What is Best AntiVirus for Mountain Lion?

Common sense. Mostly. Free edition.

I have ClamXAV set to scan my downloads folder. Its invisible and lightweight, i don't notice it.

Give it a go (as you say, its free!) and set it to monitor certain folders, and your mail.

the best AV for Mac OS X...

the OS itself (UNIX) and good security practice by the human(s) who use it.

Don't most companies like Yahoo or Gmail already scan for viruses (email attachments).

dfine1966 said:

Before anyone says it is not needed. I do a lot of interactions with other people who have Window's computer. I really don't want to send files or emails to them and infect them. Plus, I do want piece of mind, especially that there are more virus attacks lately on the Mac then there ever has been.

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There have been exactly zero virus attacks on Mac OS X. Macs are not immune to malware, but no true viruses exist in the wild that can run on Mac OS X, and there never have been any since it was released over 10 years ago. The only malware in the wild that can affect Mac OS X is a handful of trojans, which can be easily avoided by practicing safe computing (see below). Also, Mac OS X Snow Leopard and Lion have anti-malware protection built in, further reducing the need for 3rd party antivirus apps.

1. Make sure your built-in Mac firewall is enabled in System Preferences > Security > Firewall
   
   
2. Uncheck "Open "safe" files after downloading" in Safari > Preferences > General
   
   
3. Disable Java in your browser (Safari, Chrome, Firefox). This will protect you from malware that exploits Java in your browser, including the recent Flashback trojan. Leave Java disabled until you visit a trusted site that requires it, then re-enable only for the duration of your visit to that site. (This is not to be confused with JavaScript, which you should leave enabled.)
   
   
4. Change your DNS servers to OpenDNS servers by reading this.
   
   
5. Be careful to only install software from trusted, reputable sites. Never install pirated software. If you're not sure about an app, ask in this forum before installing.
   
   
6. Never let someone else have access to install anything on your Mac.
   
   
7. Don't open files that you receive from unknown or untrusted sources.
   
   
8. For added security, make sure all network, email, financial and other important passwords are long and complex, including upper and lower case letters, numbers and special characters.
   
   
9. Always keep your Mac and application software updated. Use Software Update for your Mac software. For other software, it's safer to get updates from the developer's site or from the menu item "Check for updates", rather than installing from any notification window that pops up while you're surfing the web.

That's all you need to do to keep your Mac completely free of any Mac OS X malware that has ever been released into the wild. While you may elect to use it, 3rd party antivirus software is not required to keep your Mac malware-free.

If you still want to run antivirus for some reason, ClamXav (which is free) is one of the best choices, since it isn't a resource hog, detects both Mac and Windows malware and doesn't run with elevated privileges. You can run scans when you choose, rather than leaving it running all the time, slowing your system. ClamXav has a Sentry feature which, if enabled, will use significant system resources to constantly scan. Disable the Sentry feature. You don't need it. Also, when you first install ClamXav, as with many antivirus apps, it may perform an initial full system scan, which will consume resources. Once the initial scan is complete, periodic on-demand scans will have much lower demands on resources.

I recommend that you avoid using Sophos, as it could actually increase your Mac's vulnerability, as described here and here.

iAntiVirus has a bogus malware definitions list, making their detection accuracy untrustworthy. They also make inaccurate claims about the existence of Mac malware, in order to hype the need for their product. This post will give details.

C.G.B. Spender said:

Common sense. Mostly. Free edition.

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voidpresence said:

the best AV for Mac OS X...

the OS itself (UNIX) and good security practice by the human(s) who use it.

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Try and help the guy out buy making a suggestion from his shortlist.

ClamXAV would be recommendation.

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taedouni said:

Don't most companies like Yahoo or Gmail already scan for viruses (email attachments).

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This is true.

charlieegan3 said:

Try and help the guy out buy making a suggestion from his shortlist.


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This is true.

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I did. If some rare malware then Apple will deal with it (OS has tools in place for that), on the other hand if you like to clean windows viruses and malware for your PC friends then maybe you could use some antivirus.

Weaselboy said:

Which is exactly what the OP said.

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My bad.

C.G.B. Spender said:

I did. If some rare malware then Apple will deal with it (OS has tools in place for that), on the other hand if you like to clean windows viruses and malware for your PC friends then maybe you could use some antivirus.

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EDIT; I read you post ^, sorry

So help the OP by suggesting one of those, rather than no antivirus at all.

revs said:

I have ClamXAV set to scan my downloads folder. Its invisible and lightweight, i don't notice it.

Give it a go (as you say, its free!) and set it to monitor certain folders, and your mail.

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Yep ClamXAV is the way to go. I do the same you describe.

dfine1966 said:

So everyone is suggesting ClamXav. So this does everything I need, not interfering with Mountain Lion, good protection for email and web, files etc.

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Yes, if you want to run antivirus, it's the best choice. Also, be sure to read What about sending files to Windows users? from the Mac Virus/Malware FAQ

It looks like it's not you who needs the anti-virus but your friends.

I am pretty sure OS X already has antivirus built in. I don't mean the extra security benefits of using UNIX, I mean there's actually Apple-created software that focuses on anti-virus for OS X.

Panini said:

It looks like it's not you who needs the anti-virus but your friends.

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Read the original post. That's exactly what the OP is asking about.

I've previously tried both ClamX and Sophos in the past but unfortunately both slowed down my machine, particularly when handing archive files (.rar, .zip, etc).

tbn002 said:

I've previously tried both ClamX and Sophos in the past but unfortunately both slowed down my machine, particularly when handing archive files (.rar, .zip, etc).

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Read my first post in this thread, where I talk about both of those apps.

I would recommend Sophos or Kaspersky... they are top-shelf AV products that are updated frequently (and rapidly) by companies that have full time analysts monitoring new threats. Lots of companies depend on Sophos or Kaspersky every day. You won't find many organizations using ClamAV.

VirtualRain said:

I would recommend Sophos or Kaspersky.

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Sophos is not recommended. See my first post.

GGJstudios said:

Sophos is not recommended. See my first post.

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Yeah, not by you.

VirtualRain said:

Yeah, not by you.

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Not by many, especially those who understand that it can increase your Mac's vulnerability.

Sophos is recommended by the company that created it. nobody else.

mentaluproar said:

Sophos is recommended by the company that created it. nobody else.

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Exactly. Including by VirtualRain, who works for Sophos.

Actually there have been a few viruses for mac in the past.

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/...ter-virus-indicates-mac-users-no-longer-safe/