Virus/spyware- HELP!

[Bhava_Erin]

Hello mac World,
i am recently a convert to the Mac, but always a mac enthusiast , if you can go that far with it. i am having issues with how slow it runs now tho. i am concerned that i have a virus or am over run with spyware. i read a thread that i didnt need to worry about it unless i was interacting with PC's, is that true of spyware? i know ppl who use PC's have Spybot search and destroy as well as AD-Aware to get rid of these files. but what should i do with my mac? please help! i need it to work smoothly again like it was before!
thanks!!!!!!

 

[PlaceofDis]

as far as it is known there are no known viruses for the mac nor have there been any spyware released for it either

perhaps you are running into another problem? do you have enough ram? did you install any third pary hacks before the system slowdown

try running activity monitor and see if there are any processes that are slowing your computer down

 

[LeeTom]

I can say with 100% certainty that your problem is NOT caused by adware, spyware, or a virus. For the time being, they are absolutely not a problem for OS X.
Most likely, your system might just need a little "housekeeping".

Could you please describe what problems you're having in more detail?

A good first thing to do when Macs have problems is to "repair permissions". Open Applications -> Utilities -> Disk Utility. Choose your hard drive on the left, and click "Repair Disk Permissions".

 

[Bhava_Erin]

My system has just been a bit funny lately. I get the spinning disc more often that I thought I would with my mac, and I;ve had to do a quite a few forced quits and once I had to cut the power manually (after around 10-15 minutes of waiting). THen tonight when I was using word two screens started sort of vibrating back and forth, just after I went apple- ~ to switch windows. It stopped and did recover. Just all seems strange since this is basically a brand new computer (iBook G4, bought in October).

I love this computer! and I hope I can keep it healthy. I'll try the Repair Disc Permissions tonight.

Thanks to both of you already!
Bhava

 

[PlaceofDis]

you can also try running the cron jobs, MacJanitor or Onyx will be able to do these for you if your computer isnt left on at night when they normally are run


did this start to happen after you installed a certain piece of software?

 

[JzzTrump22]

Check your system profiler to see whats running a lot and causing lag. You might just have an open program and you didn;t realize. There is no chance it could be spyware/adware.

 

[7on]

Make sure you have no "runaway processes"

Also are you using non-apple RAM? there is a reason Apple RAM costs more - it's to prevent problems like these from popping up.

Also it could be caused by programs like Norton's Disk Utility (whatever it's called) or some other 3rd party program. Make sure all programs you are using support 10.3.8 (or whatever OS you are running)

 

[dvdiva]

you could always find out if its a hardware problem by sticking the restore cd in then hold down the option key. If it's hardware related then get it fixed before you fix any software issues. About the only way you can get spyware is by using IE. I'd recomend firefox just install flash, check java is installed then disable the checkmark for allowing websites to install software.