Calling all Mac users? Do we really need Anti-Virus?

Dec 20, 2007 at 1:55 PM
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So we all know Macs don't come with Anti-Virus protection but there are programs out there built for mac. So my question is: Do we really NOT need Anti-Virus protection? I've seen 2 Anti-Virus software out there , like this one. for mac so it makes me wonder if I should have one. What is your opinion???

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at this time I would say "no" but call the apple store and call this guy on the weekend, he has a show called "the tech guy" 1–888–8 ASK LEO(1–888–827–5536 ), his website link is: http://techguylabs.com/radio/pmwiki.php

He will let you know if you do or do not at this time. The main thing is really watch what you click on, use Firefox or Safari browser...that's the most important thing to do. The reason most people get viruses, trojan horse is their web behavior.

I never worry too much about Mac viruses, I have seen maybe 4 or 5 come along over the 10+ years I have been using Macs. And only one or two have been of the system-crushing kind. These days Macs are so well-protected that you really have to allow a virus to do its thing if one comes along, say, through a chat attachment or something. And the security updates Apple sends out usually take care of most problems, if you install them promptly. I'd say that any program claiming to protect your Mac is basically just looking for your $50, and it's overkill. Even then, Norton or Symantec are the last names in virus protection so I'd look there if anywhere.

Ana, please read this:

Last year about this time, hubby and I went to an Apple store and bought McAfee anti-virus software. We thought it was strange that, at the counter where we paid for the software, several of the employees told us 'You don't need this software'. (Even though the software was prominently displayed in the store). One employee explained that there was a problem in the anti-virus software that caused the new Intel iMacs to 'hang and not reboot.'

Well, we didn't listen. It took us all of a few minutes after we got home to find out---they were right! I installed McAfee, and sure enough, my iMac wouldn't work. We freaked.

Called Apple and the employee was nice enough not to laugh at us. He took all the time we needed to walk us through the un-install and take the program files out of our System Library file and help us to get through the reboot.

I do not have any anti-virus on my iMac and don't plan to. I have not heard if McAfee corrected the problem in the software but regardless, it was a waste of $60. Next time Apple employees tell me about bad software, I'll listen.

I'm going to have to say is... you need a McAfee antivirus program, but I don't use a mac. I use a Windows, but I got a new computer.

I did a lot some research before I bought my Mac. Basically, as of now, Mac OS X and above is basically impenetrable by a virus - lucky for us. But it is not to say that we still can't harbor viruses and pass them onto unsuspecting Windows users. The most malicious way this could happen is through e-mail, or if you share a network, and share info with, a Windows computer (my hubby is a Windows user, but we never, ever share info so I think we're ok). As a COMPUTER user, I can't stand the fact that I don't have some sort of anti-spyware, virus protection, or anything like those two things on my computer, as I've been so used to it after years of being a Windows user. I will more than likely install some sort of program, just for ease of mind. And keep in mind, we also don't have viruses floating around that can harm Macs because in the big picture, Mac user population is still significantly dwarfed by the amount of Windows users there are. It simply isn't something virus coders see worth doing since the amount of big businesses that use Mac is slim compared to those who use Windows. But Mac is seeing a huge flux of Mac "switchers" in the past few years, so we will probably see this change. Let's just hope that OS X is the reason why we don't have viruses, and not because people simply don't write them.

Sorry for the long blurb!

Calling all Mac users? Do we really need Anti-Virus?

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