Almost every antivirus software for Mac OS X eats all available ram during scan!

[bernuli]

I have tried Sophos, Avast!, ClamXav, and Bitdefender. Each when I run a scan they take my Ram from 12GB to Near 0. And the ram remains gone once the scan is complete until I either restart or use a memory cleaner app. The only one that didn't do this was Webroot ($30 yearly) trial I used. Strangely there is not much on the web about this. I would think more would be screaming to the heavens about such atrocities. Do you all see the same behavior when using any of the above antivirus scans? Is there a fix for this? The above apps developers seem oblivious to this problem. If they all do it makes me think it may be a Mavericks issue.

OS X will keep in ram every file that gets read in, unless the application is specific about not cacheing the file(s). It will hold it until it needs ram for something else. Probably after the scan you end up with a big chunk of inactive ram, which is RAM that is available for use.


B

 

[Tech198]

What viruses on the mac are you scanning ? I'm always fishy of someone who reckons they need a mac antivirus scanner.

Mostly these antiviruses for mac products (free, or otherwise) are there only for the main purpose to scan Windows files for viruses... Manufactures or open source don't tell you this, because they want to get you into a false belief they Mac's get infected just as much as Windows does.

The truth to all this, is Mac's do get infection, but not much much because of the low market share thanks to Apple..

And yes, i believe this will never be up to the mark as PC.... I guarantee it... At least not in the next 10 years anyway.

 

[PicnicTutorials]

What viruses on the mac are you scanning ? I'm always fishy of someone who reckons they need a mac antivirus scanner.

Mostly these antiviruses for mac products (free, or otherwise) are there only for the main purpose to scan Windows files for viruses... Manufactures or open source don't tell you this, because they want to get you into a false belief they Mac's get infected just as much as Windows does.

The truth to all this, is Mac's do get infection, but not much much because of the low market share thanks to Apple..

And yes, i believe this will never be up to the mark as PC.... I guarantee it... At least not in the next 10 years anyway.

Fishy of me? lol. Just being prudent. But I'm open to suggestion so for the time being I have removed all AV on my machine.

 

[notjustjay]

You're posting an advertising article from a Mac AV seller. Why would you take their advice over Apple's own website, unless you like throwing money away and running a slow machine?

Either you've misread what I posted or you mistakenly attributed someone else's post to my name.

What I'm saying is that if a file is infected with a Windows virus -- say, an executable (.exe) trojan, a malformed JPEG or a Word document with a macro virus -- your Mac is perfectly capable of passing it from one PC to another. If this is something you worry about, then you can purchase AV software that scans for Windows malware.

Beyond that, there is no practical reason to use AV software on a Mac.

 

[GGJstudios]

20% of Macs tested were found to be carrying Windows malware
One in 36 Macs (2.7%) tested was found to be infected by Mac OS X malware

source http://nakedsecurity.sophos.com/2012/04/24/mac-malware-study/

That's BS, stated by a company who wants to sell their antivirus app, which is NOT recommended, as it can increase your Mac's vulnerability. 100% of the malware mentioned is easily avoided by practicing safe computing, with zero need for any 3rd party antivirus app.

Well I guess I found out why no one seems to care. You all don't seem to care either. Why use a AV? Because it is relevant in today's day and age. The mac isn't this obscure rare bread anymore. Which means it's targeted more and more. If you have ever been infected with a bad virus then you know better. Better safe than sorry.

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 12 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). 3rd party antivirus apps are not necessary to keep a Mac malware-free, as long as a user practices safe computing, as described in the following link.

​

Read the What security steps should I take? section of the Mac Virus/Malware FAQ for tips on practicing safe computing.

 

[DeltaMac]

Don't know if you have seen this.
Very recent comparison testing of a good variety of AV products on the Mac.
http://www.thesafemac.com/mac-anti-virus-testing-2014/
I like that a good percentage of the top performers are free products.
So, you don't have to pay out for a subscription, just to get a reasonable confidence that you can choose to scan for malware, and you can expect an accurate report.

Note in the article that Norton products still remain a poor choice for use on a Mac

Whether you consider AV products useful on a Mac, or not, it's some good information.

 

[Rampant.A.I.]

Norton is a poor choice on any platform.

 

[notjustjay]

Norton is a poor choice on any platform.

They do sometimes give good advice...

 

[Rampant.A.I.]

Not sure how much I trust an antivirus article written by an antivirus company. It also said Windows malware most likely sitting in the web cache, that not actually affecting OSX.

"Act now, and instead of the hassle of clearing your web cache, while removing issues that won't affect you at all, or anyone who isn't a damn idiot and running AntiVirus on their PC! On sale for a limited time for ONLY $29.99!"

 

[saberahul]

"Act now, and instead of the hassle of clearing your web cache, while removing issues that won't affect you at all, or anyone who isn't a damn idiot and running AntiVirus on their PC! On sale for a limited time for ONLY $29.99!"

You put that statement in quotes, did you get it from their website? The english in it makes no sense so I don't really understand it…

 

[Rampant.A.I.]

It's parody. If I'm understanding this right, clearing the web cache would do the same thing as any Mac antivirus software available, and even then only to prevent transmitting a virus to a PC.

Anyone using a PC should at least be running Microsoft's free Defender.