests on a Mac running that latest release of OS X, the installer added an app to the current browser, Chrome version 41. The unwelcome Ask extension shows up as part of the installer if a Mac user downloads Java 8 Update 40 for the Mac. With the latest release of Java for the Mac, Oracle has begun bundling the Ask adware with default installations as well, changing homepages in the process.

For several years, Oracle has been bundling the Ask toolbar with its Java software for Windows PCs, often using deceptive methods to convince customers to install the unwanted add-on.