(We also recommend you read our best Mac security tips and our roundup of the best Mac antivirus apps.) Note that to an extent we are going to be mixing and matching the terms malware and virus. Looking for the best Mac virus scan software to keep your Mac functioning at its best? You've come to the right place. TheTop10Sites compares the top virus scan software for Mac to help you find the ideal product to suit your needs. Best free antivirus for Mac: Avast Free Mac Security Many antivirus suites provide a decent level of protection, but a few rise above all others by providing the very best in performance. Avast Free Mac Security uses a traditional signature-based method to scan files on your Mac for known malware, Trojans, and viruses. Avast can root out rootkits and other methods that a hacker uses to gain control and is able to pry open compressed files to scan their content. The best way to protect yourself from viruses is by using free antivirus, this will scan your computer regularly to make sure there are is no malware on your computer. The best free antivirus software will go further than this, protecting your data entry and PC intrinsically through use of virtual keyboards and more.
Best Mac Antivirus
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 Antivirus
Avast 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
https://browngrey.weebly.com/blog/sts-4-download-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 AntivirusKaspersky Internet Security for MacReasons 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 AntivirusAvast Free Mac SecurityReasons to Buy
Excellent malware protection
Password manager included
Reasons to Avoid
Wd smartware update for mac. 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 MacReasons 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 DeluxeReasons to BuyReasons 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 MacReasons 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 FamiliesSophos HomeReasons to Buy
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 MacReasons to Buy
Solid malware protection
Reasons to Avoid
Download hitman 2 for mac. Once our favorite, Avira Free Antivirus for Mac is no longer the best antivirus for Mac. Avi media player mac download. 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 PlusFree Virus Scan Software For Mac 10.6Reasons to Buy
Familiar user interface
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.
Security software isn't just about protecting your PC; it's about protecting all the personal information you store on your laptop or transmit over the Internet. An antivirus app is a good place to start, but most security suites come with a whole toolbox of options for fighting a variety of threats. Here's what you need to know to choose the best security software for Windows or Mac.
It might be worth paying for security apps
Free antivirus apps and VPNs can be very effective and may have all the horsepower you need. However, the software developers have to make money somehow -- your free app may come with ads, for example, or you may be nagged to upgrade to the paid version. Beyond nuisance, though, some apps may actually create privacy issues instead of solving them. Check an app's policies and reviews before you download it.
We recommend Avira, a free antivirus suite with a relatively laid-back sales pitch.
At the other end of the privacy spectrum, Hola VPN is a cautionary tale. A VPN (virtual private network) gives you encrypted access to the Internet. The VPN connects you to a VPN server in a country of your choice, which then connects to your online destination in a way that makes it look like your computer is located in that country. This is handy for accessing websites and content that are regionally blocked. In June of 2015, researchers alleged that the free version of Hola VPN was selling its users' bandwidth to premium users, essentially making free users the VPN server for paying customers. This is a problem because the free user has no control over what other users did with that bandwidth, including whether they were engaging in illegal activity.
Best Free Virus Protection Software For Mac
Thankfully, this kind of scenario appears to be an extreme example. However, you may deal with companies that want to sell your user data to cover their costs. As a result, it's a good idea to check the EULA (end-user license agreement) during installation for vague language about how they handle your privacy, and to make sure that there are no pre-checked boxes that enable unwanted tracking or the installation of additional software.
Figuring out what makes a good security app
'User experience' covers a lot of things. First, if it's a paid antivirus program, how many users are covered by a single license or subscription, and does this include a mobile version? Second, sometimes an antimalware suite throws in a lot of extra utilities to give the impression that you're getting a lot of bang for your buck, like a file shredder and junk file deleter; don't be tricked into paying a premium for tools that you can get for free or that may be built into the operating system.
Third, how easy is the program to use? Let's say you want your antivirus program to do an automatic system scan every Tuesday at 3AM. How easy is it to find that setting, set the schedule, and confirm that your changes have been saved? How many clicks does it take? If you get lost along the way, what tools does the interface use to get you back on track? If you want to know more about a particular technical term, is the tool for that informative and actually specific? If you're using a free antivirus program, how aggressively does the interface try to make you upgrade to the paid version?
Avalon 737 vst. No matter what questions you feel are important, it can be a helpful exercise to write down your own list of needs, and a list of behaviors that would make the program a non-starter.
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