Mac virus?

[denny]

Accidentally clicked on one of those stupid ads on the side of the screen and a new tab opened with the following message, which I've never seen before. I'm guessing that cos it's a clicky on a safari tab rather than a system message the 'scan now' is just a way to get me into deeper trouble, but I'm not sure. I shut the tab without clicking it. Should I be worried??

 

[cookie]

No.

..

 

[filbe]

ignore it

 

[Millmax]

Poo ..

 

[tuftywhite]

What I would do is download Sophos. They do a free Mac virus protection which I have on mine. Mostly it will tell you when a scumbag has emailed you a Windows virus.

It'll sit on your computer and just look after everything without you having to worry.

 

[RedRick Esq.]

Same with Avast
it too is free and seems to do the job

Was it one of these "hot girls near you" Adverts that you "accidentally" clicked

 

[stolzy]

Is an anti-virus program really necessary for Macs

Serious question.

 

[Engineer]

Is an anti-virus program really necessary for Macs

Serious question.

I'd like to know the answer too.

 

[sagalout]

In reality, no

 

[tuftywhite]

You don't really need anti virus software on the Mac, although there are a few viruses out there and they will get more common.

The reason I use Sophos is so I don't pass on any viruses to Windows users/friends etc. especially as I use my Mac for my work. It wouldn't be good to pass any viruses on to customers!

It's good that it's there, doesn't take up much space, doesn't cost anything, better to have it than not to.

 

[paul08]

plus one for Sophos. Daily updates to the database and it is free

 

[cookie]

Is an anti-virus program really necessary for Macs

Serious question.

no, not unless you download pirate apps maybe. even so, my mac anti virus (Clam-X, it's free) has never found anything. i only run it on things i'm suspicious of, which is not often.

very few, if any virus* for mac. certainly very very rare. trojans that require you to install them yourself + system password do exist, but are not very common.


WTF is the plural of virus?

 

[DC]

WTF is the plural of virus?

Viruses!!!

 

[beatmeier]

Per definition a virus can damage your computer and OS X is very good and can easily be repaired orreinstalled over the recovery. Often it's only like in your case a malicious site and all you do is open Safari / menubar/ safari / and ind the droppdown clear history and website data. Job done
Antivirus and cleaning software is often more the cause of unwanted side effects than any use for OS X . Blocked ports slow down the system and updates don't get installed properly, from this viewpoint just don't even start with them.

More ways to keep your Mac safe.
While no system can be 100 percent immune from every threat, OS X lets you do even more to keep your information as safe as possible. You’ll find most of these additional security features in the Security & Privacy pane of System Preferences. Here are just a few of the things you can do:

Turn on a firewall to prevent other machines from accessing services running on your Mac.
Control access to your Mac by locking your screen after a period of inactivity.
Set up secure file sharing.
Securely delete outdated sensitive files with the Secure Empty Trash command.
Use Password Assistant to create stronger passwords for local utilities like Users & Groups.
Make sure you’re only running sharing services that you really need.

 

[denny]

Thanks for the replies guys, I kinda thought as much but wanted to be sure.

Redrick, on this occasion no, honest