Antivirus

[rogo43]

Hey
I got a job in Antarctica and they have strict requirements for personal computers and require everyone to have antivirus.

What is a good antivirus software for mac? I will have a brand new MPB with 16gb Ram, 512 GB SSD and 2.9 GHZ i7.

I want a very basic antivirus that isn't gonna eat up my system resources.

Thanks

[simsaladimbamba]

ClamXav will suffice.

Currently there are zero viruses affecting Mac OS X in public circulation, but there are other kinds of malware existing, that can infect your Mac.
To learn more about malware in Mac OS X and what steps can be taken to protect yourself, read the following F.A.Q.:

Mac Virus/Malware Info by GGJstudios

[maflynn]

ClamXav is free, I don't run an antivirus on my mac so I can't help you on a "good one". I'd go with the least intrusive app that allows you to live within the letter of the law so to speak.

[rogo43]

Originally Posted by maflynn

ClamXav is free, I don't run an antivirus on my mac so I can't help you on a "good one". I'd go with the least intrusive app that allows you to live within the letter of the law so to speak.

Yea I don't run Antivirus on any of the 5 Macs I have at home, but they require something when you go down to the research facilities down there.

I definitely want the least intrusive one available.

[jdblas69]

Maybe take a look at this

http://arstechnica.com/apple/2012/05...s-for-the-mac/

BTW I have run avast on one my windows machines the past couple years has worked well.

Stay warm

[designs216]

Off topic but what sort of work will you be doing in Antarctica?

[ideal.dreams]

It's a shame that your employer is ignorant to the fact that there are zero viruses that affect OS X in the wild.

[GGJstudios]

Originally Posted by rogo43

I want a very basic antivirus that isn't gonna eat up my system resources.

As others have said, 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.

Be sure you practice safe computing, including the following:

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. If you're running Mountain Lion, check your Gatekeeper settings in System Preferences > Security & Privacy > General > Allow applications downloaded from. For more information on these settings: OS X: About Gatekeeper
   
   
7. Never let someone else have access to install anything on your Mac.
   
   
8. Don't open files that you receive from unknown or untrusted sources.
   
   
9. 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.
   
   
10. 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.

Mac Virus/Malware FAQ

[rogo43]

Originally Posted by designs216

Off topic but what sort of work will you be doing in Antarctica?

There is a huge Research Station. Roughly 1500 people and lots of buildings, planes, ships, etc.

Ill be working as a Firefighter

http://www.antarcticfire.org/index.html

[Shrink]

Originally Posted by jdblas69

Stay warm up there!!

Antarctica....UP there...

[gorskiegangsta]

Get an on-demand scanner such as Virus Barrier, ClamXav, or iAntivirus to make them satisfied.

Since there are no active viruses for OS X, and that AV software is largely ineffective against rarely surfacing OS X malware, as of now there's no reason to have realtime AV software running on OS X.

[simsaladimbamba]

Originally Posted by gorskiegangsta

Get an on-demand scanner such as Virus Barrier, ClamXav, or iAntivirus to make them satisfied.

iAntiVirus is bogus: http://forums.macrumors.com/showpost...2&postcount=15
And VirusBarrier is probably ***** too: http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1417897

ClamXAV is all one needs for non-invasive AV protection.

[gorskiegangsta]

Originally Posted by simsaladimbamba

iAntiVirus is bogus: http://forums.macrumors.com/showpost...2&postcount=15
And VirusBarrier is probably ***** too: http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1417897

ClamXAV is all one needs for non-invasive AV protection.

Yes, you're absolutely right about iAntivirus! For some reason I thought iAntivirus was another OS X port of ClamAV. I just now noticed that it's a Norton product, who I've been burned by (on Windows) numerous times.

The MAS version of VirusBarrier Pro is excellent. I use it because I send/receive lots of files to/from Windows machines and it is quite effective. Intego's other, "realtime" VirusBarrier X5 is absolute ****, since it needlessly consumes system resources, slowing down the system and running the battery down. Also, it's 100% useless at detecting the sparse OS X malware.

[munkery]

There are no demonstrated methods to bypass the runtime security mitigations in Mac OS X Lion/ML. For example, Safari on a Mac running Lion wasn't compromised at the most recent pwn2own. So, malware that installs via remote exploitation is not an issue.

Mac OS X Lion/ML include Gatekeeper. Set Gatekeeper to only allow apps from the Mac App Store. This will prevent malicious apps inadvertently installed from the web by users from executing. Make sure to verify that an app is safe prior to manually bypassing the Gatekeeper restrictions.

Java has been exploited via logical errors allowing the Java sandbox to be bypassed when malicious Java applets are run from the browser. Mac OS X Lion/ML don't include Java by default and the most recent Apple provided Java no longer includes browser plugins. So, malware that installs via Java isn't an issue unless the user installs Java from Oracle. Disable Java in the browser via the Safari preferences if Java from Oracle is installed.

This basically covers all vectors in which malware is installed.

If an antivirus solution is required, install ClamXav from the Mac App Store and run weekly scans. Also, make sure to manually scan any documents sent to Windows users that have been received from potentially untrustworthy sources. Manually scanning documents is performed by secondary clicking the item to be scanned and selecting "Scan with ClamXav" from the drop down menu.

[rogo43]

Thanks for all the help guys. you have been big a help and now i can bring my MBP down to the bottom of the earth.

Thanks!

[designs216]

Originally Posted by rogo43

There is a huge Research Station. Roughly 1500 people and lots of buildings, planes, ships, etc.

Ill be working as a Firefighter

http://www.antarcticfire.org/index.html

A research station in Antarctica you say? You should all get together and screen the original John Carpenter's The Thing

[S.L.]

wish I could find four other people to go fivesies with on the VirusBarrier family deal. been doing something similar with Amazon Prime for years,

[simsaladimbamba]

Originally Posted by S.L.

wish I could find four other people to go fivesies with on the VirusBarrier family deal. been doing something similar with Amazon Prime for years,

Have you read the thread yet? Why pay for something unnecessary?