How to uninstall antivirus program on Mac Air please

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Level 1

14 points

How to uninstall antivirus program on Mac Air please

Hi I have Mac Air OS X 10.9.4 and wanted to download McAfee antivirus program which requires removing my now defunct Sophos Antivirus. I have removed all Sophos files (per my computer) into the trash but still am told McAfee cannot download because there is still an old incompatible antivirus program. Please help. I am now unprotected. There is a Sophos "logo" in the tool bar but I don't know how to remove it...and it will not function when opened. Thanks much!

MacBook Air, OS X Mavericks (10.9.4)

Posted on Aug 6, 2014 2:18 PM

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Answer 1

John Galt

Level 10

157,460 points

Aug 7, 2014 5:55 PM in response to NicoleTroon

From Removal tools for Sophos Anti-Virus for Mac:

In some situations you may be unable to run the built-in Sophos Anti-Virus for Mac (SAV for Mac) uninstaller. This article provides a standalone tool to remove the installation of Sophos Anti-Virus for Mac

Common reasons for needing this tool are:

If the product has been deleted (e.g., dragged to the Trash) rather than correctly uninstalled.
Where the uninstaller is unable to run due to a corrupted receipt file.

Download, expand, and run the applicable uninstaller for the Sophos product you installed.

Do not install McAfee.

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Answer 2

petermac87

Level 5

7,453 points

Aug 6, 2014 2:25 PM in response to NicoleTroon

There should be a proper uninstaller supplied with the original Sophos disc or .dmg and I would also suggest not bothering to install MacAfee or any other anti-virus, as they are really not required on OSX and tend to cause a lot more problems than they will solve.

Good Luck

Pete

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Answer 3

Barney-15E

Level 10

123,452 points

Aug 6, 2014 3:47 PM in response to NicoleTroon

You are quite well protected without any anti-virus software. As a matter of fact, you are much better off without any installed. All anti virus software will cause more problems than they can possibly hope to solve.

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Answer 4

Old Toad

Level 10

217,024 points

Aug 6, 2014 2:40 PM in response to NicoleTroon

Removing Sophos Anti-Virus for Mac OS X

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