Antivirus for imac ?

bloodnok

Can you recommend any good antivirus programmes free to download ?
Thank you

Browntoa

Virtually no point on an iMac with it's locked down iOS

Roland_Sausage

Browntoa wrote: »

Virtually no point on an iMac with it's locked down iOS

It doesn't run iOS it runs MacOS (formerly OSX) which is nowhere near as locked down as iOS.

Trojans do exist, however if the user exercises caution and doesn't go installing stuff from dodgy sites, then there is little to no need for an antivirus.

Undervalued

bloodnok wrote: »

Can you recommend any good antivirus programmes free to download ?
Thank you

If you just want to check the machine from time to time with nothing running in the background, that version of BitDefender is free. If you want it to run in the background then it is chargeable. Has a good reputation.

Interestingly it found a virus attached to an email in an archived Outlook PST file, created in Windows XP, that dated back eight or nine years!

If you bank with Barclays you can get the full version of Kaspersky either completely free or for a very small charged, depending on you type of account.

As other have said whether it is necessary is debatable. Main benefit might be to spot a PC virus attached to an email which you might otherwise innocently forward.

System

Hi

Try

https://www.sophos.com/en-us/products/free-tools/sophos-antivirus-for-mac-home-edition.aspx

datostar

Undervalued wrote: »

If you bank with Barclays you can get the full version of Kaspersky either completely free or for a very small charged, depending on you type of account.

As other have said whether it is necessary is debatable. Main benefit might be to spot a PC virus attached to an email which you might otherwise innocently forward.

I installed the free Kaspersky from Barclays on my iMac with i7 processor and 16GB RAM. It slows things down horrendously so it's turned off most of the time.

thescouselander

It's really not worth it. Antivirus will just slow the machine down and may create more vulnerabilities than it mitigates.

Mr_Toad

I use Avast and to be honest you forget it's there.

In all the years I've been using a Mac it has never detected a Mac virus.

However, anyone who tells you that a Mac doesn't need AV doesn't really know what they are talking about.

If nothing else you should have one to ensure that you catch any Windows virus or malware in any files, documents or emails you may be sharing so that you don't pass them on to other people not using a Mac.

Secondly MacOS has a number of distinct vulnerabilities that could be exploited. I seem to remember reading that in a recent test MacOS had 10 whereas Windows 10 had 14.

The only thing keeping mac users virus free is the scumbags creating them are concentrating on the biggest user base, Windows. It only takes one or two to let loose a Mac virus and things would be very different.

I'm glad the OP has thought about installing AV.

Undervalued

datostar wrote: »

I installed the free Kaspersky from Barclays on my iMac with i7 processor and 16GB RAM. It slows things down horrendously so it's turned off most of the time.

Really?

Any program running in the background will slow things down to some extent on any computer.

However I am using the current version on a much lower spec Mac than you describe and I certainly wouldn't describe the effect as "horrendous".

Interestingly I used their Windows version a few years back and that was like wading through treacle!

So I don't think is is as simple as Kaspersky = Slow, AntivirusXXX - Quick.

AndyPix

Roland_Sausage wrote: »

there is little to no need for [strike]an antivirus.[/strike] a mac

Fixed that for you

Undervalued

AndyPix wrote: »

Fixed that for you

Now, now! Did that wake you from your Windoze! :rotfl: