I just got my MacBook (white) today. I was just wondering what program I should get for internet security (antivirus, spyware, firewall, etc...) if any at all? I would prefer to be safer then sorry on this one. So any feedback with ideas, advice or points of views would be appreciated.
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Security for a MacBook?
- Thread starter SeanEE89
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You don't need any application security for a mac. However you should just be wary of what applications you launch and download, and you should never install a package that you don't fully trust.
really now? thats good to know then. I was going to download torrents with this but I would rather just use my PC for that and then transfer the files to my Mac.
Dont need antivirus or spyware software on a mac, i have been free of those bloatware coz of the mac for the past 2 years. using torrents or any dubious website on a mac is not a problem since all of them target windows IE, but if you are planning to continue in that dangerous path you should think about norton antivirus maybe...
P2P, Bittorrents and the like are rife with malware. Luckily for you the malware is Windows specific most of the time, so won't hurt you on a Mac. In the long run the malware will be trickling in for Mac as well.
As for security programs... Turn on your firewall, and use common sense. The first is built-into OS X and the other is something you just have (or not).
Good luck.
I am guessing there is no free Anti-Virus program that I could use? Ill be sure to turn my firewall on when I get home.
I came across that, it seems like a nice lite program so I think I will give it a try. Thanks for the help though!
You're welcome.
As the posters above me noted, use common sense. Though OS X isn't as likely to get a virus or a trojan (they do exist), you just have to practice safe and smart computing. Don't open anything you don't trust or from anyone you don't know. If you're downloading whatever for Windows make sure you scan it first before opening it. Turn on the Firewall (though most routers have them now a days), create a strong password.
As the posters above me noted, use common sense. Though OS X isn't as likely to get a virus or a trojan (they do exist), you just have to practice safe and smart computing. Don't open anything you don't trust or from anyone you don't know. If you're downloading whatever for Windows make sure you scan it first before opening it. Turn on the Firewall (though most routers have them now a days), create a strong password.
ClamXav is probably the best anti-virus program for mac and it's free. As others have said, you'll probably never really need it. But as you said, you'd rather be on the safe side.
EDIT:
BEATEN TO THE PUNCH
I created a fairly strong password (a long passphrase). I do my best to be smart about my computing; I dont go to porn sites, open emails or anything that I don't trust. I am pretty sure that my router has a firewall because it is less then 2 months old and at the time was one of the best routers I could find on the market. I am going to configure and turn on the firewall to my Mac OS X and I am going to get ClamXAV just to be safe.
Because unfortunately, I have a lot of friends who I do trust but are complete idiots when it comes to computers. I had my myspace stolen because my friend was a dumb @$$ and sent me a phishing link. How they did it I don't know, but they changed my email address without me ever getting a confirmation email about it.
I basically am just going to use this computer to talk to people online, surf the net, do homework, listen to music and watch movies. I have been toying with the idea of getting Logic and messing around with audio production but I will do that when I can better afford it.
What is the best torrent client to use for the Mac, because I see uTorrent isnt offered yet at least.
Because unfortunately, I have a lot of friends who I do trust but are complete idiots when it comes to computers. I had my myspace stolen because my friend was a dumb @$$ and sent me a phishing link. How they did it I don't know, but they changed my email address without me ever getting a confirmation email about it.
I basically am just going to use this computer to talk to people online, surf the net, do homework, listen to music and watch movies. I have been toying with the idea of getting Logic and messing around with audio production but I will do that when I can better afford it.
What is the best torrent client to use for the Mac, because I see uTorrent isnt offered yet at least.
Friends can do that to ya sometimes.
You do most of the smart things, so that's a good.
Azuerus or Transmission are the 2 popular BitTorrent programs on Mac (as far as I know)
I personally use Azuerus as it's highly customizable.
You do most of the smart things, so that's a good.
Azuerus or Transmission are the 2 popular BitTorrent programs on Mac (as far as I know)
I personally use Azuerus as it's highly customizable.
PCs and Macs are very different animals. I have both extensively. All my PCs have Norton or McAfee, then Ad-Aware, and the standing OS cleaning tools. On my MB I have nothing. Zero. None. I have the programs I need and that's it! No bloated OS with a dozen "protection" programs, no anti-virus programs, and no firewall programs.
It's why I use my MB for personal items and PC for everything else. I took e several months to get into the mindset of the two different OS and machines. Enjoy your Mac.
It's why I use my MB for personal items and PC for everything else. I took e several months to get into the mindset of the two different OS and machines. Enjoy your Mac.
setup a virtual machine with windows. then trash it/download viruses, do whatever you want, and get one of those "system rollback on reboot" programs
why did you remove IPFW?
Isn't Azureus a resource hog?
I know a lot of people who think that AV and Firewalls and all that jazz are pointless to have with a Mac, but I am just going to get Clam X AV and see if it bogs my Mac down any if I don't notice it then Ill just keep it just to be safe.
I know a lot of people who think that AV and Firewalls and all that jazz are pointless to have with a Mac, but I am just going to get Clam X AV and see if it bogs my Mac down any if I don't notice it then Ill just keep it just to be safe.
It can be. It depends on how many torrents you have open at once and all that jazz. I honestly don't have that many problems with it (it's Java based). It's highly configurable and gives a lot of detailed statistics.
Just my .02¢
Personally I don't like Azureus and use Transmission, but lots of people do like Azureus, so it's really up to you. I probably wouldn't try any others that someone on here hasn't tried, as other than these two (and there are probably a couple of others, but I don't know them), other torrent clients have been known to cause problems on OS X. I use Transmission all the time and have never had problems, though.
I'd suggest going with ClamXAv too. It doesn't run at all unless you tell it to, or tell it to watch a certain folder(s) for you. So it shouldn't bog down your Mac at all except (possibly) when scanning big files or something. What I would suggest is to set up ClamXAv's Sentry to watch your Downloads folder, and then it will only scan when you download something new. And with OS X you really don't have to worry about anything other than things you purposefully download.