“If you use any version of Windows, an antivirus program is an absolute necessity to protect your computer. If you use a Macintosh, an antivirus program is an option. Although a handful of Macintosh viruses exist, the main purpose of any Macintosh antivirus program is to screen out Windows-specific viruses that you may accidentally pass on to Windows users. If you never share files with Windows users, you probably don’t need an antivirus program. If you regularly share files with Windows users, you may need an antivirus program like Norton AntiVirus for Mac,” MacNN reports.
“For $49.95, Norton AntiVirus works as advertised. The only trouble is justifying its cost to protect you against nearly non-existent threats. If you share files with Windows users, or regularly run Windows inside a virtual machine using Parallels or VMWare Fusion, the program can keep you from spreading malicious programs through any files you spread to others,” MacNN reports.
“If you’re strictly a Mac user who never shares files with Windows users, any antivirus program is basically unnecessary (for now). No matter how well-designed any Mac antivirus program may be, ultimately it’s more about guarding against Windows threats than anything specific. Norton AntiVirus for Mac may be good insurance, but for most people, it’s the type of insurance they won’t really need,” MacNN reports.
Full “first look” review along with screenshots here.
MacDailyNews Take: Good advice as usual from MacNN, but before you part with your $50, keep in mind Symantec’s mixed record when it comes to Macs, including a history of crying wolf about Mac OS X and viruses.
Norton Anti Virus IS a virus.
@Macromancer:
+1
Does a Crabapple need an anti-virus?
ans: NO! it just decomposes to vinegar which is a potent anti-virus!!! combined with honey (Hi Honey!) it is also a potent antibiotic!!!!!
I moved from a big US city to a small town in Ireland. It shocked me at first that the the locals didn’t lock their doors or barricade their windows, and they thought the notion of arming yourself was weird. But I’ve become used to it now. You see, if you live in a safe, civilized neighborhood, you don’t have to behave the same way as you do if you live in a crack quarter.
My old friends think I’m nuts for living this way.
I’m just sayin’
Why do I care about PC users viruses. I don’t care about giving them viruses, if they pay for Norton, I’d be happy to install it. Otherwise, get a Mac.
I see no point in having stuff slowing down my computer, even supposedly to protect windows users. If they have virus protection they won’t get infected by what I pass on, and if they don’t, they’ll get infected anyway, if not by me, by someone else.
Yeah, get clamXav – it’s free and works a treat. Although it appears to hog the CPU when scanning, as you’d expect, with the efficiency of OS X I barely notice.
I bought Norton 360 for a couple PC’s we still use. They are a few years old but still do the limited tasks they we have them for. I put Norton 360 on them and they became virtually unusable. I shut it off on one of them and had to completely remove it on the other as it was completely unresponsive.
In Norton’s case the cure is worse than the disease.
OMG There are viruses for Mac? That does it! I’m switching to Vista!!
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OK… Let me put in a plug here for
VirusBarrier….it works (though it can be a bit annoying)…
and gets rid of Word macro viruses which can and DO afflict Word on the Mac. It costs more but you are supporting a smaller company and not Symantec. If and when a viral threat for the Mac does arise…you’ll be much happier you either already have it (they update frequently) or that you at least have an alternative.
I have to use a PC too, and we dumped Norton on the PC side. It was a complete memory hog and slowed down our PCs dramatically. (Best of luck uninstalling Norton if you have a PC – the removal steps are excrutiating, and doing so took me almost two hours. Go figure.) For our PCs, we installed NOD32 by ESET. Once we did, our PCs ran significantly faster. Plus, NOD32 is much less intrusive. Frankly, I would not recommend Norton for either PCs or Macs – there are much better alternatives out there.
Personally, I am working on what I will call the Kramden Utilities just to keep Norton in line…
Can someone please name one VIRUS for OS X? <crickets>
Exactly, there are trojans out there but no viruses. This is not semantics, either – it makes a BIG difference.
I’ve been going bare for years. Which is why my current girlfriend made me get tested for HIV.
I agree with pr.
If you really, really have to. Go with Intego’s VirusBarrier.
I would never let Norton AntiVirus anywhere near any computer of mine. Not only is its main function largely irrelevant on the Mac, but Norton products specifically have a long-standing reputation for not always playing nice with Macs. Think: Nuked hard drives!
LOL. There is a ad for MS One Care below the feedback box.
ClamXAV if you want AV for the Mac. Donationware. Open Source. Doesn’t hose your computer.
Not to mention the fact that Norton Antivirus has been known to break with nearly every system update.
Antivirus programs typically run with liberal permissions and they can really damage your files if anything goes wrong. I speak from experience.
MDN – It would seem that you are endorsing the thought … “Although a handful of Macintosh viruses exist” … by you not refuting it.
Are you able to set the record straight, one way or another.
“Although a handful of Macintosh viruses exist”
Can anyone name ONE Macintosh virus? And NO, a trojan doesn’t count.
MDN Magic Word: period, as in: There are zero Mac viruses, period.
Norton AV will always be two steps behind Intego’s VirusBarrier. If you must have an AV (like me), VirusBarrier is the only way to go. VirusBarrier is very light on system resources. I have 4GB of RAM on my MacBook, so I have a little to spare anyway. Most Macs can get away without an AV installed even when a rare Mac trojan is released as was the case very recently. However if you’re one of the few people who were unfortunate enough to get hit by this, you probably feel like an AV is a necessity.
really, dudes, 4real…
do WE care about windows users???
50$ to protect THEM???????????
WTF???
este gente nao bate bem dos cornos… n pode.
Guys… there ARE a handful of Macintosh viruses. But they only affect/infect the older Classic OSes. OS X is a different matter though.
I have only one problem with ClamXAV and that is that when it finds a Windows virus on a Parallel desktop, it quarantines the entire Windows disc image file.
So what I am now doing as we speak is to run Avast, which is a free Windows anti-virus program to clean out the Trojan that ClamXAV found.
I wish ClamXAV could clean that virus.
Who cares about Windows users anyways? Anyone dumb enough to run Windows (Zune Tang, et al) deserves to be corn holed that a way anyway.
Unfortunately – it is a requirement to have an Anti-Virus program on your Mac Computer running in the background if you plan on attending University of Phoenix Online to get your Degree.
I protested at first – but after seeing how much file sharing there is once you start a class online – you realize that it must be done. (at least as a show of respect to other students).
1.5 years ago University of Phoenix Online Flat out Refused to let Students use their Macs while ‘attending’ classes – so I got to give them credit for getting turned around enough this year to let Mac OSX users into the fold.
I also had to buy Microsoft Office for Mac and got Office 2008 – I think everyone else is using Win Office 2003 – cause nobody can open the docx version …. i have to step down everything I submit so others can use it. as always, MSFT manages to piss me off every time I try to use their products as my productivity tool.