Mac software > All Reviews > Software > Security > Kaspersky Security for Mac review

Tue, 11 Sep 2012 Kaspersky Security for Mac review

Updated protection includes parental controls and anti-phishing features

Cliff Joseph

Manufacturer: Kaspersky Lab
Pros: comprehensive suite of anti-virus, web security and parental control software
Cons: documentation and help files aren’t always clear
Min specs: Mac OS X 10.6, 10.7 or 10.8;Mac system with Intel® processor;512 MB RAM;350 MB of available hard drive space (depending on antivirus database size);Internet connection (for product activation and updates
Price: Single Mac - £39.99 per year; 3 macs - £49.99 per year
We rate this 4 out of 5.Star rating:

Kaspersky’s ONE software suite provides anti-virus and security features for multiple devices, including Macs, PCs, and Android phones and tablets. However, the Mac software included within that suite is actually fairly basic and just concentrates on anti-virus features.

In order to provide more comprehensive security features for the Mac the company has now released Kaspersky Security For Mac – a standalone program that provides parental controls and web security features in addition to basic virus protection.

When you view web pages, Kaspersky Security scans each page for malicious code that might pose a threat to your Mac, and it can also check links on web pages to make sure they don’t take you to any known ‘phishing’ web sites.

The program can also display a ‘virtual keyboard’ on your screen so that you can enter passwords and other sensitive information without using your normal physical keyboard. This allows you to keep your personal information safe from ‘key-loggers’ – programs that can monitor your keyboard strokes in order to steal passwords and other information. That’s a good idea, but the online Help files included with the program weren’t as clear as they could have been and it took us a little while to figure out how the virtual keyboard feature works.

Parents who want to monitor their children’s Internet access can block several categories of web site – including gambling and chat sites, as well as pornography and other adult material – and there’s also an option to prevent videos and other types of files from being downloaded onto your Mac too. There are scheduling controls that limit web access to certain times of day, and you can monitor the messages that your kids send and receive on social web sites such as Facebook and then block messages from people who seem unsuitable.

Such close monitoring might seem a bit extreme, but it’s probably a good idea for younger kids – and you can always turn off that particular feature as they get older.

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