Some AV software are full-fledged suites that offer additional options like backup service for essential files, a password manager, parental controls, anti-tracking and privacy modes or options, a more advanced firewall, and the blocking of Potentially Unwanted Applications (PUAs).

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Accordingly, good antivirus software will protect your Mac on all of these fronts.

Itll catch malware thats still spreading or in circulation; block ransomware; protect older systems with out-of-date software from security vulnerabilities; prevent your Mac from acting as a carrier for malware aimed at other operating systems; and keep infected files off of any virtual machines youre running.

Updated 050420: Added a link to our review of Avast Premium Security.

Our top contenders dominate by posting perfect (or virtually near perfect) scores from security research labs, passing our own malware detection tests with flying colors, offering well-designed interfaces, and even throwing in extra features like a firewall or password manager.

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Full details available in our review.) Best free antivirus software.

The app doesnt have much to it aside from on-off sliders, and a few minor settings, but for those who just want a set-it-and-forget-it option, AVGs free antivirus for Mac is a good choice.

When AV-Test put it to the test, it had a 100 percent protection rate from 145 samples.

AV Comparatives scored it 100 percent among 585 Mac samples, and 100 percent against 500 Windows samples in the same test.

The interface will pitch you to upgrade to the paid AVG tier, which adds ransomware protection, phishing protection, and a Wi-Fi inspector for monitoring all the devices on your home network.

But if you just want to scan your Mac for infected files and make sure new downloads arent carrying a virus payload, AVGs free product is a fine choice.

What to look for in antivirus software By our reckoning, antivirus software should be able to neutralize a threat before it can begin wreaking havoc.

That means preventing the download, installation, or execution of malicious software.

Since you can encounter threats by visiting compromised or malicious websites, receiving virus-laden attachments, or accessing USB drives with malware, good AV software should scan on a continuous basis unless you configure it otherwise.

And ideally, files identified as malicious should be quarantined into a special storage area managed by the AV software, with the option to automatically delete files known to be malware or repair normal documents that also carry devious payloads.

Great AV suites also will monitor the filesystem for certain kinds of changes.

Ransomwarewhich is malware that will rapidly encrypt user files like documents and mailboxes and then delete the originalshas become a huge moneymaker on other platforms.

As a prime opportunity for attackers, its the greatest danger Mac users likely face as a category.

Macworld Detecting this pattern and halting it before any files are unavailable should be possible without an anti-malware system knowing the specific innards of a ransomware virus.

Sophos, our top pick, includes this feature in the Home Premium version of its 2018 update.

Other vendors, like Avast and Trend Micro Antivirus, offer an alternative feature that allows you to whitelist programs allowed to manipulate files in specific directories.

So if this particular type of attack becomes rapidly popular, youll be protected.

Good antivirus software should also use minimal computational resources.

Thats especially the case these daysAV monitoring hasnt become much more complicated than when it first became available, and faster, multi-core CPUs can easily handle the demands of running AV software in the background without disturbing your active work.

Beyond these primary features, an easy-to-navigate interface and extra features are worth factoring into your decision.

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