Mac® Security Bible

14.5. Choosing Anti-Malware Software

Having taken all the preceding into account, if you feel that an automated approach to blocking, uninstalling, or scanning for possible signs of malware is the best approach — or if your employer or some legal requirement demands it but gives you a choice of which software to use — you have several good options. Although anti-malware programs on the Mac aren't as numerous as on Windows (which is only appropriate given how much lower the threat is), there are a number of products in this category with various combinations of features that may serve your needs.

14.5.1. Factors to consider

I wish I could say that one anti-malware program is as good as the next, allowing you to simply pick the one with the lowest price or the prettiest icon or some other easily discernable feature. But despite the fact that most of these programs share several traits in common, there's a great deal of variation among them, and your experience may be much more pleasant with some than with others.

Before you commit to or pay for an anti-malware program, I recommend that you download a trial copy, install it, figure out how to use all its features, and see how it works for a couple of weeks. More likely than not, the program won't actually discover any malware during that time, but you'll be able to tell how stable, speedy, and convenient the software is.

Among the factors you should keep in mind as you're selecting and trying out anti-malware software are the following: ...