Do MacBooks need spyware protection?

The system is likely slowing due to age and wear, also lack of unused capacity in the computer's hard disk drive due to your saved files, image libraries, music libraries, movies, etc.

•The Safe Mac - Mac Performance Guide

http://www.thesafemac.com/mpg/

There really is not much spyware going on, but if you install a 'cleanupyourmac' or other pretend helpware you will really be in for a lot of extra work trying to be rid of it. In fact, there is a chance you may already have a kind of problem known as 'adware' due to visiting odd sites to get software, such as softonic, cnet, and dozens of others that can load genieo, and other marginal unhelpful items into the OS X and contaminate it.

•The Safe Mac - Adware Removal Guide

http://www.thesafemac.com/arg/

You could get and run a known good free utility by the name Etrecheck from its own web site, and the resulting readout file can be posted into a Discussion where people here could read it, to see if one of the adware or other known slowness contributing items may be spotted. Means of removing them are not available through cleanmymac or mackeeper kinds of badware. You are needing to do the housekeeping ahead of issues, but for the most part OSX helps itself.

•About EtreCheck (+ download)

http://www.etresoft.com/etrecheck_story

Do you have the MacBook set to be a TimeMachine backup disc? It would use the internal HDD to save a backup several times a day, and that space is a rare commodity. A TimeMachine backup should be on an external hard disk drive, since the internal one could fail and all things on it unretrievable.

A basic routine understanding of how the Mac OS X works, and the user responsibility, will not be repaired or made better through use of cleanup or removal software. These uninstallers can also add unwanted bugs.

Good luck & happy computing! 🙂

There is no protection against intrusive junk such as spyware other than your own common sense. Never install pirated or "cracked" software, software obtained from dubious websites, or other questionable sources. "Questionable sources" often includes results from a cursory web search that direct you to sites such as Download dot com, Mac Update dot com, Softpedia, C Net dot com, among many others whose revenue is primarily derived from advertisers selling junk products, and / or bundling it with the software hosted on their site.

If you choose to obtain software from sources other than the Mac App Store, the next best alternative is the developer's own website.

If you ever encounter a dialog box such as this

... the only correct response is to de-select the box. If you don't, you willfully acknowledge the terms and conditions shown, some of which are likely to cause you grief.

Better yet, obtain software from a source that doesn't attempt to deceive you into installing junk you don't want.

AngyeBob wrote:

I understand that Mac's don't require virus protection but do they need spyware protection?

The only software that specializes in Spyware detection is MacScan from SecureMac and it's not very good at what it does. Sometimes it identifies needed files as infected and testing has shown that it does a really bad job at finding other types of malware.

Some A-V software is capable of detecting a very few types of Spyware, but for the most part such software is commercial or hack software that has legitimate uses (parental supervision, etc.). The only way such software could be on your computer would be if you allowed physical access to it or granted shared access over your network..