At a Glance
Expert’s Rating
Intego covers all of the bases with its antivirus protection, referred to as VirusBarrier. Its antivirus scanning can be scheduled to run at regular intervals or as one-offs, but also as real-time. Compared to similar solutions intended for use on Macs, Intego’s VirusBarrier is a bit primitive. Don’t get us wrong, it’s perfectly suitable for everyday use, particularly when its real-time scanning is turned on, but feature-wise it’s a bit underwhelming.
Cons
- Nonstandard user interface
- Pricey
Intego Review
Our Verdict
VirusBarrier X5 (version 10.5.2) bills itself as simple, fast, and nonintrusive, and it certainly lives up that billing, with the notable exception of the program’s nonstandard interface. But VirusBarrier’s speed more than makes up for all its shortcomings. This antivirus program scans files very quickly and, perhaps more important, with very little impact on your Mac’s resources.VirusBarrier has two ways of scanning your Mac: real-time and manual. Qrs diagnostic driver. The real-time scanner constantly scans your Mac’s files in the background, but it didn’t slow down my test Mac (a 2.16GHz Intel Core Duo MacBook Pro) in the slightest. The manual scan is a little more resource intensive, but I hardly noticed it running while I went about my business.
Installing VirusBarrier and its companion program, Netupdate, is simple enough. Intego recommends that you install Netupdate first, which ensures that all Intego applications and virus definitions are up-to-date. Once you restart your Mac, you’ll notice two things: a menu-bar item and the VirusBarrier X5 icon in the Dock. Both are useful additions, but it would be nice to have the option to omit them during the initial install.
Nonstandard interface
After launching VirusBarrier X5, you’re greeted with a rather odd item called the Orb, which Intego has tweaked in this version: it’s a little larger than it was in version 4 (), and it’s flanked by six spherical instrument panels and a large Scan button. It is unlike any interface I have ever seen in a Mac program. The interface may look alien, but it’s very easy to use. You can see at a glance how much of your Mac’s processing power VirusBarrier is using, what mode it is in, the number of scheduled scans you have programmed, and more. (VirusBarrier has three modes: Interactive, in which you decide what to do with suspect files; Repair, which automatically tries to repair virus-laden files; and, new in X5, Put In Quarantine Zone, which moves those naughty files to a restricted area where they can’t be opened or activated). Along with the revamped interface, VirusBarrier X5 adds the ability to schedule multiple scans at one time, enables Trusted Zones (locations on your Mac that it excludes from automatic scanning), and lets you opt to not scan your Mac for Windows viruses.
VirusBarrier performed well. Panini others driver download for windows. It found all the test viruses on my Mac, including some Windows-only viruses; logged everything; and dealt with the test viruses quickly and appropriately.
Every VirusBarrier X5 license includes a one-year subscription to Intego’s virus update service, though you have to enter an e-mail address and create a password in NetUpdate before you can update your definitions.
Macworld’s buying advice
If you’re in the market for a fast-working antivirus program, VirusBarrier X5 (10.5.2) is the gold standard. It will protect your Mac without making your other work grind to a halt. Given that the upgrade price is only $25 more than renewing your virus-definition subscription, which you no doubt will have to do if you have an older version of the program, X5 is well worth the money. The Quarantine Zone offers an added layer of security that in itself is worth the upgrade.
[Scott McNulty is a full-time geek living in Philadelphia. He is the lead blogger at The Unofficial Apple Weblog and cohosts the cooking podcast Fork You.]
[Editor’s Note: This review was updated on 7/9/08 at 4:06 p.m. to remove the e-mail notification reference. VirusBarrier does not notify users of virus definition updates via e-mail.]Intego is one of the leading providers of Mac cybersecurity software. It consistently scores high marks in independent testing labs and offers a complete suite of features, including antivirus, firewall, backup, data protection, and anti-spam software.
Pros:
- Excellent protection: Intego scores near perfect protection scores in all the lab tests.
- Almost no speed impact: Intego proves time and time again to be a very lightweight.
- Powerful bonus features: It features powerful firewall and parental control features, and handy organizational tools such as a clean-up and back-up tool.
- Ability to scan connected iOS devices
Cons:
- Mac only: Intego is dedicated to MacOS only.
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While Intego might not cater to all platforms and operating systems, its VirusBarrier app and cybersecurity software suite are high-end and loaded with features. There are also multiple licenses available, each with additional options, depending on the user’s needs.
Mac Premium Bundle x9
This is Intego’s premier cybersecurity bundle for macOS. It comes with options for one, three, or five licenses and contains the complete lineup of protective software. For the complete Intego cybersecurity experience, this is the suite that has it all.
VirusBarrier
VirusBarrier is Intego’s acclaimed antivirus software. It benefits from constant updates, a user-friendly interface, and an exhaustive library of known threats.
The program can detect infected files, discover threats, prevent infection, as well as isolate, quarantine, and delete malicious programs. All without draining the system resources and slowing down other applications and tasks.
One of the best features of this antivirus is its ability to scan multiple devices. Connecting an iOS mobile device to your Mac system allows you to use VirusBarrier to scan it for malware.
Another important aspect of VirusBarrier is that it can detect rootkits, as well as remove them. This is important, as it shows that Intego can deal with more complex malicious programs.
NetBarrier
Intego Virusbarrier Scanner Reviews
NetBarrier is the firewall component. It’s a considerable improvement over Mac’s built-in firewall. It comes with a simple layout and very user-friendly navigation options. With its advanced security algorithms, NetBarrier also allows customizable security options based on network connection types.
Content Barrier
This is the parental control software component. You can use this to control messaging apps, block specific apps, and deny access to certain websites. These lists are customizable so you can control what to exclude, like adult content or social media platforms, for instance.
The program can also send out alerts and scan the internet activity of a computer (such as one used by a minor) and look for predatory behavior. It does however have the downside of being less intuitive than other programs in the suite.
Washing Machine
Intego’s Washing Machine can perform three important actions – organize, reclaim, and get rid of duplicates. All of these are performance-enhancing and optimization tools that do a better job than the macOS built-in services.
With these tools, you can sort out junk files, delete them to make room, or to relieve your system of unnecessary resource drainage.
Personal Backup
Personal Backup allows you back up any files. Although macOS already offers this feature in the form of Time Machine, Intego’s app is much more impressive.
It’s more customizable, for one, and it allows you to back up external drives too. It’s also possible to create multiple backups and schedule them even though they are not system-wide. Customization is everything here.
Another nice feature is the bootable backup, which can help you save precious time if something goes wrong.
Mac Internet Security x9
Mac Internet Security X9 is a bundle that offers a more budget-friendly alternative to users who are not interested in all the bells and whistles that the Premium version can offer. This is the lite version of the main cybersecurity suite and only offers the VirusBarrier and NetBarrier.
Although the company was founded back in 1997, Intego doesn’t have a very eventful history. Because it creates software only for macOS, it is a rather niched service provider and software vendor.
Security
In the last five tests on AV-Test, Intego VirusBarrier achieved a protection score of 6 out of 6. It showed excellent capabilities in malware detection and infection prevention. As well as in quarantining and isolating unwanted malware programs.
Both malware scanning and safe browsing features helped VirusBarrier to achieve consistently high scores in Mac security.
Performance
When it comes to performance, Intego’s VirusBarrier software achieves high scores again. Fluctuating between a 5.5 and 6.0 in the latest five tests (the maximum is 6).
Intego Security
The program performs more reliably and drains very few resources. This means that it rarely interferes with file copies, app installations, web browsing, or running simultaneous operations and services.
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