Will PC viruses infect the OS x side?

I'm new to the Mac world and plan to load windows as I transition out of my former PC life. Will I face the same virus/security issues on my Mac if I load windows?

Templeton is correct that Windows viruses do not run on Mac OS X, however, you should still run antivirus software for every operating system on your computer.
A good rule of thumb to keep in mind is that if you can change a file (delete it or save over it) then so can a virus regardless of whether it's Windows or Mac based. That means if your Windows software has access to any of your Mac OS documents or system files then it can indiscriminately corrupt or delete them.
Hope this helps! bill
1 GHz Powerbook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.7)

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I accidentally got a virus on my iPhone and it may have gotten into the iCloud storage, how do I remove the virus OR how do I restore from a back-up that occurred before the virus infected the system?

When I was browsing on Safari on my iPhone, I accidentally got an advertisement where you could not close it out unless you clicked on its pop-up screen. So I clicked yes (Looking back, I should've turned off my iPhone then immediately closed out the ad before it could load), then I closed out immediately. But then things went haywire as the Siri automatically went off without me pressing for it, then the music on the iPod part of my iPhone played randomly and got crazy. So I tried resetting the entire settings and restored at a previous point, but I want to be 100% sure the virus is completely gone. I fear it may have infected the iCloud storage and if I cannot completely wipe out the virus without removing any data that was stored prior to the incident, I want to be able to know how to restore from an older session before the incident happened.
Can you please help me?

If things seem to be going haywire with your phone, it seems that it MAY be a software issue.
Now, that being said, that does not necessarily mean that it is a virus. Software issues do happen sometimes. It is probably just coincidence.
What you need to do is restore the device using iTunes. This will fix any software issues. After you have done this, you can restore from an iCloud backup.
iCloud does not back up the actual software, so no, the "virus" would not have gotten into the backups.
The link below provides steps on restoring your device using iTunes as well as how to restore from an iCloud backup.
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1766
Don't worry! Everything should be back to normal if you follow these steps.

I think my computer has a virus, when I get on the Internet, ads will pop up all the time, I think it is called adware? Also pages will pop up saying something along the lines of my computer is at risk for some security issue. What should I do?

I think my computer has a virus, when I get on the Internet, ads will pop up all the time, I think it is called adware? Also pages will pop up saying something along the lines of my computer is at risk for some security issue. What should I do?

Remove Browser Pop-up Problems
     AdwareMedic
     Adblock Plus 1.8.9
     remove adware that displays pop-up ads and graphics on your Mac
Helpful Links Regarding Malware Problems
If you are having an immediate problem with ads popping up see The Safe Mac » Adware Removal Guide and AdwareMedic. If you require anti-virus protection Thomas Reed recommends using ClamXAV. (Thank you to Thomas Reed for this recommendation.)
Open Safari, select Preferences from the Safari menu. Click on Extensions icon in the toolbar. Disable all Extensions. If this stops your problem, then re-enable them one by one until the problem returns. Now remove that extension as it is causing the problem.
The following comes from user stevejobsfan0123. I have made minor changes to adapt to this presentation.
Fix Some Browser Pop-ups That Take Over Safari.
Common pop-ups include a message saying the government has seized your computer and you must pay to have it released (often called "Moneypak"), or a phony message saying that your computer has been infected, and you need to call a tech support number (sometimes claiming to be Apple) to get it resolved. First, understand that these pop-ups are not caused by a virus and your computer has not been affected. This "hijack" is limited to your web browser. Also understand that these messages are scams, so do not pay any money, call the listed number, or provide any personal information. This article will outline the solution to dismiss the pop-up.
Quit Safari
Usually, these pop-ups will not go away by either clicking "OK" or "Cancel." Furthermore, several menus in the menu bar may become disabled and show in gray, including the option to quit Safari. You will likely have to force quit Safari. To do this, press Command + option + esc, select Safari, and press Force Quit.
Relaunch Safari
If you relaunch Safari, the page will reopen. To prevent this from happening, hold down the 'Shift' key while opening Safari. This will prevent windows from the last time Safari was running from reopening.
This will not work in all cases. The shift key must be held at the right time, and in some cases, even if done correctly, the window reappears. In these circumstances, after force quitting Safari, turn off Wi-Fi or disconnect Ethernet, depending on how you connect to the Internet. Then relaunch Safari normally. It will try to reload the malicious webpage, but without a connection, it won't be able to. Navigate away from that page by entering a different URL, i.e. www.apple.com, and trying to load it. Now you can reconnect to the Internet, and the page you entered will appear rather than the malicious one.

My wifi network connection is not working, will read "unable to join". Am able to access as a guest. When I hit the blue arrow on the right hand side of my network there is no information e.g ip address, subnet mask, etc. This info is in my guest area.

My network has not been working today. When I click on it it says "unable to access nhe network". My guest network will work. When I hit the blue arrow on the right hand side of my network there is no information in the IP address, subnet mask, router, etc. There is information in my guest section when I checked. I have unplugged and replugged my router and turned my Wifi button of and off, started and restarted my Ipod as per internet suggestions. Would anyone know how to get my network reactivated. I am nervous to hit reset network settings in case I lose all my music and icons, etc. added since I got my Ipod. Thank you for any assistance

Do other devices now connect?
Did the iPod connect before?
What encryption/security is the router using?
Try:
- Reset the iOS device. Nothing will be lost
Reset iOS device: Hold down the On/Off button and the Home button at the same time for at
least ten seconds, until the Apple logo appears.
- Power off and then back on the router
- Reset network settings: Settings>General>Reset>Reset Network Settings
- iOS: Troubleshooting Wi-Fi networks and connections
- iOS: Recommended settings for Wi-Fi routers and access points
- Restore from backup. See:
iOS: How to back up
- Restore to factory settings/new iOS device.
- Make an appointment at the Genius Bar of an Apple store.
Apple Retail Store - Genius Bar

Hi, I need to re-format my hard drive, as it has a virus, so will lose all my data including itunes. I therefore need to reinstall itunes - but if I do this will I lose all the music that I have bought? How do I reinstall music to the new itunes?

Hi, I need to re-format my hard drive, as it has a virus and is corrupted- so I will lose all my data including my itunes software. I guess I will need to reinstall itunes again - but if I do this will, I lose all the music that I have bought or imported into my library? How do I reinstall my library/playlists to the new itunes?
Thanks

Make a backup of your media and other important files.
Just to be safe, make a backup of your entire iTunes directory.
Restore computer or do whatever it is you need to do.
Restore your media and other important documents.
Install iTunes.
Try using search next time... this gets asked way too frequently.

When I drag a mail (*.eml) into Apple Mail as attachment, then send it out, the attachment will become incomplete or corrupt in receiving side

Hi,
My environment : Mountain Lion, build-in Mail software for send and receive email to/from Exchange Server.
Steps :
1. In Mail software, I drag and drop the email into Desktop. the email is still complete in this step.
2. Write a new email , starting from blank, then I drag the email from Desktop as a attachment then send to the receiver
3. In receive side, the mail attachment will become imcomplete , sometimes, the body become null, sometimes the whole emails includer header become null.
the default email format setting in Apple Mail is "RTF"
Thanks for help.
Pender

Their appears to be a fault in yours or their email program because I just dragged an email to the Desktop, dragged that into a new email in Apple"s "Mail", sent it to myself, and when received the attachment was flawless.
Hope this helps

I just downloaded the itunes 11.0 with the completely new widow format. Mow do I drag songs and playlists onto my ipod? I see where my ipod is on the upper right side of screen but it will not accept any drops. Please help. thanks

Hello, i just downloaded the itunes 11.0 with the completely new widow format. Mow do I drag songs and playlists onto my ipod? I see where my ipod is on the upper right side of screen but it will not accept any drops. Please help. thanks

Not only this but I can't drag from Itunes and place anywhere on my desktop or onto an external drive. Apple, why are you screwing around with basic functions!? I'm a dj and I need to be able to manage my music files without you ruining my life! FIX THIS!
Message was edited by: wheelo007

My I phone has plenty of storage but will not download any apps free or paid for when I press install the installation symbol appears briefly and then the page reverts to the original form with the price or free on the right hand side.

My I phone has plenty of storage but will not download any apps free or paid for when I press install the installation symbol appears briefly and then the page reverts to the original form with the price or free on the right hand side.

Call 1-800-275-2273...ask to talk to "Customer Relations"...no one else.
Good luck.

Got a virus on the Windows side of my partitioned drive on my mac book pro. I'd like to reformat that side and use all apple now. Is that possible?

I have a mac book pro laptop that when I purchased it, I partitioned one side with bootcamp and the other with Apple. Since then, I seem to have acquired a virus on the Windows side and I'd like to simply reformat that side. My preference is to NOT use Windows again since I no longer do. Is it possible to reformat that side of the drive and make it apple again?
What other solutions do I have?
Thanks in advance!
JBeechcraft

Open Boot Camp Assistant. Use it to remove the Windows partition and rejoin it to your OS X volume. Do not attemp to reformat or use Disk Utility for this or you can corrupt the drive.

Had to have my computer wiped clean due to virus infection. In trying to install acrobat 9, i get a message invalid serial number, even though it is the serial number in my account. What to do?

Had to have my computer wiped clean due to virus infection. In trying to re-install acrobat 9, i get a message "invalid serial number", even though it is the serial number in my account. What to do?

there is a lot of info at that link. by checking that link you'll see that serial number only works for the exact product for which it was purchased.
ie, if you purchase acrobat 9 std, you need to use acrobat 9 std installation files, not acrobat 9 pro.
Downloadable installation files available:
Suites and Programs: CC 2014 | CC | CS6 | CS5.5 | CS5 | CS4, CS4 Web Standard | CS3
Acrobat: XI, X | 9,8 | 9 standard
Premiere Elements: 13 | 12 | 11, 10 | 9, 8, 7 win | 8 mac | 7 mac
Photoshop Elements: 13 |12 | 11, 10 | 9,8,7 win | 8 mac | 7 mac
Lightroom: 5.7.1| 5 | 4 | 3
Captivate: 8 | 7 | 6 | 5.5, 5 | 1
Contribute: CS5 | CS4, CS3 | 3,2
FrameMaker: 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7.2
Download and installation help for Adobe links
Download and installation help for Prodesigntools links are listed on most linked pages. They are critical; especially steps 1, 2 and 3. If you click a link that does not have those steps listed, open a second window using the Lightroom 3 link to see those 'Important Instructions'.

Firefox will not display on the screen even though with Process Explorer I see Firefox.exe active but no CPU usage

I use Firefox v10.0.2 as default browser on Dell XPS8300 e/w Intel Core i5 & Windows 7 Ultimate and Compaq Presario CQ57 e/w Intel Core i3 & Windows 7 Home. More frequently on the (about 90% of attempts) than the Dell (50% of attempts) Firefox will not display to the screen when I click on icon. When it happens I cannot display other programs. I specifically say display because I believe Firefox has started. To circumvent the problem I installed Process Explorer on both machines and start this program first then click on Firefox icon. When problem occurs I can see Firefox.exe process in Process list; some CPU consumed but, then, no CPU activity. If I click on Firefox icon again another process opens in Process list but with same response - some CPU consumed and then no CPU activity. If I have 2 processes running and kill the 1st process, the 2nd will display and everything from then on is normal. If I do not open a 2nd process but kill the 1st process then click on Firefox icon Firefox is displayed and everything from then on is normal. This problem has occurred since original installation on both new machines. I've updated video drivers in both machines.

Ok, let's see if we can fix this and get it working for you!
First, if you start Firefox in [[safe mode|safe mode]] (restart your computer first, then when you open Firefox, hold down the shift key) does it start up more reliably? This is usually caused by a faulty add-on. If it does help, then restart Firefox, go into the Firefox button, then add-ons, and disable your extensions one by one until you find the trouble maker.
Also, try updating to Firefox 11, it has several bug fixes that might make life easier here.
Just as a few basic troubleshooting steps to make sure we have all the bases covered,
Run all Windows Updates, install all needed service packs, etc.
Update all your plugins (Flash, Java, etc.): [http://www.mozilla.org/plugincheck/ http://www.mozilla.org/plugincheck/].
Download and Install MalwareBytes Anti-Malware, run a full Scan. [http://www.malwarebytes.org/ http://www.malwarebytes.org/]. This helps check that there are no viruses on your computer causing issues. you can uninstall this program after you clean off any infections.

Mackeeper has detected a virus in the time capsule back up - it is not possible to dele - it ite the file. Do I find time capsule in finder and delete the whole computer back up, then crate a fresh back up? Is that the only solution please?

mackeeper has detected a virus in the time capsule backup, it is not possible to delete the infected file. Do I mount time capsule in finder and then consign to junk the whole computer backup then create a fresh backup? Is that the only solution please.

Follow these instructions to uninstall MacKeeper. They have been tested with the most recent version of MacKeeper. Earlier versions than the one released in 2012 require more extensive work to uninstall all its components. Never install such junk on a Mac.
If you actually used MacKeeper to alter your system, e.g. "remove excess binaries" or such, you will need to reinstall OS X as well as all your additional software. Uninstalling MacKeeper is insufficient to reverse the corruption it is capable of - once again, that is if you used it.
If you merely installed MacKeeper but did not use it to perform any particular action, the following instructions will suffice.
If you used MacKeeper to encrypt any files or folders, use MacKeeper to un-encrypt them first.
Quit the MacKeeper app if it is running.
Open your Applications folder: Using the Finder's Go menu, select Applications.
Drag the MacKeeper icon from your Applications folder (not the Dock) to the Trash.
You will be asked to authenticate (twice):
You do not need to provide a reason for uninstalling it:
Just click the Uninstall MacKeeper button. You will be asked to authenticate again.
After it uninstalls you may empty the Trash and restart your Mac. All that will remain is an inert log file that does nothing but occupy space on your hard disk.
May I suggest that you review the following setting in System Preferences?
Although you may easily override that setting, it will serve to protect you from inadvertently installing garbage. The overwhelming majority of Macs I come across have the MacKeeper installer file already present in their Downloads folder, often multiple copies of it. The downloaded file itself can do nothing until it is opened and installed, and the above setting (known as Gatekeeper - not to be confused with MacKeeper) will prevent that from occurring.

How can I clean virus infected files on my Time Machine disk?

I am running McAfee VirusScan and it locates and cleans virus infected files just fine on my computer, but when it finds infected files on my Time Machine backup drive it says "Repair Failed". Is there a way to clean infected files on my Time Machine backup drive?
Related question: Is this because the actual files are saved in a central hidden location and the files I see when I open the backup disk with finder are actually just alias links?

Schmactor,
First, it is unlikely that your software is actually finding a virus of any kind. Many supposed reports of a virus will, in fact, be perfectly legitimate (and harmless) files. While it is possible that you'll receive a virus, it is still unlikely. Most ISPs run anti-virus software on their email servers; if a virus is sent to you in an email, it is usually removed before you download it.
Even if you have downloaded an email, it is even less likely that you're going to send it to a Windows-using friend. Since any Windows virus is going to do absolutely nothing on your Mac, you most likely will just delete it. Are you in the habit of forwarding random emails that have unidentifiable attachments to your friends?
Keep in mind that it is always in the best interest of the developers of anti-virus software titles that the software constantly "finds" things, even when nothing exists. If you were to purchase anti-virus software, only to find that it does absolutely nothing for months at a time, you will not pay for further updates. I have been using a Mac for many, many years, and I have never run any kind of anti-virus software. I have also never sent a virus to someone else.
Scott

Unable to sync apps after a fatal crash from a virus infected email

Recently I had a crash resulting from a virus infected email. Upon reinstating my operating system (XP Pro) and lost software, I am having difficulties in syncing my Iphone with my PC, my Library apps is blank but the apps are still showing on the iphone. I'm also having problems with my account which is stated to be different from the one on the PC, possibly because I reinstalled itunes. Any suggestions as to how I reinstate my apps in the Library and have the account recognized. Any help would be most appreciated.

Dfu means device firmware upgrade
Press and hold Power + Home buttons together (10sec)
Phone will go blank
Before Apple logo comes, release the Power n keep holding Home button
Until you see a pop in the PC that Apple device in recovery mode
At that point iTunes will pop asking to restore iphone
Click restore or
before u click restore just download the iOS 6.0.2 on say desktop
After that press and hold shift on ur keyboard then click restore
It will allow u to navigate and select the iOS firmware u just downloaded
That's it. When done, restore from your iphone backup, and syncing starts working

What anti-virus is the most recomended for MacBook?

Hi, I have a cuestion. What anti-virus is the most recomended for MacBook?

pablo.asz wrote:
... But the true is that exist virus and I wish to know what is the best protection.
OS X already includes everything it needs to protect itself from viruses and malware. Keep it updated with software updates from Apple.
A much better question is "how should I protect my Mac":
Never install any product that claims to "speed up", "clean up", "optimize", or "accelerate" your Mac. Without exception, they will do the opposite.
Never install pirated or "cracked" software, software obtained from dubious websites, or other questionable sources. Illegally obtained software is almost certain to contain malware.
Don’t supply your password in response to a popup window requesting it, unless you know what it is and the reason your credentials are required.
Don’t open email attachments from email addresses that you do not recognize, or click links contained in an email:
Most of these are scams that direct you to fraudulent sites that attempt to convince you to disclose personal information.
Such "phishing" attempts are the 21st century equivalent of a social exploit that has existed since the dawn of civilization. Don’t fall for it.
Apple will never ask you to reveal personal information in an email. If you receive an unexpected email from Apple saying your account will be closed unless you take immediate action, just ignore it. If your iTunes or App Store account becomes disabled for valid reasons, you will know when you try to buy something or log in to this support site, and are unable to.
Don’t install browser extensions unless you understand their purpose. Go to the Safari menu > Preferences > Extensions. If you see any extensions that you do not recognize or understand, simply click the Uninstall button and they will be gone.
Don’t install Java unless you are certain that you need it:
Java, a non-Apple product, is a potential vector for malware. If you are required to use Java, be mindful of that possibility.
Disable Java in Safari > Preferences > Security.
Despite its name JavaScript is unrelated to Java. No malware can infect your Mac through JavaScript. It’s OK to leave it enabled.
Block browser popups: Safari menu > Preferences > Security > and check "Block popup windows":
Popup windows are useful and required for some websites, but popups have devolved to become a common means to deliver targeted advertising that you probably do not want.
Popups themselves cannot infect your Mac, but many contain resource-hungry code that will slow down Internet browsing.
If you ever see a popup indicating it detected registry errors, that your Mac is infected with some ick, or that you won some prize, it is 100% fraudulent. Ignore it.
Ignore hyperventilating popular media outlets that thrive by promoting fear and discord with entertainment products arrogantly presented as "news". Learn what real threats actually exist and how to arm yourself against them:
The most serious threat to your data security is phishing. To date, most of these attempts have been pathetic and are easily recognized, but that is likely to change in the future as criminals become more clever.
OS X viruses do not exist, but intentionally malicious or poorly written code, created by either nefarious or inept individuals, is nothing new.
Never install something without first knowing what it is, what it does, how it works, and how to get rid of it when you don’t want it any more.
If you elect to use "anti-virus" software, familiarize yourself with its limitations and potential to cause adverse effects, and apply the principle immediately preceding this one.
Most such utilities will only slow down and destabilize your Mac while they look for viruses that do not exist, conveying no benefit whatsoever - other than to make you "feel good" about security, when you should actually be exercising sound judgment, derived from accurate knowledge, based on verifiable facts.
Do install updates from Apple as they become available. No one knows more about Macs and how to protect them than the company that builds them.
Summary: Use common sense and caution when you use your Mac, just like you would in any social context. There is no product, utility, or magic talisman that can protect you from all the evils of mankind.

Will PC viruses infect the OS x side?

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