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MetalFace

macrumors member
Original poster
Mar 10, 2007
34
2
On yerrr mac?

quite a new convert from windows and well wondering is there any need as macs are gettin more popular by the minute so i guess more malware will be appearing withit and if so whats worth getting etc. etc.
 
Right now ant-virus programs for macs scan for windows viruses, in case you may send a file to an unprotected PC. There are NO viruses that affect OS X and unless you send files to unprotected PCs, there is no point, as they will just slow down your lovely, virus-free mac...
 
I do not use it but if there are mac users in my department, I do install Sophos on those machines. I guess its University rule that campus machines have anti virus installed even if it is a Mac.
 
I'm still using Virex version 7.2. This was offered when I got my dotmac account some years ago. I've never upgraded to a higher version, although I do update the definitions once per month. I do this as a courtesy / precaution for my windows-using brothers and sisters. On occasion, I'll scan my system with it, but nothing has ever been turned up. Apple stopped their support for MacAfee Virex (and its inclusion in dotmac membership) some time ago. Just as well, as the latest versions of Virex have been known to slow down systems and wreak other havoc. They keep adding stuff that no one wants or asked for.

Many Mac users swear by the free BSD package, ClamXav. Most people say the price is right, and it simply works the way it should, without a lot of extra nonsense. I'll probably go with that on my next Mac.

As noted, most companies, the government, and college / university IT departments mandate that each and every computer on the network must have anti-virus protection, regardless of what operating system it's running.
 
I do not but a guy at work who I convinced to buy a mac bought two anti-virus programs and he thinks I am stupid for not having one myself.
 
I just started using clamXav because i really dont want to send malware to my friends. i also run avg on my windows partition.:p
 
Right now ant-virus programs for macs scan for windows viruses, in case you may send a file to an unprotected PC. There are NO viruses that affect OS X and unless you send files to unprotected PCs, there is no point, as they will just slow down your lovely, virus-free mac...

I just started using clamXav because i really dont want to send malware to my friends.

For me, I don't run anti-virus/virus detectors on my MacBook because it shouldn't be my responsibility to protect other PC users. They should be protecting themselves with their own anti-virus software.
 
quite a new convert from windows and well wondering is there any need as macs are gettin more popular by the minute so i guess more malware will be appearing withit

I know some people say that, but consider that several years ago, the marketshare was somewhere around 3% or so, and now it's 6%, and yet the number of actual viruses is still zero. Surely there have been one or two malware writers in those millions of new users? What is it going to take before people start admitting that yeah, OS X is just more secure?

--Eric
 
The common perception is the reason Macs do not get viruses is due to their small marketshare. I do not accept this as gospel. Sounds like MS anti-switcher propaganda to me. I worked in Unix (Solaris, Free BSD) for 5+ years. I know that it would take a very technically advanced person to crack just basic Unix security. If the Unix system is set-up very well, it is damned near impossible. So, that excludes all of the pimply-faced types. That leaves the professionals.

The amount of work it would take to develop a successful Unix exploit would not be worth the effort, because it would just be closed the minute it was discovered. MS is ripe for picking and is rather disorganized. That is where the enticement lies.

So, I do not think it is the marketshare that makes Unix relatively safe, rather it is inherently difficult to exploit, would only pay very short dividends, and there is a much more lucrative target elsewhere.
 
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