Does anyone here actually use antivirus for their MacBook Air?

[NewbieToMacs]

Does anyone here actually use antivirus for their MacBook Air?

I know at the Apple store the sales reps are taught to say "macs don't need antivirus", but is that really true? I figure that the low marketshare (compared to PCs) is the main reason people say there isn't much motivation for hackers to write Mac exploits but given the rising popularity of the platform and growing user base I would assume that there are more and more instances of Mac exploits either here or on the way?

If you do use antivirus, please say which one and if it negatively affects your Macbook Airs performance or battery life.

Thank you.

 

[cbautis2]

You should but I don't since I've got Firefox with NoScript and no java installed those three alone makes mac os x immune to online browser hijacks. For phishing sites, I use WebOfTrust to check.

 

[GGJstudios]

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

I figure that the low marketshare (compared to PCs) is the main reason people say there isn't much motivation for hackers to write Mac exploits but given the rising popularity of the platform and growing user base I would assume that there are more and more instances of Mac exploits either here or on the way?.

The marketshare myth has been debunked many times. The fact is, there were viruses and much more malware in the wild that affected OS 9 and earlier versions, when Macs had a much smaller market share and installed base. Now that the market share has grown significantly, the number of viruses has decreased to zero, and the only malware in the wild is a handful of Trojans, which are easily avoided.

 

[NewbieToMacs]

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.

Thank you for the guide and your knowledge GGJstudios

Your answer makes me feel much more at ease. Coming from a lifetime of PCs it's hard to shake old habits of fear

So glad I ended up going Mac!

 

[GGJstudios]

Thank you for the guide GGJstudios

Your answer makes me feel much more at ease. Coming from a lifetime of PCs it's hard to shake old habits of fear

So glad I ended up going Mac!

This may be useful:

Helpful Information for Any Mac User​

 

[NewbieToMacs]

This may be useful:

Helpful Information for Any Mac User​

Yes, it definitely will be! I was looking for a comprehensive Mac info page just like that.

Time to get out the candle and start reading

Thanks again.

 

[Mrbobb]

No antivirus nor software firewall here. I run my Mac unemcumbent by any lead weight. I do have a hardware firewall at home.

 

[GGJstudios]

No antivirus nor software firewall here. I run my Mac unemcumbent by any lead weight. I do have a hardware firewall at home.

OS X has a built-in firewall that doesn't impede performance. It's a good idea to enable it, especially if you use your Mac on public Wi-Fi networks.

 

[M0V3M3N7]

OS X has a built-in firewall that doesn't impede performance. It's a good idea to enable it, especially if you use your Mac on public Wi-Fi networks.

@GGJ - I've always run mine enabled, because I assumed it made sense - but do you know why they ship macs with it disabled? There must be some reasoning?

 

[GGJstudios]

@GGJ - I've always run mine enabled, because I assumed it made sense - but do you know why they ship macs with it disabled? There must be some reasoning?

I've never seen any official statement from Apple, but I would guess they want to make sure that a user's first experience isn't hindered at all, or that they don't get pop-up messages from the firewall when they first launch apps. It doesn't make sense to me, but that would be my guess.

 

[M0V3M3N7]

I've never seen any official statement from Apple, but I would guess they want to make sure that a user's first experience isn't hindered at all, or that they don't get pop-up messages from the firewall when they first launch apps. It doesn't make sense to me, but that would be my guess.

Ok, thanks

 

[mattferg]

My attitude is that although OS X is less likely to encounter a virus than Windows is, Viruses for Mac are still out there, and OS X has been shown time and time again to be 10000000000x more vulnerable to viruses than Windows is (if there were the same number for both platforms).

As such I run an antivirus and the firewall. Best be safe than sorry

 

[GGJstudios]

My attitude is that although OS X is less likely to encounter a virus than Windows is, Viruses for Mac are still out there

That's not true. There has never been a single OS X virus in the wild. There are Trojans, which can easily be avoided by practicing safe computing, but no viruses.

 

[GSPice]

lol never have

 

[mattferg]

That's not true. There has never been a single OS X virus in the wild. There are Trojans, which can easily be avoided by practicing safe computing, but no viruses.

Yes, it is. The difference between a trojan and a virus is that trojans do not replicate themselves. There have been a few replicating viruses for OS X in the past few years, Google it dear

 

[Mr Rabbit]

I've been running OS X as my primary OS for well over 10 years now (since 10.2) and have never installed any sort of anti-virus. No problems whatsoever.

Same goes for my professional environment where I admin roughly 150 Macs. None are running anti-virus and we've had no issues related to malware of any sort.

 

[GGJstudios]

Yes, it is. The difference between a trojan and a virus is that trojans do not replicate themselves. There have been a few replicating viruses for OS X in the past few years, Google it dear

That's not the only criteria for determining a virus. Read the link I posted earlier to educate yourself on the difference. Name one OS X virus.

 

[mattferg]

That's not the only criteria for determining a virus. Read the link I posted earlier to educate yourself on the difference. Name one OS X virus.

MachoMan.
http://www.technewsdaily.com/18269-mac-osx-virus.html
Funny thing about this one too is that the exploit is 7 years old and still isn't patched.

I can't believe Mac owners are still this naive about viruses and vulnerabilities in OS X after all this time. Macs don't get viruses because they have such a small marketshare. It has nothing to do with OS X being more secure or safer than Windows, and is entirely down to hackers devoting time and energy into coding viruses which work on the largest common factor: Windows.

An anti-virus software package doesn't just block/deal with viruses, it blocks malware and trojans too, and as such is a great thing to have. More and more malware is being discovered for Mac (which is ironic as their marketshare is decreasing).

Time and time again we've seen at hackathons Macs get 'broken' far, far faster than Windows or Ubuntu does. Macs aren't secure at all, they're just far less targeted. Be safe and use an anti-virus package, to do otherwise is just ignorant and arrogant.

Or do Mac users not remember THIS:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/03/29/ubuntu_left_standing/
Beaten by Vista.

 

[hindmost]

Does anyone here actually use antivirus for their MacBook Air?'

Not so much as I've not had virus issues since OSX came out.

However, 'free' is a good price and Norton provides an app called 'iAntivirus' which is a free malware and virus scanner touted to protect Mac users against a variety of threats. It also allows users to scan their Facebook Wall (Facebook account required) for malicious links.

I have no relationship with Norton whatsoever and am merely an infrequent user to run rare checks on my several Macs. Also, I do not visit social internet sites as I sense they are mainly 'personal data mining' bots that exploit users with endless redirections and mindless commercials.

 

[GGJstudios]

http://www.technewsdaily.com/18269-mac-osx-virus.html
Funny thing about this one too is that the exploit is 7 years old and still isn't patched.

You should read the articles you link to. As clearly stated in that article, that exploit has never appeared in the wild, so it presents zero threat to Mac users.

I can't believe Mac owners are still this naive about viruses and vulnerabilities in OS X after all this time. Macs don't get viruses because they have such a small marketshare.

The marketshare myth has been debunked more times than I can count. It has nothing to do with market share. There were viruses and much more malware in the wild that affected OS 9 and earlier, when the market share and installed base were much smaller. As the market share has grown substantially, the number of viruses has dwindled to zero and the only OS X malware that remains in the wild is a handful of trojans, all of which are easily avoided without the need for 3rd party antivirus apps, simply by practicing safe computing.

An anti-virus software package doesn't just block/deal with viruses, it blocks malware and trojans too, and as such is a great thing to have.

100% of all OS X malware that exists in the wild can be successfully avoided by practicing safe computing, which has proven to be more effective than running any antivirus app.

Time and time again we've seen at hackathons Macs get 'broken' far, far faster than Windows or Ubuntu does. Macs aren't secure at all, they're just far less targeted.

Hacking and malware are different animals. No antivirus app protects against hacking.

Be safe and use an anti-virus package, to do otherwise is just ignorant and arrogant.

You can use an antivirus app if you want. You can even use Sophos if you want, even though it could make your Mac more vulnerable. However, it is foolish to think that any antivirus app will protect you from all malware. It has already been proven that safe computing will protect Mac users, even when antivirus apps fail to do so, as has happened in the past.

an app called 'iAntivirus' which is a free malware and virus scanner

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.

 

[26139]

no

Eh, no.

No.

 

[rochow]

I don't right now, I used to though. Not so much for me, but to prevent anything that comes through me going to someone else's computer (I get sent lots of files that I send to other people).

 

[NewbieCanada]

Now if you're going to run Windows in bootcamp or in a virtual machine then a Windows anti-virus app is in order. In my experience Microsoft's free anti-virus app is all you need. It's free and lightweight and doesn't go in for fearmongerinrrg.

 

[mattferg]

You should read the articles you link to. As clearly stated in that article, that exploit has never appeared in the wild, so it presents zero threat to Mac users.

The marketshare myth has been debunked more times than I can count. It has nothing to do with market share. There were viruses and much more malware in the wild that affected OS 9 and earlier, when the market share and installed base were much smaller. As the market share has grown substantially, the number of viruses has dwindled to zero and the only OS X malware that remains in the wild is a handful of trojans, all of which are easily avoided without the need for 3rd party antivirus apps, simply by practicing safe computing.

100% of all OS X malware that exists in the wild can be successfully avoided by practicing safe computing, which has proven to be more effective than running any antivirus app.

Hacking and malware are different animals. No antivirus app protects against hacking.

You can use an antivirus app if you want. You can even use Sophos if you want, even though it could make your Mac more vulnerable. However, it is foolish to think that any antivirus app will protect you from all malware. It has already been proven that safe computing will protect Mac users, even when antivirus apps fail to do so, as has happened in the past.

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.

So much misinformation here it's unreal.

OS9 and earlier had virus issues that aren't currently present in OS X for 2 reasons: a) a complete reboot of the OS and b) a switch to an entirely new processor architecture. OS9 had been an evolution of an OS that was nearing 20 years old, and as such virus coders had a solid base to code a virus that wouldn't change. For the most part, any software that ran on XP can still just about run on Windows 8. No piece of software coded in 2001 will run on a 2013 Mac.

It's all about marketshare, and the Mac one is tiny. Don't act like it's been 'debunked' because that's nonsense and you're misleading people.

Secondly, how is a wide open security exploit no threat to users? Especially if it's publicised on the web and has never been patched? Seriously, just because the virus that can use this exploit hasn't been found in the while, doesn't mean that having this security exploit isn't a threat. Windows would've patched this YEARS ago.

Yes, malware can be avoided by practicing safe computing. You know what also counts as safe computing? Using a firewall and an antivirus. It isn't going to make your computer more vulnerable/less safe like the nonsense you're spewing is.

 

[chabig]

There was no processor shift from OS 9 to OS X. On top of that, the processor has nothing to do with whether a piece of software (or an OS) is architecturally secure. OS X is secure by design (like banks are more secure than homes by design), whereas Windows was not. It's not a marketshare thing at all.