Re: Anti-Virus on Mac

Hi Bond,

At 1:54 PM -0700 9/6/06, E. Bond Francisco wrote:
>I've got a question for you all. One of my beloved family members
>has fallen victim to a Phishing expedition ... one of the
>"requirements" the bank gave us to reinstate our online banking was
>to verify that we had scanned our computer for viruses and spyware.
>Yes, I told them we used a Macintosh. Didn't matter. I called Apple
>for information about Virus scanning. Virex doesn't work with OS
>10.4.x. ...
>
>I've heard bad things about norton in general, but maybe that
>doesn't apply to NAV? I eventually ran a demo program called
>MacScan, which showed no spyware. But what's the currently accepted
>software for protecting against spyware and viruses on the Mac.

   Norton AntiVirus for Macintosh is campus-licensed and supported, so
that's a good place to start. Home use - *for campus-affiliated
persons*, so use for your family member is likely a bit murky - is
permitted. And it's fairly easy to completely remove NAV after the
fact; see below for removal instructions. Version 10.1 works under
Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger and on Intel-based Mac models.

   NAV's scans detect only viruses, worms, trojans, and highly similar
malware. While it may detect trojans that install spyware, it
doesn't, to the best of my knowledge, detect currently active spyware.

   Spyware simply isn't - at least yet - much of an issue under Mac OS
X, although your bank may not be clued into that. For some tips on
detecting and blocking spyware under Mac OS X, you might start here:

   "Re: Spyware Detection Tools"
   http://ls.berkeley.edu/mail/magnet/2005/0361.html

Aron Roberts
Information Services and Technology

--
   To uninstall Symantec's Macintosh products:
1. Run the "Symantec Uninstaller" application program.  This
    application is included with the campus's distribution of Norton
    AntiVirus, which is available to campus affiliates via
    the IST Software site, http://software.berkeley.edu,
    and on the C_at_B CD, http://cab.berkeley.edu.
    You can find this program in an "Uninstall" folder within the Norton
    AntiVirus folder: on either the disk image that you can download
    from the WSS Software website or within the "Norton AntiVirus" folder
    on the C@B CD.
    Instructions on using the Symantec Uninstaller utility
    (adapted from several Symantec support articles):
    - Before running the Symantec Uninstaller, quit the
      Symantec Macintosh program(s) that you are about to remove.
    - Double-click the icon for the Symantec Uninstaller application.
    - Check the box(es) next to the software you want to remove.
      For instance, to remove Norton AntiVirus, in the "Uninstall
      Symantec Products" window, check the following products:
      o Symantec AntiVirus Corporate
        (This entry appears only if the corporate version
        of Norton AntiVirus for Macintosh is installed.)
      o Norton AntiVirus
      o Norton AntiVirus Auto-Protect
    - Click Uninstall.
    - Click Uninstall a second time to confirm that you really want to
      remove this software.
2. In rare cases, Symantec Uninstaller may fail or may not completely
    remove all of the components of Symantec's Macintosh products.
    In that case, please see the following Symantec support article
    for a utility that can more completely remove that company's products:
    "Removing all Symantec programs for Macintosh by using the
    RemoveSymantecMacFiles removal utility"
    http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/num.nsf/docid/2002110814042611
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