Can you get Malware on a Mac?

For a long time, people thought that macOS was impervious to malware/viruses and many people still do. Apple still likes to tell people that Macs are safer than other platforms, but that’s only partly true.

It is true that a Mac will never get a Windows virus, but they are vulnerable to every other kind of malware out there, including spyware, ransomware, unwanted programs like MacKeeper, trojans, etc. Some of the more obnoxious ones are MacKeeper, Advanced Mac Cleaner and Genieo, though there is a lot more than that.

Generally, malware for the Mac comes via Adobe Flash Installers, which are downloaded when a user on a website gets a notification that their version of Adobe is out of date and needs to be updated. Many different types of websites have this problem, but it’s especially prevalent on porn sites and video sites. Just recently, we worked with a customer who loves using Publishers Clearing House and found that was one place he picked up malware.

To easily identify if the Adobe installer is legitimate, find it in the Downloads folder, select it by clicking once on it, then Get Info and look to see where it’s from. Adobe Flash should be from adobe.com. If it’s from any other website, do not install it.

When a Mac is brought to Apple, they normally recommend MalwareBytes, which is a very basic program. It finds some of the problem software, but only removes the application, not all the supporting files.

When we are brought in to help with a Mac that has a spinning beachball that doesn’t stop, the very first thing we check is whether there is malware on the computer or not. We recommend specific programs to scan and remove malware as well as maintain it. If you suspect you have this going on, please reach out to us and set up an appointment for us to resolve it for you.