How to Remove Malware from Macs

The words Mac and malware rarely appeared in the same sentence together until quite recently. It’s not that Macs are immune to malware; it’s just that there did not used to be very many Mac computers around, so the creators of malicious viruses preferred to attack the majority – Windows users – in order to create the most havoc.

Today, that is starting to change. A recent survey put Apple’s share of the personal computing market in the U.S. at 15 percent – a steady but significant increase over recent years. This number, it seems, is now big enough to attract some malware authors to actively target the Mac OS X operating system.

The most high profile instance of this in recent memory is the Mac Defender virus. This scareware product was designed to fool users into thinking that their Macs had been infected with malware, when in fact they hadn’t. However, it automatically downloaded a fake antivirus application that claimed to find the infected files and offered to remove them for a price.

Apple quickly released a fix for Mac users who were infected by this malware, but wouldn’t it be nice if you could just avoid all this nastiness from the outset? What if your computer is already infected? Well, there are definitely some important steps you can take to avoid or repair a breach in your Mac's internet security.

Start by making sure that your Mac has all the latest security updates from Apple. Malware authors look to exploit holes in software and operating systems, so if you don’t have your Mac as up to date as it could be, you are definitely more at risk. Run the Apple update tool for your Mac by clicking the Apple menu and selecting Software Update. This will check for the latest fixes for all your important system resources. Be sure to download and install whatever you find here because it is almost always necessary. Apple’s fix for the Mac Defender virus, for instance, was delivered via Software Update.

If this doesn’t fix your issues, it’s time to invest in a good antivirus software package. This is essential because no matter how careful you are, spyware, Trojans and other malware can inevitably find a way through. Most of the big-name software manufacturers have a Mac version of their software to counteract the latest security threats, so check out our antivirus software review to see which products are the most effective at removing malware from your computer.

If you dual boot with Windows and use Boot Camp or Parallels Desktop to run both a Windows and a Mac OS, make sure you choose an antivirus software manufacturer that offers dual protection software to cover both your operating systems. Not all products offer this ability, so make sure you choose your security suite with care. Norton, Avast, BitDefender and Intego are among the most effective software solutions that do employ dual protection modes, so start your search with them and work from there as you look for the most secure solution for your Mac.

When you find the security software you want, install it and make sure that the virus definitions are up to date. Next, run a full scan of your system to remove or repair any infected files. This should eradicate any existing threats and restore your computer to a clean, virus-free state.

To protect yourself from future outbreaks, it is always a good idea to set up a schedule for virus scans on your Mac. This is something that you can configure once and have your software run automatically for you. It is usually best to schedule a time for this when your computer is on but not in use so that it won’t interfere with any other tasks you have to complete.

Just be sure to keep your antivirus software up to date with the latest version because there are always new threats in the world of Internet security, and you have to be prepared.

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