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Mac Anti-virus software

Do you still need virus protection if you are using a Mac? We say yes. You may be safer than a Windows PC owner but your Mac is not immune to a cyber-attack installing good quality anti-virus software is a basic step to protecting your computer and your data online.

Mac Anti-virus software comparison chart for 2023

Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac
Intego Mac Internet Security X9
ESET Cybersecurity for Mac
Kaspersky Internet Security for Mac
G Data Antivirus for Mac
McAfee Internet Security for Mac
Trend Micro Antivirus for Mac
Excellent
Five stars means excellent
Very good
Four stars means very good
Good
Three stars means good
Average
Two stars means average /
Poor
One star means poor
 Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac has been awarded best buy Product image of bitdefender antivirus for mac Product image of intego mac internet security x9 Product image of eset cybersecurity for mac Product image of kaspersky internet security for mac Product image of g data antivirus for mac Product image of mcafee internet security for mac Product image of trend micro antivirus for mac
 
 

*$39.99
$20 off

*$39.99
$16 off

*$54.95
$15 off

*$39.95
$10 off
Ratings
Protection
 bitdefender antivirus for mac has a rating of five protection intego mac internet security x9 has a rating of five protection eset cybersecurity for mac has a rating of four protection kaspersky internet security for mac has a rating of four protection g data antivirus for mac has a rating of four protection mcafee internet security for mac has a rating of three protection trend micro antivirus for mac has a rating of three protection
Effectiveness
 bitdefender antivirus for mac has a rating of five effectiveness intego mac internet security x9 has a rating of five effectiveness eset cybersecurity for mac has a rating of four effectiveness kaspersky internet security for mac has a rating of four effectiveness g data antivirus for mac has a rating of four effectiveness mcafee internet security for mac has a rating of four effectiveness trend micro antivirus for mac has a rating of four effectiveness
Features
 bitdefender antivirus for mac has a rating of five features intego mac internet security x9 has a rating of four features eset cybersecurity for mac has a rating of four features kaspersky internet security for mac has a rating of four features g data antivirus for mac has a rating of four features mcafee internet security for mac has a rating of three features trend micro antivirus for mac has a rating of four features
Ease of use
 bitdefender antivirus for mac has a rating of five ease of use intego mac internet security x9 has a rating of five ease of use eset cybersecurity for mac has a rating of three ease of use kaspersky internet security for mac has a rating of three ease of use g data antivirus for mac has a rating of three ease of use mcafee internet security for mac has a rating of four ease of use trend micro antivirus for mac has a rating of three ease of use
Help & support
 bitdefender antivirus for mac has a rating of four help & support intego mac internet security x9 has a rating of four help & support eset cybersecurity for mac has a rating of four help & support kaspersky internet security for mac has a rating of three help & support g data antivirus for mac has a rating of three help & support mcafee internet security for mac has a rating of three help & support trend micro antivirus for mac has a rating of three help & support
Detection
Viruses
Viruses - A virus is a program or encryption that can replicate itself by means of the infected Mac (so named after the way biological viruses replicate using the infected organism) and spread from one Mac to another. Viruses will target and corrupt files.
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Worms
Worms - Similar to viruses in that they self-replicate. However, instead of corrupting your files, worms might delete files altogether, or be used to gain access to your network for sending junk mail. This can significantly reduce your bandwidth.
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Trojan Horses
Trojan Horses - The most common type of malware, as they are the most effective. They present themselves as harmless, useful gifts, such as simple downloadable games. They can crash your Mac, steal passwords, remotely control your Mac, and allow the hacker to watch through your webcam.
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Malware
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Spyware
Spyware - Includes Trojans, tracking cookies, and adware, and is most commonly used to track internet users’ movements and collect their personal details such as bank and credit card information.
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Rootkits
Rootkits - Relies on Administrator access hacking; once this is obtained, a rootkit has full control over the system with the ability to manipulate any software that was trying to remove it from the system. In these cases the best thing to do would be a system wipe and restart.
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Protection
Email
Email - A constant potential source by which viruses can enter your system at the click of a link. Among other techniques to stop viruses attacking your system by email, most anti-virus software will check URLs’ sent with emails to verify their host server authenticity.
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Detect Windows Viruses
Detect Windows Viruses - Some viruses can be passed from Mac to PC or vice versa. Does the product locate and prevent this from happening?
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Web Antivirus
Web Antivirus - Does the software do a number of different things to prevent viruses from ever reaching your Mac from the web? Including alerting you as to whether a website is known to be ‘unsafe’, and scanning any downloads you make.
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Network Monitoring
Network Monitoring - Does the software alert users when a program tries to make an network connection? This is helpful for stopping viruses from sending any sensitive information they have found back to their source.
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Antiphishing
Antiphishing - Does the software alert you to the fact that you have been caught hook, line and sinker by a fake website that may even look identical in every outward way to the original?
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Identity Theft Protection
Identity Theft Protection - Some malware will specifically target your personal details in order to access your online accounts.
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Antispam
Antispam - Spam pop-ups and spam emails are some of the most common ways for viruses to attack your system – and also the most annoying!
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Technology
Real-time Background Scanning
Real-time Background Scanning - Processes that will continue – as long as you allow them to – (they will use a small portion of your Apple Mac’s processing speed) to scan for viruses on your Mac.
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Virus Signatures
Virus Signatures - Scanning for viruses on your Mac by looking for tell-tale signatures in their
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Quarantine
Quarantine - Does the software have the ability to isolate the infected file/s, effectively quarantining them from the rest of your system?
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Heuristics
Heuristics - Viruses are being changed constantly due to the ease with which anti-virus programs can locate old viruses with signatures that are recognisable. To deal with new threats, heuristic analysis looks for a generic signature of a family of viruses, and can shred through meaningless code to the virus hidden underneath.
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Firewall
Firewall - Having a firewall in place is imperative, but firewalls are not specifically anti-virus; they are more there to prevent unknown programs from accessing the system without your knowledge (however, this is where their use ends – if you click an unsafe download button or even just enter the wrong website, then a firewall alone will fail to protect your system).
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Scanning
Quick Scan
Quick Scan - A fast, but more ineffectual, often localised scan.
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Scan Individual Files
Scan Individual Files - Can the software scan individual files?
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Scan USB and External Media
Scan USB and External Media - Does the software have the ability to scan electronic devices attached to your Mac?
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Custom Scan
Custom Scan - Can you customize your scan?
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Scan Archives
Scan Archives - Can the software scan your Mac & online history for viruses?
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Full Scan
Full Scan - Full Macintosh operating system scan – often taking hours.
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Optimized Scanning
Optimized Scanning - An optimized scan will use the capabilities of modern multi core CPUs, thus this option is only available to people with high end computers.
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Pause/Resume Scan
Pause/Resume Scan - Can this software pause & resume your scans?
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Set Exclusions
Set Exclusions - Select files for exclusion from an anti-virus’ scan.
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Features
Alerts / Notifications
Alerts / Notifications - Does the software provide relevant alerts as to what's going on in your Mac system?
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Scheduler
Scheduler - Can you schedule your virus scans?
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Adjustable Security Levels
Adjustable Security Levels - Can you increase the security in place over your system, or could you even decrease the security levels – sometimes a firewall will inadvertently block an IP address that a game is using to play online.
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Auto Scan USB
Auto Scan USB - Does the software automatically scan any USB attached?
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Password Protected
Password Protected - Is the anti-virus software itself protected by a password?
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Updates
Automatic Updates
Automatic Updates - Updates for the virus software (software must be kept ahead in the game against viruses constantly) can be automated.
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Manual Updates
Manual Updates - Option that updates are manually carried out.
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Rollback Update
Rollback Update - Load your Apple computer from an earlier point, usually after your system has been fatally compromised.
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Help & Support
Phone
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Email
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Live Chat
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Knowledgebase / FAQs
 bitdefender antivirus for mac knowledgebase / faqs intego mac internet security x9 knowledgebase / faqs eset cybersecurity for mac knowledgebase / faqs kaspersky internet security for mac knowledgebase / faqs g data antivirus for mac knowledgebase / faqs mcafee internet security for mac knowledgebase / faqs trend micro antivirus for mac knowledgebase / faqs
Forum
 bitdefender antivirus for mac forum intego mac internet security x9 forum eset cybersecurity for mac forum kaspersky internet security for mac forum g data antivirus for mac forum mcafee internet security for mac forum trend micro antivirus for mac forum
Operating systems
macOS Sierra(10.12)
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Mac OS X El Capitan (10.11)
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Mac OS X Yosemite (10.10)
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Mac OS X Mavericks (10.9)
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Mac OS X Lion (10.7)
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Mac OS X Snow Leopard (10.6)
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Mac Anti-virus software explained

When you're going for status or focusing on your personal preference, you probably choose Mac over PC. But when you're also going for safety, is the Mac still a better option? In the past people generally assumed Macs were safe from viruses. Macs have inbuilt security mechanisms that Windows PCs don’t, and they deal with fewer security threats than Windows because of their smaller market share. But today, if there was a tagline for Mac anti-virus protection it would be – "because Macs get viruses too".

Macs may be less likely to fall victim to an attack but they are not immune. Mac anti-virus makers would even have you believe that Macs are just as susceptible to online risks as PCs. The truth is, every computer is vulnerable to attack. All you need is one successful virus to completely mess up your Mac. In 2012 over half a million Macs were victim of the Flashback attack. Apple has cleaned up that problem and continues to put extra security features in place but at times it will be no match for a skillful virus. So now, Apple subtly recommends using anti-virus software.

The popularity of Mac anti-virus products has grown exponentially since Macs have become more popular and malware more prevalent. Mac anti-virus products provide layers of protection that help guard against a wide variety of different threats. While anti-malware capability is the main reason for choosing Mac anti-virus software, you also benefit from browser security. While malware may not be as big a problem for Macs as PCs, phishing attempts don’t discriminate and it helps to be altered to the fake website that is looking to steal your personal details. Parental controls and firewalls round out a solid core of protection. And while you may have a lower chance of being infected by a virus on a Mac, the best software protects against Windows viruses too, so you don’t pass on something downstream to your Windows-using friends and colleagues.

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