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I am about to upgrade my iPhone, iPad, and Macbook Pro. I would like to ensure that the old devices are virus and malware free before I do the transfers, and then have continued protection. What does Apple (or others) recommend for this? ATBster
iPhone XS
I wholeheartedly agree with babowa on what's needed to protect your Apple devices. Here's another take on it with additional info:
First, there is no reason to ever install or run any 3rd party "cleaning", "optimizing", "speed-up", anti-virus, VPN or security apps on your Mac. This user tip describes what you need to know and do in order to protect your Mac: Effective defenses against malware and other threats - Apple Community.
There are no known viruses, i.e. self propagating, for Macs. There are, however, adware and malware which require the user to install although unwittingly most of the time thru sneaky links, etc.
Anti Virus developers try to group all types as viruses into their ad campaigns of fear. They do a poor job of the detecting and isolating the adware and malware. Since there are no viruses these apps use up a lot of system resources searching for what is non-existent and adversely affect system and app performance.
There is one app, Malwarebytes, which was developed by a long time contributor to these forums and a highly respected member of the computer security community, that is desshoigned solely to seek out adware and known malware and remove it. The free version is more than adequate for most users.
Also, unless you're using a true VPN tunnel, such as between you and your employer, school or bank's servers, they are useless from a privacy standpoint. Read these two articles: Public VPN's are anything but private and Former Malware Distributor Kape Technologies Now Owns ExpressVPN, CyberGhost, Private Internet Access, Zenmate, and a Collection of VPN “Review” Websites.
However, that being said one of the most respected contributors to these forums and a respected developer has reported favorably on NordVPN. So it may be more secure than most of the other public VPNs.
I wholeheartedly agree with babowa on what's needed to protect your Apple devices. Here's another take on it with additional info:
First, there is no reason to ever install or run any 3rd party "cleaning", "optimizing", "speed-up", anti-virus, VPN or security apps on your Mac. This user tip describes what you need to know and do in order to protect your Mac: Effective defenses against malware and other threats - Apple Community.
There are no known viruses, i.e. self propagating, for Macs. There are, however, adware and malware which require the user to install although unwittingly most of the time thru sneaky links, etc.
Anti Virus developers try to group all types as viruses into their ad campaigns of fear. They do a poor job of the detecting and isolating the adware and malware. Since there are no viruses these apps use up a lot of system resources searching for what is non-existent and adversely affect system and app performance.
There is one app, Malwarebytes, which was developed by a long time contributor to these forums and a highly respected member of the computer security community, that is desshoigned solely to seek out adware and known malware and remove it. The free version is more than adequate for most users.
Also, unless you're using a true VPN tunnel, such as between you and your employer, school or bank's servers, they are useless from a privacy standpoint. Read these two articles: Public VPN's are anything but private and Former Malware Distributor Kape Technologies Now Owns ExpressVPN, CyberGhost, Private Internet Access, Zenmate, and a Collection of VPN “Review” Websites.
However, that being said one of the most respected contributors to these forums and a respected developer has reported favorably on NordVPN. So it may be more secure than most of the other public VPNs.
Hello ATBster,
We understand that you have some concerns about security on your Apple devices. Apple has built-in security means to help protect your devices, which is outlined here:
Use the built-in security and privacy protections of iPhone
Thanks for using Apple Support Communities!
No additional third party program is needed. Mac OS and iOS have enough built in protection and, with the latest Mac OS, your OS and system are "quarantined" in a inaccessible/read only volume so neither a virus nor any third party "protection" app has access to it.
So, do your devices a favor and don't mess them up by installing irrelevant software.
They are even safer than a desktop Mac.
Thank you both. I am more worried about my iPhone and iPad than my Mac. Does the same advice hold true for them?
ATBster
Antivirus Software for ALL of my Apple Devices
