Intego Software?

[Kbachand]

Hey guys,

I am switching to mac from pc this summer and am looking at the new macbook pro line when it comes out. With all this hype over flashback trojan and other security issues, I thought it would be wise to get security software. After doing some research I found a company called Intego, which only produces security software for mac. For those of you that have it, what do you think of it? Is Intego a well respected company like Norton is for PCs? Thanks for your help!

 

[simsaladimbamba]

ClamXav is free and less resource hogging.
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.
But as long as you don't install software from unknown and untrusted sources, you are safe, as malware needs administrative permissions to run successfully, which means, you need to install the malware yourself, it can't install itself (one of the reasons, why a Mac OS X virus hasn't appeared yet).
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
The above F.A.Q. includes the following topics:

• Malware terminology - What is the difference between viruses, worms, and Trojans?
• Antivirus apps
• What security steps should I take?
• What about sending files to Windows users?
• Why am I being redirected to other sites?
• Recent threats in the news

​

 

[Feed Me]

I've never heard of them, and I wouldn't pay for Mac antivirus seeing as there is no known malware that can just install itself on your system (after Apple patched Java, of course).

Most people find that simply watching where you stick your admin password is good enough malware protection on Mac. Our iMac has been running daily on the Internet since 2007, and has never been infected with any malware whatsoever.

If I were you, I'd get ClamXAV. It's free, and you'll be hearing about it non-stop in this thread.

TL;DR: Malware isn't a big problem at all on Mac. Don't even consider buying antivirus. Get ClamXAV to be safe.

 

[Panch0]

I'm required by my company's IT department to run anti-virus on any machine that I connect to the corporate network, even my home computer over VPN. For that reason, I've tried several Mac A/V programs including Intego and Symantec. Intego gets a lot of good reviews, but personally, I didn't like it at all. The UI looks more like a game than a tool, and it did seem resource hungry to me as mentioned before - that was V5 I believe.

I find ClamXAV to be the best for me. It's light and non obtrusive and satisfies the requirement to run something. Also allows me to scan files on demand (for windows threats as well) if I choose to.

I also use Little Snitch, which monitors incoming and outgoing network traffic. Again light and unobtrusive. If something starts sending unexpected network traffic, I get an alert.

 

[GGJstudios]

Hey guys,

I am switching to mac from pc this summer and am looking at the new macbook pro line when it comes out. With all this hype over flashback trojan and other security issues, I thought it would be wise to get security software. After doing some research I found a company called Intego, which only produces security software for mac. For those of you that have it, what do you think of it? Is Intego a well respected company like Norton is for PCs? Thanks for your help!

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.

Mac Virus/Malware FAQ​

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. Uncheck "Enable Java" in Safari > Preferences > Security. This will protect you from the Flashback malware and other malware that exploits Java in your browser. Leave this unchecked until you visit a trusted site that requires Java, then re-enable only for 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 virus, trojan, spyware, keylogger, or other malware. You don't need any 3rd party software to keep your Mac secure.

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.

 

[tlkrenzer]

Hello, I just downloaded ClamXav and it is no longer free—although a free trial is available. I decided to try the free trial and it asked me to give the program administrator privileges. Is this a bad idea? I decided to try this to make sure I didn't get any malware with a recent false Flash update that I installed. (I have a MacBook Pro running OS X Yosemite, 10.10.5)

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.

Mac Virus/Malware FAQ​

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. Uncheck "Enable Java" in Safari > Preferences > Security. This will protect you from the Flashback malware and other malware that exploits Java in your browser. Leave this unchecked until you visit a trusted site that requires Java, then re-enable only for 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 virus, trojan, spyware, keylogger, or other malware. You don't need any 3rd party software to keep your Mac secure.

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.

 

[kiwipeso1]

Hello, I just downloaded ClamXav and it is no longer free—although a free trial is available. I decided to try the free trial and it asked me to give the program administrator privileges. Is this a bad idea? I decided to try this to make sure I didn't get any malware with a recent false Flash update that I installed. (I have a MacBook Pro running OS X Yosemite, 10.10.5)
View attachment 669796

You would be better off installing Avira, which is a free german antivirus, and malware bytes, which is a free anti-malware program.

 

[HDFan]

I have been using Intego Virus barrier for maybe 10 years now. It is the grandfather of Mac virus protection programs. I find Netbarrier and Virusbarrier easy to configure and use. What is really exceptional about them is their support. They respond very quickly, and support has a good working relationship with development. I mention this because my system has 12 cpus (nMP) and breaks a lot of software. Even as I write this I am running the capture utility to send diagnostic data to another software vendor's development team to fix a kernel panic that their software causes on my system. Within a couple of days of my problem report to Intego they had diagnosed the problem and had sent it over to development. It took them a few months time (rewriting threading code is not a simple task), but they gave me a workaround to use during the waiting period for the fixed version. Contrast this with Bartender support, where they never respond to emails and they provide no other contact method on their site, no phone number or even an address.

If you run a complete system virus scan your system can slow down, particularly if your system is short on resources (cpu, slow disk, etc.). My scans take quite some time since I'm scanning 9 TB of data. If this happens just run it overnight.

I looked at the reference above to a posting by GGJstjudios. The original note may be accurate but it is over 6 years old now. I don't think that the keRanger trojan that encrypted over 7000 macs existed then.

An independent test of anti-virus software is available at:

https://www.av-comparatives.org/mac-security-review-test-2016/

They basically confirm what a lot of people above have said. If you are careful you may not need anti virus software.

The reality is that hackers are working full time creating malware. Apple now recognizes the problem and now will pay a bounty to individuals finding security flaws. I am certainly careful with my system (I have 3 firewalls running), but when you're in a hurry you can make a mistake. I did that once (I think it was on a website) and Intego caught it. In September Intego sent out an email warning about the Complex Trojan which is installed via spear phishing. I didn't even know what "spear phishing" was. Here's a definition I found:

http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/definition/spear-phishing

So for me the bottom line is I am as careful as I can be, but I don't want to have to keep up with the daily news to see if there is some new exploit in mail or a PDF file or a messaging app or ... that I need to worry about. Free software doesn't work for me since I need access to responsive support.

I know that Intego is actively working full-time to find vulnerabilities and quarantine them. Let them take the time to figure these things out. I have more interesting things to do with my time.