Lastly, AVG for Mac: Something in the middle. If you want a free antivirus software that also boasts extra features, AVG for Mac is a good middle of the road option. While its malware detection scores don’t quite match the free software mentioned already, they are still respectable. Top 10 Best Mac Antivirus Software 2018 There is always a question whether Mac computers need antivirus, however as many Mac users may or may not be aware Mac computers DO benefit from using antivirus software and there are many versions available that will go a long way to keeping your Mac safe and virus free. However, if you want an added layer of protection for your Mac, you might want to consider using an antivirus. If you choose to, the best thing you can do is to get a good, working one. Some of the best free Mac antivirus are. Which brings us back to your original question, about using an anti-virus program on your Mac. The answer is maybe; it really depends on how and where you're using your Mac. Let's start with why you should use an anti-virus program.
- Best Antivirus For A Mac
- Free Antivirus For A Mac
- Free Avast Antivirus For A Year
- Do You Need Avast Antivirus For A Mac Computer *
Kaspersky Internet Security for Mac
Kaspersky Internet Security for Mac's top-shelf malware detection and barely there system impact make it the best antivirus solution.
Best Free Mac AntivirusAvast Free Mac Security
Avast Free Mac Security's malware-squashing proficiency, negligible performance impact and included password manager make it the best free option.
Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac
Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac offers top-shelf malware detection and protects files from ransomware.
After evaluating eight free and paid antivirus products, we've chosen Kaspersky Internet Security for Mac ($40 per year) as the best antivirus for Mac. It had a nearly invisible impact on system performance, and it caught all malware.
Avast Free Mac Security is our favorite free option, as it provided nearly perfect malware protection and an easy-to-use interface with an imperceptible performance hit.
You do need an antivirus program on your Mac. Recent years have seen more Mac malware and adware than ever before, from Trojans to targeted attacks, supply-chain attacks like the XcodeGhost attack and even encrypting ransomware.
MORE: Best Antivirus Software and Apps
Latest Security Alerts and Threats
— Google pushed out an emergency patch for its Chrome browser for Windows, macOS and Linux after a vulnerability was found that could let a malicious website take over a computer. ADVICE: Copy and paste 'chrome://settings/help' into your Chrome address bar to make sure your browser is updated to version 76.0.3809.132.
— Apple patched a security hole that let you -- or a malicious website -- jailbreak an iPhone and install any kind of app, including potential malware. (This is not among the flaws that let several websites infect any iPhone.) ADVICE: Make sure your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch is updated to iOS 12.4.1.
— Spammers have been sending emails to inject scam or malicious messages in regular people's Google Calendar pages. ADVICE: Follow our instructions to stop phony Google Calendar notifications from happening to you.
How We Tested
To find the best antivirus for Mac desktops and laptops, we evaluate ease of use, interface and performance impact, we installed each AV program on the same Late 2013 MacBook Pro with Retina Display running macOS 10.12 Sierra. It was powered by a 2.6-GHz Intel Core i7 processor and had 8GB of RAM and 70GB of data stored on a 512GB SSD.
We conducted our own tests in July and August 2017 based on how much each antivirus product affected our laptop's performance. To do this, we used our custom OpenOffice benchmark, which matches 20,000 names and addresses in a spreadsheet. We measured how long it took to run a quick scan and a full scan while the laptop crunched numbers in the background.
We assessed how easy each program was to use and the number of useful extra features it offered (including free add-on software). To gauge how effective each package was at stopping malware, we used the results of evaluations conducted in May 2017 by AV-TEST, a well-regarded independent product-testing lab in Germany, and results from other tests conducted in July 2017 by AV-Comparatives, a similarly well-respected firm in Austria.
Best Mac Antivirus
Kaspersky Internet Security for Mac
Reasons to Buy
Minimal system impact
Reasons to Avoid
Kaspersky Internet Security is the best antivirus for Macs because it offers both the lowest system impact and some of the best malware-detection rates recorded. It even provides extra security features, including parental controls and options to lock down your webcam and stop websites from tracking your browsing activity. If you're willing to pay to protect your Mac from malware, Kaspersky Internet Security is the best option available.
Best Free Mac Antivirus
Avast Free Mac Security
Reasons to Buy
Excellent malware protection
Password manager included
Reasons to Avoid
Avast Free Mac Security caught 99.9 percent of all malware, packs in a password manager, barely leaves a smudge on system impact and doesn't charge a dime. If only it caught 100 percent of malware, as Kaspersky did.
Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac
Reasons to Buy
Ransomware protection
Parental controls
Reasons to Avoid
$38.99
Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac is one of only a few solutions we tested that offers perfect malware detection. Further, its modern, streamlined interface places on-demand scans front and center. Bitdefender has dropped from first place, though, because its system-impact scores don't match the flawless marks posted by Kaspersky.
Norton 360 Deluxe
Reasons to Buy
Reasons to Avoid
Noticeable system impact
Norton 360 Deluxe may offer excellent protection, but it charges more (after the first year) than its competitors do, without offering as many perks. Norton AntiVirus Plus offers similar protection for a single Mac, but with fewer perks. Still, both have always-on-call customer support.
AVG Antivirus for Mac
Reasons to Buy
Free
Reasons to Avoid
Comparatively high background impact
AVG Antivirus for Mac
If you're looking for the best antivirus for Mac without having to pay, AVG AntiVirus for Mac is not too shabby, with its 99.9 percent detection rate and easy-to-use design. Unfortunately, other free competitors provide extras (Sophos with parental controls, Avast's password manager) that AVG does not.
Best for Families
Sophos Home
Reasons to Buy
Best Antivirus For A Mac
Remote manageability
Low system impact
Reasons to Avoid
With Sophos Home for Mac's simple interface and low system-performance impact, you'll barely realize the program is shielding you until you need it. Anyone with young children at home will find Sophos' parental controls useful, as they allow for remote scans and checks, and let you block sites by category. Sophos even keeps a log of when users try to reach banned pages. This program's major drawback, though, is its lackluster malware-detection rate.
Avira Free Antivirus for Mac
Reasons to Buy
Solid malware protection
Reasons to Avoid
Once our favorite, Avira Free Antivirus for Mac is no longer the best antivirus for Mac. That's because it is a hair shy of perfection in its malware detection, and fell behind in system-performance testing, earning some of the higher performance impacts recorded.
McAfee Antivirus Plus
Reasons to Buy
Familiar user interface
Free Antivirus For A Mac
Reasons to Avoid
Unproven detection rates
McAfee® AntiVirus Plus
While McAfee's unlimited licenses mean you can support a whole family of Macs (and PCs and Android devices, too), this program's lack of special features (for a paid version) make it hard to recommend. Further, we don't have malware-detection testing scores for McAfee, so its protection powers are unproven.
For many years, Apple fans who used Mac computers claimed that their computers couldn't get infected by a virus. But can you get a virus on Mac? The simple answer is yes.
A virus is nothing more than a computer program that gets installed on your computer. Instead of doing something productive like a spreadsheet program or a web browser, a Mac virus is an application that attempts to do something malicious to your computer.
Why Macs are Less Likely to Get Viruses
As the use of Mac computers became more mainstream, more hackers started turning their attention toward programming virus that could attack Mac computers.
It is a little harder to circumvent Mac OS security, but it isn't impossible. How do Macs protect users better than the Windows OS does?
- File Checking: Whenever you attempt to download a file to your Mac, the Mac operating system scans the file for malware.
- Approved Software: You aren't allowed to install applications on your Mac that haven't already been approved by Apple and are digitally signed. However, users can bypass this protection by holding down the Ctrl key when opening the app.
- Xprotect: Whenever you attempt to open an application, Mac's Xprotect tool automatically scans the application to see if it's on Apple's list of known malicious software.
- Automatic Updates: Unlike Windows computers where users can either slow down or even entirely disable updates. On a Mac, all updates happen automatically, keeping the system immediately up to date and patched whenever Apple identifies vulnerabilities.
- Sandboxing: Approved Apple applications are blocked from performing any actions that aren't approved by Apple.
- Safari Anti-Phishing: Safari, the default Mac browser, has anti-phishing technology built-in that detects fraudulent websites and blocks the page from loading. The browser only allows the latest version of plug-ins like Flash, QuickTime, Java, and Silverlight.
These challenges cause most hackers to turn to writing Windows viruses instead, because Windows is easier to manipulate. However there are some hackers that feel compelled to focus on writing Mac viruses because of its growing user base.
The Most Common Mac Viruses
We know Macs can get viruses because in recent years there have been major ones.
The following are the most common malicious applications that still remain a threat to Mac systems across the world.
- Word Macro Viruses: Word macros are scripts that run inside word, but macro viruses will actually log keystrokes or steal private information off the computer.
- Safari Viruses: One major threat to Safari users is a piece of malware known as Safari-get. Once your computer is infected with it (usually by clicking a bad web link), the virus will overload your Mac and attempt to freeze it with a window displaying a fake Apple tech support number in order to steal your credit card information.
- Pirrit: Hidden inside cracked versions of Adobe Photoshop and Microsoft Office, this virus is able to gain root privileges and download additional malicious software.
- Dok: This malware will intercept all web traffic in order to scrape your private or sensitive information.
- Fruitfly: This malware, once on your system, will steal files like images, sensitive records, and other files by capturing screenshots and even taking images from the computer webcam.
- MaMi: First introduced in 2018, the path of infection is usually either malicious website ads or email phishing attempts. The software alters DNS settings to redirect web traffic and capture sensitive information.
There have been other Mac viruses through the years. In some cases they were simply scareware meant to make users believe their systems were hacked when they weren't. But what this list makes clear is that a mac can get a Trojan virus, malware, worms, and any other threat that Windows users face.
How to Protect Your Mac from Viruses
Since there are many protections already in place if you own a Mac, staying safe from these threats is fairly easy.
The best way to avoid malware and viruses from infecting your Mac is to stick to only using approved software from the Mac store.
The following actions will further ensure your Mac stays clean.
Free Avast Antivirus For A Year
- Browser Updates: Keeping Safari fully updated will ensure you have the latest versions of Java, Silverlight, and other browser add-ons. These are sure to have the latest patches that will protect you from any viruses.
- App Updates: Keep all apps that you use on your Mac fully updated. This will prevent any new security vulnerabilities from becoming a threat to your Mac.
- Beware Phishing: When you receive an email with a link, be very wary about clicking on it. If it's from a company you do business with, avoid clicking the email link and log into the company website directly instead.
- Avoid Social Ads: Social media is fast becoming one of the most commonly used platforms by hackers. Avoid clicking on ads on Facebook and elsewhere. If a friend sends you an 'interesting video', avoid the temptation to click it.
- Don't Install Flash: Since HTML5 has made Flash obsolete, there's little reason to install Flash Player at all. Flash is a significant security risk, and keeping it off your system will greatly improve your security.
How to Remove a Mac Virus
If you do find your Mac infected with a virus, there are a few things you can do to clean a virus from your Mac.
Do You Need Avast Antivirus For A Mac Computer *
- Downloaded Files: Viruses most commonly come from downloaded files. So the first thing you'll want to do is go to your downloads folder and clear it out. Remember to empty the trash after.
- Delete New Apps: If you recently installed a new app, go to Applications and drag the icon to the Trash bin, then empty the trash.
- Uninstall New Extensions: If a malicious browser extension is the cause, find recently installed extensions in your browser and uninstall them.
- Malwarebytes: This application is one of the most successful at removing adware, malware, and viruses. Install Malwarebytes for Mac and run a full scan on your system.
The most important thing you can do, whether or not you've been infected, is to install antivirus software for your Mac. There are a number of very good antivirus apps available for Mac. Choose one, and install it.