Hello All,
I’ve had my 2021 MBP since Feb of 2021 and I was wondering if anyone knows if having VPN is enough to keep you safe and secure or do should you also invest in AntiVirus Protector as well or one over the other?
What does a VPN keep you safe from? Unless you trust the VPN provider more than you trust your internet provider it’s making you less safe
VPNs and Antivirus software are completely different things.
VPN only prevents you from being watched. It doesn’t protect you against malware.
I’ve been a Mac user for 25+ years and I’ve never used AV on any of my personal Macs and I’ve never regretted it. If you’re a responsible user, not downloading from unsafe sites or falling for foolish links, AV is just wasted processor cycles, IMHO. You’re much better off putting your effort into an effective backup system.
Anti-virus is not enough, you need Protogent.
Macs can still get viruses, although it’s rarer than on Windows. I use Intego, if only because I got it for free when I bought Parallels Desktop. It also contains a firewall. I like it.
The best way to avoid getting an infection is to not expose yourself to one - don’t run software you’ve downloaded from an untrustworthy source like a torrent or a dodgy website and you’ve done most of what you can. I still like having an AV anyway, just to be sure. And also to ensure that I’m not passing Windows malware through my system to Windows users.
That’s a bit like asking if condoms are protection enough, or if you also need cut resistant gloves. VPN and anti virus do completely different things for different contexts and thus if you think you need one of them has really no bearing on whether you need the other.
You need a VPN if you want to cloak the location of origin of the network traffic coming and going to your computer. That’s it. A VPN does not protect against malware in any way, and since all web traffic is https encrypted these days, it also does not really protect much against network snooping, for most cases.
As for anti virus, my position is you really don’t need it on a Mac. Use common sense, don’t click on anything that pops up that you don’t recognize, don’t fall for installing something that you are not sure about (lika a “codec” or video player to play that tantalising vid), and you will be fine.
Also don’t install CleanMyMac (because it’s unnecessary) and definitely not MacKeeper (because it kinda is malware) and you are golden.
A VPN is used to hide what you’re doing or where you’re accessing the internet from. Use one if that’s your goal. If you want to protect yourself from viruses, sure, an anti-virus could be used, but it’s not really necessary on macs.
VPNs do not protect you from malware.
I made mistake of installing FREE McAfee (part of 5 PC pack) on my M1 Mini it took complete reinstall to get rid of that cancer.
McAfee made my M1 Mini very slow and spreads itself to many parts of Macs Os that simple uninstall could not get rid of it.
Mac Os has xProtect and occasional run of Malwarebytes is what we use.
Apple users too small market for hackers to bother with
No Antivirus on a Mac
I suggest Mullvad vpn.
I use Norton antivirus on mine, as I come from windows I feel like naked without an AV, and it includes a VPN
I use BitDefender on all of my Mac devices but avoid the VPN tools built in. I’m fearful of VPNs ever since studying the way some countries track their citizens who use VPNs and Target them. (China/Russia)
So, would you recommend I use an Anti-Virus? If so, any recommendations that won’t slow down my Mac?
I know that, then, how do I just stay safe online?
VPN only prevents you from being watched.
It just changes who’s watching you - now the VPN provider instead of your ISP. Many VPN providers claim to be zero-logs but it’s on their word for it.
Then again, ISPs are definitely monitoring you, and that’s the alternative.
I appreciate the comment, really. Thank you for the advice.
Cheers, a good friend of mine uses Intego.
That’s what a lot of people keep telling me, however, I have this friend that keeps telling me that NO DEVICE is unhackable, not even Macs, well, I’m not hiding anything from anyone, I just want to stay safe when I’m paying my bills, my rent, you know, things of that nature. Don’t want my account stuff stolen.
I had the same with Total AV - complete nightmare