How To Scan Your Mac For Potential Spyware

Even reliable computers can get viruses because hackers never sleep. Plenty of Mac owners have a belief that their computers don’t need any protection from viruses, but that’s not true. Lately, the number of attacks against Mac devices has increased. That’s why it’s important to know how to protect your Mac from various viruses, including spyware.

In this guide, we’ll give you some good advice for removing spyware from your Mac.

Spyware & Its Different Types

Spyware is a code written by a cybercriminal. When this code appears on your Mac, it can steal your personal information like your financial documents, browser history, keystrokes, and images from your web camera.

In general, it’s possible to divide spyware into 4 types:

Adware: This is well-known and the most obvious type. It displays various pop-up windows with adverts on the computer, asking the owner to click the link. And when the person is doing this, spyware is getting to their Mac and then steals data easily.

Trojan: These are files created by hackers. Usually, you cannot tell this is some suspicious file because it looks pretty normal. When a user downloads a file or a movie from a non-trusted source, he or she risks getting a virus with this file. After downloading, a virus accesses your data and can harm your computer.

Cookie Tracker: This spyware is similar to adware because they also track your browser history. The collected information can be used by a hacker as adware or for other reasons.

Keylogger: This is a code installed on the computer without the owner’s permission. It tracks keys pressed by the user. Thanks to this, a hacker can get access to your personal information, including passwords, card numbers, and other important data you type on the keyboard.

Removing Spyware From Your Mac

As you can see, spyware can harm your Mac. It can damage files on your computer and steal personal data to use by hackers. But luckily, it’s usually not very difficult to detect and delete this sort of virus from your device. Read our simple but very effective tips below.

1. Scan your Mac with reliable antivirus software. Please remember it’s dangerous to download programs from non-trusted sites. Use only reliable sources to download any information from the Internet on your Mac. With an antivirus, you can easily scan your Mac and see if it has any kind of spyware. If yes, it’s simple to delete it just in a couple of clicks.
2. Set all the updates to your Mac. Some users ignore new updates but we assure you it’s quite important to do. Your Mac has built-in tools to remove spyware. But you have to make sure your device is updated to its latest version. Do not neglect any new update to keep your device protected from spyware. If your Mac has the latest version of its updates, try to restart it. When the device will restart, it will scan for known spyware and remove it automatically.
3. Check your apps thoroughly. The folder with applications may contain suspicious files and some apps you didn’t install. If you see any weird files, it’s better to delete them. But if you will just move them to the Trash, it may not remove them fully. Some parts of it may stay and harm your device. In this case, it’s better to use a good antivirus program to delete a suspicious file properly.
4. Remove browser extensions you don’t use. Some viruses can be disguised as browser extensions. If they are installed without your permission, it’s better to delete them. You just remove them in the browser’s preferences. We also suggest removing cookies from your computer using an antivirus program.
5. Make backups of important files. If you want to save your data, make copies of the most important files and documents. You can save these files on cloud storage or another hard drive. This will protect yourself from losing important information.

There is nothing too difficult to protect your Mac from hackers. You only need to check sources for downloading anything on your computer and install a reliable antivirus. We suggest setting automatic scanning of your device, so it will find and remove any viruses even if you forgot to start manual scanning. Keep your Mac clean from spyware!