Best Security Suite for Mac OSX???

cgntoonartist · 05-28-2012, 10:48 PM

Hello folks,

I want to start a new conversation on the best Security Suite for Mac OSX. I know it had been discussed before in the past, but I figure with all the changes with the latest Security Suites, we can have a more up-to-date discussion that can benefit all of us.

The questions are:
1. What Internet Security Suite for Mac OSX do you use and why?

2. What do you think qualifies it as the best in the market with maximum protection and performance?

Thank you in advance for participating in this discussion!

Cheers!

mclbruce · 05-28-2012, 11:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cgntoonartist


	we can have a more up-to-date discussion that can benefit all of us. The questions are:

Are your answers to your two question of any benefit to "all of us?"

cgntoonartist · 05-29-2012, 12:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mclbruce


	Are your answers to your two question of any benefit to "all of us?"

Everyone interested in having a secure OSX computer. I imaging everyone wants this.

For those of you not interested in this topic just stay away from the discussion and let the people that are interested benefit. There is no need to comment if you are not interested.

Cheers

acme.mail.order · 05-29-2012, 12:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cgntoonartist


	1. What Internet Security Suite for Mac OSX do you use and why?

a) BSD subsystem access control.

b) a router

c) common sense

Quote:


	2. What do you think qualifies it as the best in the market with maximum protection and performance?

a) comes from the manufacturer well-optimized for performance. Default permissions make it rather difficult for viruses to burrow into the OS. (Absence of a central registry also helps.)

b) The machine can't be accessed, period. Except as specifically allowed by the user. If they are smart enough to enable the DMZ feature they should also be smart enough to do the rest.

c) A and B guard against viruses. Guarding against trojans is quite different. Any scanning software is reactive, not proactive. Mind what you download and don't enter an admin password without thinking "why?" first.

benwiggy · 05-29-2012, 01:33 AM

One of the best things you can do is to create a new user account called "Admin" (or similar), and give it admin privileges. Then remove admin privileges from your normal account.

Your normal user account will not have writeable access to anywhere outside its user folder. You will have to give the name and password of the Admin user account to authorise things.

AV software doesn't protect you from new threats -- it only has a list of malware it knows. And Apple already blocks known malware as part of OS X. Paying a subscription for AV software updates is akin to a protection racket. Many of them hamper system performance to such an extent that they are worse than the malware they seek to prevent.

The majority of malware these days is trojans, which essentially fool the user rather than the computer.

chabig · 05-29-2012, 05:32 AM

Acme and Benwiggy pretty much nailed it. That's all you need to know.

arpad · 05-29-2012, 11:17 AM

Perhaps you could enlighten us about why we need this
' security suite ' ?

trevor · 05-29-2012, 11:26 AM

arpad, are you asking that question of cgntoonartist, or of mclbruce, acme.mail.order, benwiggy, and chabig? I suspect that you will get a very different answer from cgntoonartist than you do from the other folks on this thread.

Trevor

mclbruce · 05-29-2012, 12:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cgntoonartist


	Everyone interested in having a secure OSX computer. I imaging everyone wants this. For those of you not interested in this topic just stay away from the discussion and let the people that are interested benefit. There is no need to comment if you are not interested. Cheers

Let me try again. Do you, cgntoonartist, use an internet security suite on a Mac?

aehurst · 05-29-2012, 04:02 PM

I use Norton Antivirus because:

1. I am paranoid.
2. It is free from my ISP.
3. I worry about passing on a virus with email attachments to friends who don't have a Mac.
4. It runs in the background and has never been a major hassle of any kind. It will begin to scan a disk or hd when the Mac gets access to them, but a simple click on "cancel" stops that if you don't want it... e.g. it is a disk I created.

Is it effective? Does it matter if you run one at all? Who knows?

mclbruce · 05-29-2012, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aehurst


	I use Norton Antivirus because: ... 3. I worry about passing on a virus with email attachments to friends who don't have a Mac. Is it effective? Who knows?

In the past Norton has done a good job cleaning up Word Macro viruses. It was significantly better than Intego. That was several years ago though, on a couple of client computers.

anthlover · 05-29-2012, 10:29 PM

At the risk of going on a tangent....

If you have mobile computer or even if you do not its a good idea to create an encrypted disk image form disk utility to store sensitive info passes, SS, sensitive documents etc.

I do not like and have never trusted whole or partial disk encryption, e.g. file fault. It can be a bag of hurt, to borrow a jobism.

O and if I am participating in the thread. I use no protection other then encrypted disk image and common sense.

05-28-2012, 10:48 PM	#1
cgntoonartist Prospect Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 3	Best Security Suite for Mac OSX??? Hello folks, I want to start a new conversation on the best Security Suite for Mac OSX. I know it had been discussed before in the past, but I figure with all the changes with the latest Security Suites, we can have a more up-to-date discussion that can benefit all of us. The questions are: 1. What Internet Security Suite for Mac OSX do you use and why? 2. What do you think qualifies it as the best in the market with maximum protection and performance? Thank you in advance for participating in this discussion! Cheers!

05-29-2012, 11:26 AM	#8
trevor Moderator Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Boulder, CO USA Posts: 19,550	arpad, are you asking that question of cgntoonartist, or of mclbruce, acme.mail.order, benwiggy, and chabig? I suspect that you will get a very different answer from cgntoonartist than you do from the other folks on this thread. Trevor __________________ How to ask questions the smart way Last edited by trevor; 05-29-2012 at 11:28 AM.

05-29-2012, 04:02 PM	#10
aehurst MVP Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Sherwood, Arkansas, USA Posts: 1,286	I use Norton Antivirus because: 1. I am paranoid. 2. It is free from my ISP. 3. I worry about passing on a virus with email attachments to friends who don't have a Mac. 4. It runs in the background and has never been a major hassle of any kind. It will begin to scan a disk or hd when the Mac gets access to them, but a simple click on "cancel" stops that if you don't want it... e.g. it is a disk I created. Is it effective? Does it matter if you run one at all? Who knows? __________________ iMac, 2.66 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4GB

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05-29-2012, 01:33 AM	#5
benwiggy League Commissioner Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 5,040	One of the best things you can do is to create a new user account called "Admin" (or similar), and give it admin privileges. Then remove admin privileges from your normal account. Your normal user account will not have writeable access to anywhere outside its user folder. You will have to give the name and password of the Admin user account to authorise things. AV software doesn't protect you from new threats -- it only has a list of malware it knows. And Apple already blocks known malware as part of OS X. Paying a subscription for AV software updates is akin to a protection racket. Many of them hamper system performance to such an extent that they are worse than the malware they seek to prevent. The majority of malware these days is trojans, which essentially fool the user rather than the computer.

05-29-2012, 05:32 AM	#6
chabig Hall of Famer Join Date: Jan 2002 Posts: 2,934	Acme and Benwiggy pretty much nailed it. That's all you need to know.

05-29-2012, 11:17 AM	#7
arpad Prospect Join Date: Oct 2007 Posts: 40	Perhaps you could enlighten us about why we need this ' security suite ' ?

05-29-2012, 10:29 PM	#12
anthlover Hall of Famer Join Date: Apr 2003 Posts: 2,671	At the risk of going on a tangent.... If you have mobile computer or even if you do not its a good idea to create an encrypted disk image form disk utility to store sensitive info passes, SS, sensitive documents etc. I do not like and have never trusted whole or partial disk encryption, e.g. file fault. It can be a bag of hurt, to borrow a jobism. O and if I am participating in the thread. I use no protection other then encrypted disk image and common sense.