Yes, it is entirely safe to use Malwarebytes for Mac users, but we don’t recommend you to use it on Mac. The reason why we don’t recommend you even though it performs exceptionally well to secure your device from malicious malware is that there is only 0.000001% probability to get a malware attack on Mac OS.
• Pros Extremely fast malware scan. Very good reputation among tech experts. • Cons No protection against malicious or fraudulent websites. No detection of Windows malware. • Bottom Line The premium edition of Malwarebytes for Mac scans for active malware and uses real-time detection to prevent infestation. It has a very good reputation, but hard data showing its effectiveness is scarce. 'Yep, Macs get infected.'
That's the tagline on the very first installer page of Malwarebytes for Mac Premium, and it's true. Having no protection may not such a disaster as leaving your Windows or Android devices unprotected, but it's a bad idea to go without. Malwarebytes has a top-notch reputation for wiping out malware even when other utilities fail.
However, coming up with hard data that shows it working isn't easy. As with on Windows, you can download this program and run a scan without paying anything. That can be handy if another antivirus utility detected a threat but failed to fully eliminate it. Paying for the premium edition gets you real-time protection, automatic updates, and blocking of adware and potentially unwanted applications, or PUAs. Like, this product has a main window that's all about scanning for malware. But unlike ProtectWorks, there's just one kind of scan, a quick scan for active malware.
A menu down the left side lets you view recent scans, check what's in quarantine, or tweak the program's sparse set of configuration settings. Pricing and OS Support Bitdefender, ESET, and Kaspersky all cost $39.99 per year for one license, and the same is true with Malwarebytes. All four of these products cost $59.99 per year for three licenses, but Malwarebytes is a little different.
After the initial $39.99, each additional license costs $10, which just happens to come out to $59.99 for three. I like the flexibility Malwarebytes offers.
With Norton, you pay $89.99 per year for five licenses, and you get a full security suite, not just antivirus. Charges $59.99 per year, but that license lets you install protection on all your macOS, Windows, Android, and iOS devices. As you can see, there's a lot of variation in pricing. No money in the budget for Mac antivirus? You can install and run Sophos or on your personal Macs without paying a penny. If you're stuck with an old Mac, or legacy software that won't run on current versions of macOS, Malwarebytes may not be the best choice.
Like McAfee, Symantec, and Trend Micro, it requires Yosemite (10.10) or later. Mac antiquarians will be pleased to know that and ProtectWorks support all versions of the operating system back to Snow Leopard (10.6). Malware Protection Testing The independent antivirus testing labs put Windows antivirus to the test in a wide variety of ways, many of them closely resembling real-world malware-attack situations. Those labs that also test Mac antivirus don't have the same degree of real-world testing. Because of the way Malwarebytes focuses on eliminating active malware, it would not pass these tests, so the company simply doesn't submit it. It makes sense that tests by and AV-Comparatives don't line up with the way Malwarebytes does its job. But I still must say, when a program like or Bitdefender shows up with two certifications and two scores of 100 percent, it looks very good.
You may notice in the chart above that McAfee also doesn't have any lab results. At the time of my review, it had certification and 100 percent detection from. However, McAfee didn't choose to participate in the most recent test. Hands On With Malwarebytes Most antivirus programs include the option to scan your entire Mac for malware.
Many also offer a quick scan that just looks for active malware and for malware traces in common locations. However, a full scan is counter to the Malwarebytes philosophy. The company's thinking goes like this: If you really have an infection, the quick scan will see that there's a problem and remediate it.
All a full scan could find beyond that is static malware that's inert and not doing any immediate harm. Indeed, a scan of the that I use for testing finished in about 15 seconds. That's darned fast, considering that the average quick scan time for recent products is more than four minutes. All of the other products I've reviewed recently aim to detect and eliminate Windows-based malware as well as malware focused on the Mac. The idea is that this prevents the Mac from becoming a Typhoid Mary, carrying infection without being affected. Malwarebytes has no interest in malware that can't even run on the Mac, so it ignores Windows malware. Many antivirus utilities manage quarantined files internally.