does anyone know how to remove anti virus software

McAfee should have an uninstaller in the Applications folder. If you can't find that, try opening the Terminal and enter the following command there:

/usr/local/McAfee/uninstallMSC

You could copy that command, paste it into the Terminal, then press return. This must be done from an account with admin privileges. When asked for your password, enter your account password, and be aware that nothing will show on the screen when you type.

You say that you are trying to update your anti-virus... what anti-virus software do you plan to use? There are a lot of them that are really bad on the Mac (McAfee is one of them). I would recommend that you read my Mac Malware Guide, and keep in mind that your internet service provider cannot force you to use anti-virus software if you choose not to.

I change providers - and one had mcafee the other uses norton

Yikes! Norton's almost as bad as McAfee. Avoid both at all costs.

I tried the link you suggested and the reply came back that no file exsits

When you say you "tried the link," what do you mean? Did you run that command ("/usr/local/McAfee/uninstallMSC") in the Terminal and get that error message, or did you try to open it in a web browser? Note that that is not a link, so if you did anything other than enter it in the Terminal, you didn't do it right.

If you did run that command in the Terminal, that error message suggests that McAfee has already been removed. That command's removal isn't something that would have happened accidentally, since it's buried deep inside an invisible folder. What are you seeing that suggests it is still present?

I try to install norton and it does a compatibility test stating that is still there

Possibly, then, Norton is just detecting the presence of some McAfee preference or log file that the installer left behind. I wouldn't worry about it, especially since I wouldn't advise installing Norton anyway.

BTW I did read your other posts about AV software not being needed with OS X - just my own peace of mind on using one tho

That's perfectly okay, as long as you use it in an informed manner (don't do things that could result in you getting infected despite having AV software installed) and are careful not to use junk AV software (of which there is a lot out there). There are some recommendations you'll find for how to keep yourself safe and for what AV software to use in the guide I referred you to earlier.

Hey Mytzycb,

You might want to give AppRemover (appremover.com) a try. It's a free tool that uninstalls antivirus applications just like McAfee, Norton, etc. Hopefully this helps!

No, you should never use a tool like AppRemover for such a purpose. That is not a reliable means of removing anti-virus software, while every anti-virus program that I'm aware of has an uninstaller (or doesn't need one, in the case of App Store anti-virus apps).

Surely the fact that you are having these problems should give you cause for concern regarding installing another AV? It would for me, that's for sure.

I don't have any AV installed.

My bank keeps reminding me that I should install some (but that assumes I'm on a Windows system). I just tell it to remind me later.