Is it safe to use Malwarebytes as a free scanner with full access on macOS Sonoma?

Yes, Malwarebytes is safe to use. And it needs Full Disk Access to do its job effectively.

I have used MBytes for many years on many different Macs. Even though they promote it as an A/V app it's not really. It provides additional protections against ransomware, spyware, Trojans, and zero-day exploits and removes malware. It also has protections against adware and browser trackers. FWIW, it was originally written by a respected member of these Apple Communities.

You may hear some people say that it reduces system performance and maybe if you watch the Activity Log you would think so yourself ... but I have never, ever experienced any perceptible impact on any of my Macs. I consider it a useful adjunct to macOS' built-in a/v protections.

macOS has great built-in security as long as the user also practices safe computing habits as outlined in the following article:

https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-8841

There should be no need for such apps. However, if you have accidentally installed malware or adware, then using the free version of MalwareBytes is fine, but it can also be removed manually. Keep in mind MalwareBytes may not know about certain malware/adware for a while, but the manual method usually tends to work regardless (especially with assistance from forum contributors).

FYI, I try to minimize the use of third party software except where it has an advantage, or provides a service not included in the OS.

MartinR wrote:

I have used MBytes for many years on many different Macs. Even though they promote it as an A/V app it's not really. It provides additional protections against ransomware, spyware, Trojans, and zero-day exploits and removes malware. It also has protections against adware and browser trackers.

Malwarebytes today is most definitely a mainstream antivirus app identical to any other. It bears no resemblance to the original utility that you're describing.

FWIW, it was originally written by a respected member of these Apple Communities.

He hasn't been involved with the development of the tool for many years. He no longer works for Malwarebytes. He doesn't even work in tech anymore. He's a trail guide in Montana now.

You may hear some people say that it reduces system performance and maybe if you watch the Activity Log you would think so yourself ... but I have never, ever experienced any perceptible impact on any of my Macs. I consider it a useful adjunct to macOS' built-in a/v protections.

Fun fact. Just yesterday I saw a new EtreCheck link show up in my Google notifications. It referenced the current version so I wanted to make sure it hadn't been pirated again.

It hasn't been pirated. They were just using EtreCheck as bait for one of those Terminal copy-and-paste malware jobs. So I selectively copied and pasted. 😄 It was pretty standard malware. It harvested web browser (mostly Chrome) extensions and data, keychains, passwords, and some other personal data. It was mainly looking for crypto wallets. But it would also install one of several fake crypto apps. I downloaded all of them. Then, I uploaded all of them to VirusTotal to see how many would be detected. There were only two detections out of a total of about 300 attempts. Both of those detections were from Kaspersky.

This is real-world malware. Anyone paying for 3rd party antivirus is wasting their time and money.

caninemiss wrote:

Thanx, you are one positive of the 3 replies thus far- Is MALWAREBYTES safe for now to have said FULL ACCESS? Have they been "hacked ever " by the bad guys" ?

Thanx

If you trust the vendor, and trust any future entities that might acquire the vendor and change those practices, and trust all the staff working on the app, and trust the vendor staff development and testing practices to be flawless, sure. Probably.

Anti-malware and VPNs and such as themselves targets for security attacks, too.

Pragmatically, I don’t see the point of running two anti-malware apps. If you need a second tool, consider using network-level scanning at the firewall, snd perpetually at other network places, including canaries.

Before adding network tooling, I would review the security recommendations available for your configuration from Apple, and would look at hardening the Apple Account and at what is installed, as well as steps including rotating backups and offsite backups, account recovery and legacy steps, two-factor,authentication, etc. This includes checking and updating firewall and switch and printer firmware, and looking for and replacing unsupported or deprecated products.

What purpose would that serve? The scanner does absolutely nothing on a Mac. There is absolutely nothing for it to find.If you ignore much advice about using the Internet and managed to install adware, the standalone tool is good for removing that.

Yes, it is.

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The background process in Malwarebytes, which continuously runs, is assigned the highest priority (nice value) among processes and that will have some impact on your overall system and application performance.

Taking care not to download anything from non-vendor sites greatly reduces the likelyhood of your installing something with any malware in it, and that would remove the need for Malwarebytes altogether.

I don’t see the benefit.