Virus Scanner

[mac pakka]

Ok, i know the best protection for the Mac is just 'common sense', but what if you teacher wife downloads files from any random site she can find? Add to that it seems we have been the victim of credit card fraud (not sure how, not necessarily via the Mac either).

Anyway, i want to do a scan for viruses and spyware. Anyone know a good option for this? Doesn't have to be free although that would be nice.

Ta...

 

[alust2013]

Honestly, you don't need to worry about that. Any viruses that get downloaded will be windows, and thus unable to run on a Mac. All the antivirus software out there just hogs system resources and does you no good.

 

[GGJstudios]

AV software won't protect you from phishing scams, weak passwords or network security, etc. There ARE no viruses in the wild that run on current Mac OS X, so AV software can only scan for Windows viruses, which are harmless to Macs.

Mac Virus/Malware Info

 

[mac pakka]

I've read many posts on this but are you saying there is NO chance. Spyware??

I don't want anything to run permanently, just a one time scan.

Another problem is that our bank wants us to sign a document to say that we have scanned for above AND installed anti-virus software, despite me saying Mac's don't need it.

 

[GGJstudios]

I've read many posts on this but are you saying there is NO chance. Spyware??

I don't want anything to run permanently, just a one time scan.

Another problem is that our bank wants us to sign a document to say that we have scanned for above AND installed anti-virus software, despite me saying Mac's don't need it.

Install and run AV if you want to, even if it's not necessary. Read the link I provided, so you can make a well-informed decision. Then do what you like.

 

[bmcgonag]

Actually today there is a Trojan out that is installed via Java and it does not need the user to enter permission password to install, nor to run. Here's a link to the article about it.

ArsTechnica Article on Mac Trojan

Best, and guess we better start looking for some decent AV software and some folks who are attentive to the mac side.

 

[John T]

This is not a true Trojan in the sense that, as in Windows, it installs itself.

As the article says, it's installed by clicking on a link and, as everyone knows, those who click on iffy links are asking for trouble.

 

[bmcgonag]

I believe thats the definition of a trojan actually. You click expecting one thing, and get something else that was hidden. As in the Trojan Horse, you know back in the day when Troy men hid inside a huge wooden horse delivered as a gift.

 

[itachi2]

Virus Scanner

A good virus scanner I use on my Mac is ClamXav. It is free and has gotten good reviews on it. I, personally, haven't encountered a virus with it. It only scans for Mac OS X viruses, so it's not bulky.
A great Anti-Virus for Mac OS X is iAnti-Virus. I haven't used this before, so I'm not sure if it's what you want.

 

[GGJstudios]

It only scans for Mac OS X viruses, so it's not bulky.

No, it scans for Windows viruses. There are no viruses in the wild that run on current Mac OS X, so ClamXav can't scan for something that doesn't exist.

A great Anti-Virus for Mac OS X is iAnti-Virus. I haven't used this before, so I'm not sure if it's what you want.

iAntiVirus is bogus.

 

[itachi2]

No, it scans for Windows viruses. There are no viruses in the wild that run on current Mac OS X, so ClamXav can't scan for something that doesn't exist.

iAntiVirus is bogus.

Oh, oops. I mixed it up. Sorry. iAntiVirus is apparently the one that's Mac OS X viruses only. Also, iAntiVirus is run by PC Tools, which makes it seem at least a bit trusted. As I've mentioned before, I've never used it, so I have no idea. Whatever, if you say it's bogus, it probably is. Thanks for correcting me.

 

[munkery]

ClamXav is good for preventing forwarding an email with Windows malware to Windows users. Newer versions of ClamXav include a daemon that scans email traffic (EDIT: real-time scanning needs to be configured via ClamXav Sentry; setting in preferences for email is for on demand scanning). Threats to Mac OS X and Linux would be added to the Clamav database when they do exist. Threats to older Mac OSes and early Linux distro are in the database already but they are no longer relevant.

I use the ClamXav sentry feature to scan my downloads as well because ClamXav is very lightweight and if further prevents passing Windows malware to others. If your bank requires you to use anti-virus software, I would recommend ClamXav because it is lightweight and Clamav is the default AV scanner in Mac OS X Server so they can't question it's legitimacy.

iAntivirus is good if you think an admin or another individual that knows your password installed a legitimate keylogger program. Install iAntivirus, run it, and then delete it if this is how you think your system was compromised. ClamXav does not include definitions for legitimate software.

XProtect, built into Snow Leopard to detect known trojans, is sufficient enough protection from known trojans. User knowledge is required to protect against novel trojans. Given that 3 of the 4 Mac OS X trojans are included in XProtect, you really do not have that much to worry about.

Actually today there is a Trojan out that is installed via Java and it does not need the user to enter permission password to install, nor to run. Here's a link to the article about it.

ArsTechnica Article on Mac Trojan

Best, and guess we better start looking for some decent AV software and some folks who are attentive to the mac side.

Read the Intego article.

At the very end it states you can avoid infection by closing the installer. Installer prompts on Mac OS X ask for your password.

 

[bmcgonag]

Installer prompts do normally ask for a password, but they refer to an install beginning without asking. It seems like a simple threat to defeat, and as many of you say most people with common sense will avoid it, but let's face it, common sense is short these days, and everyone wants to know if they are in a video being circulated by all of their "friends" on the internet.

I was just trying to point out that there is a threat out there, not trying to start anything more than that.

Best to you all.