Is it still true that there is no need for AV or ASpyware On Apple products such as iPad? Thanks, Jerry
iOS doesn't require any AV protection and you can't even run it properly. Although OSX is another story. There at least manual scanner can be useful for random scans every now and then. (I suggest eg. Bitdefender)
There are an increasing number of infections of OS X. So you might want to consider using an antivirus such as Avast. Also, you may want to use Malwarebytes Anti-Malware for Mac (previously called AdwareMedic). You won't need an antivirus on iOS (iPad/iPhone) devices.
In reality, you don't "need" AV on anything as long as you stick to trusted sources like the App Store or repositories. VirusTotal for downloads are the only exception other than manual checks every now and then. I personally don't use one on my Macbook, because it just slows it down. All risky users are using the Guest account (which is wiped after logout anyways), and none know the admin password other than myself. Funny thing is, I tried Sophos and it definitely lagged the creation of guest account files, which made a superior security feature slower lol.
As noted in my sig, I just use MBAM on my MacBook. I haven't noticed any performance impact and I find it to be more than sufficient (security) for OS X.
For those saying users don't need an AV on iOS devices, that is historically by design due to the nature of the OS. However, Apple may need to re-think this if the following blog post by Malwarebytes is anything to go by. As the article says, it'll be interesting to see how Apple handles this.
The solution may be to not allow the JSPatch code, but the point of the article is that if Apple don't do anything, there is risk of malware on iOS devices using the update method described.
Avs on a Mac are optional i would say for now. Theres moreand more Mac Malware all day long but not so much as on Windows. If you check OSXes default security settings plus you stick to good sources you can stay away from malware, but sadly Adware is much much easier to get than real malware these days. AVs should be renamed to Anti-Junkware or something.......
I use Kaspersky Virus Scanner Pro for Mac. It has no noticeable impact on the system as it only scans the downloads folder in realtime. I'm very happy with it. Got it from the AppStore for a one off low cost fee.
iOS does not need AV. OS X does in my opinion just because there is adware and at any time these adware malware writers can install true malicious malware and the URL filtering can keep you away from malicious URLs. Best AV for the mac I would say is Avast. They have robust OS X definition signatures and have daily and weekly OS X additions to those signatures posted. They are not letting their OS X AV wallow as some do. All Mac AV can be easily by-passed, but can pick off easy low hanging fruit. While I also run monthly Malwarebytes for Mac, and also run OSX malware researcher and Director of Research for Synack Patrick Wardle's OS X sniffing and blocking tools. Apple's gatekeeper is easily by-passed. https://objective-see.com/products.html 6 mins https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHZ9XGvNeik 1 hr. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oT8BKt_0cJw .
True iOS will not let you install an AV I know of a couple AV's tried to but Apple removed them quickly from the Apple store. OSX as everyone has already said that's a different story! Here it a Blog article from Webroot Mac Security Expert Devin Byrd: History of Mac Malware http://www.webroot.com/blog/2015/10/02/history-of-mac-malware/ TH
Not everyone says it's a different story, unless we're talking about naive or risky users installing things outside of the App Store or certified developers (Gatekeeper). Then again, I don't even find real-time AV necessary at all for myself... Just a wonky fail-safe in case someone makes a mistake.
We have 15 macs at work and use Avast Mac Free Cloud Business. The 15 Macs have had 300 ( 1/3 to 1/2 PC malware) infections from Mac malware to Adware. Up until last year we did nothing because the head of our disheveled IT is a Mac guy that thought Macs don't need AV, and our people don't go to bad sites at work. Guess what, the crap keeps coming in from ad servers and customer emails. There is no such thing as "safe surfing" in 2016. The black hats use high use busy "safe sites" to dump their malware these days. Sometimes Wilders seems a bit nuts with comments on whats out there. Gatekeeper is trivial to bypass. Apple OS X security is lame.
And you've addressed nothing about what I've stated. Safe computing means you don't bypass Gatekeeper (at least without double-checking with VirusTotal or whatever), download and install crap from every corner of the Internet, or browse with unpatched software. I'd like to see you prove that being exploited by a drive-by install (not download which you have to execute) is more common than winning the lottery for those with safe computing habits.
