hidden file no permission for delete

Follow up -

I have a similar .file on my Mac running Tahoe 26.6.2. It's not a problem.

You cannot delete the file because it resides on an area of the drive that is restricted by permissions to access by the OS only. To protect the integrity and security of the OS and user data, many areas of the drive, including the root, are designated as 'read only' for users, apps and especially malicious apps and utilities that may have the potential to otherwise cause problems on your Mac.

There are very many thousands (millions?) of hidden files on the Mac. Hidden for a reason. Best to leave them that way and disregard their existence.

If you have gone knocking about the drive looking for clues about some problem you are having with your Mac, please feel free to share and detail any symptoms or issues that you are experiencing and your friends here in the Community will be happy to address them and provide guidance.

Writing an effective Apple Support Communities question - Apple Community

I understand, my friend. 👍🏽

Though it sounds like you're running macOS 12 Monterey, rather than Mojave (10.14).

Monterey is several generations newer and improved.

I will add that the modern macOS, since macOS 11 Big Sur, currently resides on a signed and sealed volume on the APFS formatted startup drive. This protects it from tampering and malware. The Mac runs from a verified snapshot of the OS, so in the big scheme of things macOS is pretty darned secure and hardened against attack.

Signed system volume security - Apple Support

And you're welcome. Happy to help.

gianni60 wrote:

Thank you for your interest, I understand perfectly what hidden files are, my MacBook is 2017 Mojave everything works very well I have been Hacked more than once (on different computers) and on the date of the file (6/17/2024) enter an insecure wifi my computers have a VPN and tunnel but I had to do it, and, I have not gotten any valid explanation for the presence of that file (I don't usually always check that kind of thing) but a few days ago Install a fresh copy of the Mojave and out of curiosity check that part of the disk I saw that file and comff is BCE to look for some explanation of the presence (the other folders and hidden files in that area are perfectly explained) but that not except that you tell me that your MacOS 26.6.2 also has it and that's enough and I ask this question because if I didn't get in my answer I was going to completely erase the disk and install everything again (At the moment I'm in a course at Cisco for a certification and another at Anthropic and I didn't want to waste time with this matter but, since I can't get a valid explanation for the presence of that file because I was going to have to do it

Thank you for your answer, it has been useful

Always verify files across unrelated Macs. There can be (are) file divergences due to differences in updates and due to normal use too, of course.

Complicating your quest, Mac malware can operate with no files, which means there’s more than checking files involved in detection. About the best path can be catching unexpected network traffic at the routers, a quest which itself is less than trivial.

Not sure what you’re looking at here for VPN details either, as macOS on Intel includes in-built VPN tun-tap support, though newer versions include only utun on Macs with Apple silicon.

As for Cisco and Anthropic, there are stories there.

Here are a couple of articles for you to review which can help keep both you and your computer safe:

Effective defenses against malware and other threats - Apple Community

Issues regarding VPNs:

https://gist.github.com/joepie91/5a9909939e6ce7d09e29

There are very many hidden files in macOS.

Why do you think it's a problem?