Hi,
I am getting my new MacBook Air with the new M1 chip very soon and wanted to check if ...
a) I need a malware/anti-virus program and
b) if there is already one out there running natively on the new M1 machines?
any recommendations?
thank you very much
martin.
Yes, malware, adware, scareware, and ransomware is out there in the wild attacking Macs. Most of it is not terribly dangerous but more annoying. Mac's are not immune to these threats but if you observe common sense safe practices it is unlikely to be a problem.
Exercising some caution in regards to phishing emails and text / social media messages as well as noticing those pop-up advertisements that attempt to convince you that you are infected and to install fake anti-malware tools, etc. goes a long way to protecting you. The rest is a matter of the following:
[Edited by Moderator]
If you want to get a decent anti-malware software then I think you should read more reviews like Kaspersky vs TotalAV or other comparisons. I suppose that only reviews can reveal the truth about the best antivirus or, at least, about effective antivirus.
NO, it is not. If you look, little snitch, with kernel extension, which runs on Mac was hacked and has been installed by thousands....... A tool designed to watch for network connection turn inside out and now a virus.
It was quite astonishing to see that a 5 minute surfing on a social media, or watching a 5 minute video in YouTube, Kaspersky was blocking up to tens or even 100 trackers and ads.
Well, it is well known that social media sites exist to sell your information; since most are free, they need to make money some other way. So, they will sell whatever info you innocently share or publish. And advertisers are more than eager to buy. Don't forget Facebook in that list (and Google).
I do not ever use social media sites, do not have a Google account or Youtube or Facebook, Twitter, etc. And, I do not get popups or malware or adware (I think my last one was 3 years ago).
So, for me, any app/software that will run continuously, send info "home" (share my info), or otherwise slow down my Macs, is considered completely irrelevant and not wanted.
Apple's gatekeeping has been bypassed before. If all you worry about is a virus then your scope of security is very limited. It's all about risk mitigation. You say there is no chance there will ever be a MacOS virus even though data says otherwise. Maybe you don't feel like it is necessary but saying everyone should accept your risk assessment is naive. There can be plenty of debate on which endpoint protection solution is best for MacOS. Stating you don't need one at all puts people at risk. If someone wants to be better protected don't shoot them down because you have never gotten infected, as far as you know.
cardsfan0925 wrote:
I wonder if you do. Silver Sparrow is a virus that spread to roughly 30,000 Macs. Literally reported in February of this year.
No, Silver Sparrow is not a virus. It is malware, specifically adware. It requires user action to be installed. Therein lies the important difference.
I've done a bunch of research, and this article gives a good overview:
https://securethoughts.com/panda-antivirus-review/
I'll probably be going to Panda, myself. They're not owned by an eastern block country (no offense, but that does make me weary--especially considering the fact that SO MANY free antivirus software originates from these eastern block based companies).
Good luck on your search! :-)
As I am wrapping up a degree, one of the course presently covers aspects of protection of computers and something to think about - lots of these software makers are not from USA, Canada, UK etc but rather Eastern European countries, China and some in the EU (such as one Dutch and one Spanish product). I mention this as all of these software that are pay to play will be getting your info from your subscription/purchase. As well, laws in those nations may operate differently and exploits put into their offerings might be out of our nation's hands to squelch.
Consider -
Tencent PC Manager - China
Kapersky - Russia
BitDefender - Romania
Avast - Czech Republic
Avira - Germany
GDATA - Germany
AVG - Dutch
Trend Micro - Japan
Checkpoint - Israel
ESET - Slovakia
and
McAfee, Norton, Fortinet, Webroot and Vipre - American
I mention this as origin of business should be a factor in a purchase.
Some may not make versions for MacOS or for that matter be fully compatible with M1.
Call AppleCare too! They’ll help u I’ve used avg it’s free to a certain extent like all of them but what he means is that some malicious software disgusted themselves as “defenders” but they’re not! They’re junkware lol or malware instead. Most the time we all agree to the software that’s messing up our systems.
And another article questioning the infallibility of M1 protection.
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2021/02/apple-m1-native-malware-has-already-begun-to-appear/
KiltedTim wrote:
...
There are no known viruses in the wild that can affect macOS. Full Stop.
...
"known" is the keyword in your statement.
Secops wrote:
... source : https://objective-see.com/blog/blog_0x62.html
Follow the money. Works every time.
I wonder if you do. Silver Sparrow is a virus that spread to roughly 30,000 Macs. Literally reported in February of this year.
For those saying no need. Guess again. https://www.tomsguide.com/news/m1-mac-malware
You can! But as long as it stays up to date and has m1 chip, I think ur good too, make random passwords, don’t give em away , ext ext,
I trust Bitdefender, the world leader in internet security software.
The fact that you feel the need to append a cheesy and fatuous marketing slogan to your declaration is revealing.
Apple M1 Chip - native Malware/Anti-Virus App
