virus on mac??

[itsmeatarun]

my mac was working fine all these days. but recently i just downloaded some applications for my mac and after i install them i notice that suddenly my mac has become slow. if i open a folder it is taking at least 10 to 15 seconds to show the contents in it.i wonder whether its due to any virus because before installing those applications i dint have this problem. The applications which i downloaded were some messenger supporter,chm reader, n some screen saver tools.cud anyone help me finding out y it happened.

 

[MarkMS]

I doubt it, but to be sure ... list the name of the applications. I don't understand what a "messenger supporter" is.

Anyway, the only viruses or trojans that infect Macs are found on shady sites (i.e., warez and porn) and P2P networks (i.e., Bittorrent, Limewire, and etc.). They can't install themselves, unless you explicitly install it yourself. Video codecs on porn sites are one, and pirated software like Photoshop CS4 and iWork 09 in P2P networks are infected too.

Instead of this being a virus/trojan, I think this just could be from one of those programs that is using up a lot of computing power. Check in Activity Monitor (Finder>Applications>Utilities) to see if an app is using up a lot of CPU or RAM.

Also, follow these few tips to keep viruses and trojans at bay.

1. Add a Standard User Account, use it on a daily basis and keep the admin account only to install updates. This will prompt you with a dialogue box anytime something tries to install itself without you knowing.

2. Enable the OS X firewall.

3. Uncheck "Open safe files after downloading" in Safari.

4. Optional for the paranoid and security freaks: Install Little Snitch or Water Roof. They can monitor incoming and outgoing connections to and from your computer.

5. Optional, but very important: Do research before downloading an unknown application. Sites like Version Tracker, iUseThis, MacUpdate, and Softpedia are great about having app reviews. You can see if people thought it was a good or bad app.

Sorry, I can't go into much detail about each one. There are so many threads about users thinking they have a virus on their Mac that we grow tired of answering the same thing over and over. Try searching on MRoogle about viruses and I'm sure you will find everything you need to know. If you can't, post back and we will gladly help you.

Just remember, Macs are not 100% secure. No OS is secure. Follow the tips and refrain from downloading shady applications and you should be fine.

 

[Jethryn Freyman]

There are zero viruses for OS X.

Little Snitch is an outgoing only firewall, IPFW (which WaterRoof configures) is an incoming/outgoing firewall.

 

[Roquefort]

I recommend going to System Preferences -> Accounts -> (your name) -> Login Items and seeing what programs are being launched automatically each time you log in. Maybe you can get rid of some of them.

For example, if one is for a peripheral you no longer use, you can remove it there. If there are names you don't recognize in the list, search online or ask in the forums to try to learn what it is and whether you can do without it.

These programs may or may not appear in your dock even though they are launched each time you log in, so this is a good place to find out about them. It's possible that some of them are using CPU time unnecessarily.