Contrary to an idea widely spread and skilfully maintained by Apple advertisements, macOS is not totally immune to viruses and certainly not immune to any aggression, as we will see.
Without being alarmist, to say that an antivirus is useless on Mac, as we often read and hear it, would be to go a little fast. It is important to understand that:
Viruses are only a sub-category of malware (malware) that can infect our Macs.
A good “antivirus” is not limited to the detection of viruses in the strict sense, but to any form of malware (see our antivirus suggestions at the end of this article).
We have tested the best mac os antivirus software for Macintoshs, and here we show you the results. Intego, Norton, Sophos, Avira, Kaspersky, ESET… Read our list of winners!
Viruses on Mac: should you protect your computer?
Macs are commonly considered more secure than PCs, and rightly so. The Unix operating system of Apple products has many firewalls that restrict access to certain security areas of the computer.
Besides, compared to PCs, Macs represent only a tiny fraction of the PC market. As a result, pragmatic malware developers are less likely to tackle them.
However, Apple computers are not impervious to all malware. This malware (viruses, spyware, Trojans, etc.) is intended to hijack your private information or take possession of your computer for criminal and financial purposes.
It is therefore advisable to protect your computer, whatever its brand.
To surf the Internet with complete peace of mind, read our ranking of the best antivirus products for Mac!
Mac Antivirus: how to choose the best antivirus for your Apple products?
Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac
The absolute protection. Designed for Mac.
Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac integrates the most advanced cybersecurity technologies in the world. Enjoy your Mac safely.
Choose a solution that protects more than 500 MILLION users.
The effectiveness of antivirus is measured by its ability to protect your computer from malware. To compare the different antiviruses presented here, we used a VMware Fusion virtual machine running under macOS 10.13.3 and downloaded ten viruses: BadBunny, Clapzok, FileCoder, Inqtana, Koobface, Macareno, MineSteal, Renepo, WeaponX, and XcodeGhost.
For each software, we tested the programmed scans and virus detection in real time.
Norton Security for Mac
This year, Norton is back in our top 3 best anti-viruses for Mac since it was able to identify 100% of the attacks during our test. Of course, it took him several scans to detect the XcodeGhost virus, but it’s better than many other programs.
Norton is easy to install and comes with two extensions for Safari: Safe web, which blocks your access to dangerous websites, and Identity Safe, which manages your passwords.
The antivirus is discreet on your computer and, if you wish, you can program your scans or launch them manually.
Sophos Antivirus
Sophos has detected all ten viruses in our test, which is particularly impressive for free software.
Regarding presentation, this antivirus is minimalist since it is displayed as an icon in your menu bar. To launch an analysis of your computer, click on it and select the appropriate tab.
Although it does not have many advanced features, this antivirus still has a parental filter and protection against malicious websites.
Do you want more services? The paid version of Sophos can protect up to 10 computers and offers protection against software ransom.
Kaspersky Internet Security for Mac
Once you have selected the version of Kaspersky that is right for your operating system, it is easy to install.
During our test, this antivirus was a little slow, and several scans were necessary to identify the ten viruses.
However, Kaspersky compensates for these deficiencies with exciting features such as Safe Money, which protects your online payments.