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What is Best AntiVirus for Mountain Lion?

D

dfine1966

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Apr 9, 2011
425
46
Before anyone says it is not needed. I do a lot of interactions with other people who have Window's computer. I really don't want to send files or emails to them and infect them. Plus, I do want piece of mind, especially that there are more virus attacks lately on the Mac then there ever has been. But that is another discussion.

Here is what I need from and A/V.

1. Very light, like it is not there. I don't want it to bog down Firefox, Chrome, the computer itself etc.
2. I use Outlook 2011 mail, so I need mail that comes in be able to be scanned for Virus right away.
3. I would like to be protected will I am surfing on the web and installing programs, etc.

Here are some of the choices. All of these seemed to be updated for Mountain Lion.

I purchased last year VirusBarrier X6, and I believe it has slowed down the Mac a good amount. Even though I already paid for it, I am looking at other options , paid or free.


1.ClamXav (free)
2. avast! Free Antivirus for Mac (free)
3 Sophos Anti-Virus for Mac Home Edition (free)
4. Intego VirusBarrier X6 (paid)
5. Kaspersky for Mac
6. Any other that I missed?

I am looking for some advice. I really don't want to install everyone of these until I find one that works.

Please let me know what you think?
 
R

revs

macrumors 6502
Jun 2, 2008
454
399
UK
I have ClamXAV set to scan my downloads folder. Its invisible and lightweight, i don't notice it.

Give it a go (as you say, its free!) and set it to monitor certain folders, and your mail.
 
GGJstudios

GGJstudios

macrumors Westmere
May 16, 2008
44,556
950
dfine1966 said:
Before anyone says it is not needed. I do a lot of interactions with other people who have Window's computer. I really don't want to send files or emails to them and infect them. Plus, I do want piece of mind, especially that there are more virus attacks lately on the Mac then there ever has been.
Click to expand...
There have been exactly zero virus attacks on Mac OS X. Macs are not immune to malware, but no true viruses exist in the wild that can run on Mac OS X, and there never have been any since it was released over 10 years ago. The only malware in the wild that can affect Mac OS X is a handful of trojans, which can be easily avoided by practicing safe computing (see below). Also, Mac OS X Snow Leopard and Lion have anti-malware protection built in, further reducing the need for 3rd party antivirus apps.
  1. Make sure your built-in Mac firewall is enabled in System Preferences > Security > Firewall

  2. Uncheck "Open "safe" files after downloading" in Safari > Preferences > General

  3. Disable Java in your browser (Safari, Chrome, Firefox). This will protect you from malware that exploits Java in your browser, including the recent Flashback trojan. Leave Java disabled until you visit a trusted site that requires it, then re-enable only for the duration of your visit to that site. (This is not to be confused with JavaScript, which you should leave enabled.)

  4. Change your DNS servers to OpenDNS servers by reading this.

  5. Be careful to only install software from trusted, reputable sites. Never install pirated software. If you're not sure about an app, ask in this forum before installing.

  6. Never let someone else have access to install anything on your Mac.

  7. Don't open files that you receive from unknown or untrusted sources.

  8. For added security, make sure all network, email, financial and other important passwords are long and complex, including upper and lower case letters, numbers and special characters.

  9. Always keep your Mac and application software updated. Use Software Update for your Mac software. For other software, it's safer to get updates from the developer's site or from the menu item "Check for updates", rather than installing from any notification window that pops up while you're surfing the web.
That's all you need to do to keep your Mac completely free of any Mac OS X malware that has ever been released into the wild. While you may elect to use it, 3rd party antivirus software is not required to keep your Mac malware-free.

If you still want to run antivirus for some reason, ClamXav (which is free) is one of the best choices, since it isn't a resource hog, detects both Mac and Windows malware and doesn't run with elevated privileges. You can run scans when you choose, rather than leaving it running all the time, slowing your system. ClamXav has a Sentry feature which, if enabled, will use significant system resources to constantly scan. Disable the Sentry feature. You don't need it. Also, when you first install ClamXav, as with many antivirus apps, it may perform an initial full system scan, which will consume resources. Once the initial scan is complete, periodic on-demand scans will have much lower demands on resources.

I recommend that you avoid using Sophos, as it could actually increase your Mac's vulnerability, as described here and here.

iAntiVirus has a bogus malware definitions list, making their detection accuracy untrustworthy. They also make inaccurate claims about the existence of Mac malware, in order to hype the need for their product. This post will give details.
 
charlieegan3

charlieegan3

macrumors 68020
Feb 16, 2012
2,394
17
U.K
C

C.G.B. Spender

macrumors member
Jul 10, 2012
74
0
charlieegan3 said:
Try and help the guy out buy making a suggestion from his shortlist.


----------



This is true.
Click to expand...

I did. If some rare malware then Apple will deal with it (OS has tools in place for that), on the other hand if you like to clean windows viruses and malware for your PC friends then maybe you could use some antivirus.
 
Weaselboy

Weaselboy

Moderator
Staff member
Jan 23, 2005
34,482
16,197
California
C.G.B. Spender said:
I did. If some rare malware then Apple will deal with it (OS has tools in place for that), on the other hand if you like to clean windows viruses and malware for your PC friends then maybe you could use some antivirus.
Click to expand...

Which is exactly what the OP said.
 
charlieegan3

charlieegan3

macrumors 68020
Feb 16, 2012
2,394
17
U.K
C.G.B. Spender said:
I did. If some rare malware then Apple will deal with it (OS has tools in place for that), on the other hand if you like to clean windows viruses and malware for your PC friends then maybe you could use some antivirus.
Click to expand...

EDIT; I read you post ^, sorry

So help the OP by suggesting one of those, rather than no antivirus at all.
 
wx4olf

wx4olf

macrumors regular
Jun 15, 2010
150
22
revs said:
I have ClamXAV set to scan my downloads folder. Its invisible and lightweight, i don't notice it.

Give it a go (as you say, its free!) and set it to monitor certain folders, and your mail.
Click to expand...

Yep ClamXAV is the way to go. I do the same you describe.
 
D

dfine1966

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Apr 9, 2011
425
46
So everyone is suggesting ClamXav. So this does everything I need, not interfering with Mountain Lion, good protection for email and web, files etc.
 
P

Panini

macrumors regular
Jun 12, 2012
204
0
Palo Alto, CA
It looks like it's not you who needs the anti-virus but your friends.

I am pretty sure OS X already has antivirus built in. I don't mean the extra security benefits of using UNIX, I mean there's actually Apple-created software that focuses on anti-virus for OS X.
 
T

tbn002

macrumors newbie
Jul 10, 2011
22
1
I've previously tried both ClamX and Sophos in the past but unfortunately both slowed down my machine, particularly when handing archive files (.rar, .zip, etc).
 
GGJstudios

GGJstudios

macrumors Westmere
May 16, 2008
44,556
950
tbn002 said:
I've previously tried both ClamX and Sophos in the past but unfortunately both slowed down my machine, particularly when handing archive files (.rar, .zip, etc).
Click to expand...
Read my first post in this thread, where I talk about both of those apps.
 
VirtualRain

VirtualRain

macrumors 603
Aug 1, 2008
6,304
118
Vancouver, BC
I would recommend Sophos or Kaspersky... they are top-shelf AV products that are updated frequently (and rapidly) by companies that have full time analysts monitoring new threats. Lots of companies depend on Sophos or Kaspersky every day. You won't find many organizations using ClamAV.
 
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