Q: I am new to Mac and my question is whether I would need an anti virus program for OS X Mavericks as I use torrent files to download movies, please advice !

I would look at ClamXAV. The link is below. Downloading movie torrents is piracy.

Helpful Links Regarding Malware Problems

If you are having an immediate problem with ads popping up see The Safe Mac » Adware Removal Guide and The Safe Mac » Adware Removal Tool. Open Safari, select Preferences from the Safari menu. Click on Extensions icon in the toolbar. Disable all Extensions. If this stops your problem, then re-enable them one by one until the problem returns. Now remove that extension as it is causing the problem.

An excellent link to read is Tom Reed's Mac Malware Guide.

Also, visit The XLab FAQs and read Detecting and avoiding malware and spyware.

See these Apple articles:

  Mac OS X Snow Leopard and malware detection

  OS X Lion- Protect your Mac from malware

  OS X Mountain Lion- Protect your Mac from malware

  OS X Mavericks- Protect your Mac from malware

  About file quarantine in OS X

If you require anti-virus protection Thomas Reed recommends using ClamXAV. (Thank you to Thomas Reed for this recommendation.)

From user Joe Bailey comes this equally useful advice:

The facts are:

1. There is no anti-malware software that can detect 100% of the malware out there.

2. There is no anti-malware that can detect anything targeting the Mac because there

     is no Mac malware in the wild, and therefore, no "signatures" to detect.

3. The very best way to prevent the most attacks is for you as the user to be aware that

     the most successful malware attacks rely on very sophisticated social engineering

     techniques preying on human avarice, ****, and fear.

4. Internet popups saying the FBI, NSA, Microsoft, your ISP has detected malware on

    your computer is intended to entice you to install their malware thinking it is a

    protection against malware.

5. Some of the anti-malware products on the market are worse than the malware

    from which they purport to protect you.

6. Be cautious where you go on the internet.

7. Only download anything from sites you know are safe.

8. Avoid links you receive in email, always be suspicious even if you get something

    you think is from a friend, but you were not expecting.

9. If there is any question in your mind, then assume it is malware.

That is called theft, and there is no help with that here.

I am new to Mac and I am wondering whether I would need an anti-virus program to run with OS X Mavericks ? I download and use lots of torrent files or p2p websites and hence it is a concern,

Yes it is. Installing illegally obtained software is an open invitation for malware intrusion, and "anti-virus" software won't help.

• Never install pirated or "cracked" software, software obtained from dubious websites, or other questionable sources.
  • Illegally obtained software is almost certain to contain malware.
  • "Questionable sources" include but are not limited to spontaneously appearing web pages or popups, download hosting sites such as C net dot com, Softonic dot com, Soft pedia dot com, Download dot com, Mac Update dot com, or any other site whose revenue is primarily derived from junk product advertisements.

It's your Mac, do with it as you wish, but you're asking for trouble.

You didn't ask about good and evil. The answer to the question you did ask is that as long as you only download data files, and you're sure that's what they are, you're not at risk of malware attack for that reason. If you download any kind of software from torrents, you are certain to be infected with malware, and no "anti-virus" will protect you.

I use torrent files to download movies, please advice !

A really good site to answer your questions!!!

-> Here

"I download and use lots of torrent files or p2p websites and hence it is a concern,"

The inference is that such activity would benefit from the presence of AV software. If that is not your concern what is it?

Although malware is a real danger with most BitTorrent sites, an even bigger problem these days for Mac users is adware, which anti-virus apps don't detect, for the most part. To me it's not worth the risk, but breaking the law is a personal decision for you and I for one won't judge you for that.

If you suspect this is a problem for you take a look at TheSafeMac's Adware Removal Guide and consider the use of his Adware Removal Tool to check for any you already have.

Not the right place to be asking but here is a good list and report of OS X protection software http://www.thesafemac.com/mac-anti-virus-testing-2014/