For the past few days my computer has been very laggy, and not working properly. I was on Safari today and a window popped up about a virus warning, and it would not let me close out of the window. Now every time I open Safari that message pops up. I hear that apple has a no virus guarantee, is this true? If so, what do they do when a computer gets a virus on it?
MacBook Pro
You are getting the issues mixed up. That is why I cautioned you about wading into this topic. You mentioned that MalwareBytes saying "Malwarebytes has always supported the notion of co-existence with other security software, making sure to play nicely with all of the other players, so adding protection seems safe, as well". A couple of months ago that might have been true. But it is most definitely false today. That is not a value statement about MalwareBytes. I'm not attacking it. In my opinion, it is the best security tool available for the Mac, but the new version has some bugs.
The Avira information you posted was just invalid. thomas_r. has already described how harmless most of those files were. The "virus" is, in fact, just a run-of-the-mill adware installer wrapper from a CNET download. It is an adware installer as the "Adobe Flash Player-2.dmg" probably is. CNET is one of a number of software distribution sites that wrap other people's software in their own adware-laden installers. But none of those files presented any threat to you whatsoever. You would have to install the adware for it to have any effect. There is no possible way you could trigger the other two files.
By far, the biggest problem with security on the Mac is misinformation. I see so many people who have installed 3rd party security programs that give them no protection whatsoever from the very real adware problem. Many others have been completely scammed by tech support scammers or fraudulent software, costing them anything from $40-$400. Avira is, at least, a legitimate product. But the urge to sell through fear is just too much to resist for some companies. They know what people expect to see, so they give them that. People expect to see viruses and trojans. Anyone with an e-mail address is going to have some Windows malware sitting in some e-mail. That's not going to hurt you.
If you like Avira and want to keep running it, go right ahead. But if you later have problems and post a question here on Apple Support Communities, the first thing people are going to suggest is removing it. You can even promote Avira here if you want. But if you attempt to promote it by showing how it can corrupt your e-mail account, or flag harmless Windows malware, or mislabel common adware as a virus, I have to say, you really aren't doing a good job at promotion.
When you see the pop-up Force Quit it.
1. Force Quit .
Press command + option + esc keys together at the same time. Wait.
When Force Quit window appears, select Safari if not already.
Press Force Quit button at the bottom of the window. Wait.
Safari will quit.
2. Relaunch Safari holding the shift key down.
kayla.b25 wrote:
I was on Safari today and a window popped up about a virus warning, and it would not let me close out of the window. Now every time I open Safari that message pops up.
That is a fake tech support scam. No malware is involved. For more information, including how to get rid of it, see:
I hear that apple has a no virus guarantee, is this true?
No, that is not true. Malware on the Mac is rare, but it does exist. See my Mac Malware Guide.
(Fair disclosure: I may receive compensation from links to my sites, TheSafeMac.com and AdwareMedic.com.)
I just recieved a virus notification, what do I do about this?
