Protection?

You don't need anti-virus software on a Mac. There are no viruses and maybe a few dozen malware definitions, most of which can be caught with OS X built-in protection.

If you need 3rd party anti-virus software, there aren't many good ones out there, MacKeeper may be the worst. Try ClamXav if you need it: http://clamxav.com.

None.

Norton has a bad reputation in the Mac world because their software used to cause all kinds of issues. Their latest version (12) runs extremely well and offers a good suite of tools (great firewall). With that said, i would not invest in protection software for the Mac, get a free Antivirus like Sophos or Avast, enable OS X's built-in firewall and i recommend an additional tool like Little Snitch (paid software) to monitor outgoing traffic. That will cover the basics.

stevejobsfan0123 wrote:

If you need 3rd party anti-virus software, there aren't many good ones out there, MacKeeper may be the worst. Try ClamXav if you need it: http://clamxav.com.

MacKeeper would be a very close tie with Norton 😁

All unnecessary. And if you do decide to DL ClamX only run it occasionally to scan. No automatic features.

If you have a router you are already behind a firewall (the router has one) 2 firewalls are not needed.

I wouldn't install Sophos and especially Avast because they have caused numerous problems for people.

And I would add Little Snitch to that list, plenty of reported problems there as well.

Hans L wrote:

Aha, I have heard that before. But I could never figure out whether the router firewall was any good!

Hans L

They work.

There are plenty of posts regarding Little Snitch problems on this site, they vary, search around.

In all my years using Little Snitch i've never experienced any issues. Of course you'll read plenty of negative stuff here about whatever the topic is just like you likely won't see any smiling faces in an emergency room. The vast majority of people come to this forum because they have issues with something, not to share how fantastic everything is working 😉

Your router firewall is only as good as your configuration. If you are confident you configured it as best you can then there is no need to enable your Mac's firewall. Firewalls are typically only concerned about incoming traffic though, not outgoing traffic which is almost as important. Little Snitch focusses on the outgoing traffic. As for Sophos and Avast, no issues with those either personally. Works as it should and i find them being less resource hungry and better able to detect malware than ClamXav.

Whatever you decide to implement/install, keep in mind that they are just small pieces of the big 'security puzzle'. Use strong passwords, encrypt sensitive data, don't install stuff you don't know anything about, etc etc.

Hans L wrote:

Aha, I have heard that before. But I could never figure out whether the router firewall was any good!

I have never found a router that didn't provide sufficient basic firewall protection, unless you can figure out how to disable it. To check it out go to Shield Check or GRC's ShieldsUp.

The firewall on your computer is almost always redundant to the one in place on the router managing your local network, so turning it on will slightly slow your internet access. If this is a trusted network that uses a strong WPA2 password, then you don't need to turn the one Apple provides on. See Do I need a firewall?.

I'm a big believer in Little Snitch for outgoing connections, however.