December 17th, 2007
If viruses are no threat to Macs ...
The other day I was on the Apple Store website researching a gift (you know how it is at this time of year, someone asks for your opinion on a tech gift for someone else …) and came across something I didn’t expect to see for sale at the Apple Store.
So there I was, minding my own business, browsing the Apple Store, when I clicked on a link by accident that took me to a page of software utilities for the Mac, and there they were - antivirus apps for the Mac! It’s not that I didn’t know that such products existed (I did), it’s just that I’m surprised that Apple give them shelf space (even in the online store) given the whole “Macs don’t catch viruses” stuff. Kinda reminds me of when I’m buying something at a store (admittedly, something that doesn’t happen that often any more - apart from wrapping paper, this year all my holiday gifts have been bought online) and after the salesperson has spend time convincing me of a products reliability and robustness go on to try to convince me to buy extended warranty because the product is unreliable and prone to all sorts of damage.
Also, is it me or does security software for the Mac command a premium price? Norton Antivirus 10 for the Mac sells for $69.95; compare that to Norton Antivirus 2008 for Windows which is only $39.99. That seems awfully steep to me. It’s also interesting to see products such as Intego VirusBarrier Dual Protection which comes with antivirus for both Mac and Windows in one box. Shame the Windows AV solution is BitDefender. Did I ever tell you our BitDefender story? Let me summarize it for you - pain, pain and more pain.
Our Mac mini runs without any kind of AV on it, and given my current feelings about AV software, that’s how things are going to stay.
Do you protect your Mac? If so, how?
Adrian is a technology journalist and author who has devoted over a decade to helping users get the most from technology. He also runs a popular blog called The PC Doctor. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations
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