If neither app updates nor disk repair are helping, sometimes a good cache flush can get your Mac running just a bit more smoothly. To reset the NVRAM (or, on older Macs, PRAM), reboot the Mac and hold down the following keyboard command during startup for at least twenty seconds: Command-Option-P-R.
- If, after all of these steps, you're still having problems with a possible infection, feel free to post your question in our public forum. And if you want your Mac, iPhone, or Android phone as shiny and new as your PC after a cleaning, you can run anti-malware scans on these devices as well.
- While your Mac can definitely be infected with malware, Apple's built-in malware detection and file quarantine capabilities are meant to make it less likely that you'll download and run.
- If you can, remove the internet connection from the infected computer until you are sure that the virus or malware has been removed. Click the Wi-Fi icon and disable or disconnect the Ethernet cable if you are using a wired connection. Keep your internet connection turned off until your Mac has been cleaned.
How To Clean Up My Mac
- Click on the Sophos shield icon near your clock. It looks like this:
- Select Open Quarantine Manager. Use the attached picture as a guide.
- From the Quaratine Manager window, click the padlock to unlock that window. Type in your Mac user account password when prompted.
- Click the Clean Up Threat button. Sophos will then try to remove the infection.
How To Clean An Infected Mac
- Click on one of the infected files then click the Reveal in Finder button.
- Wait a few seconds for a Finder window to open and display the infected file.
- Drag the infected file to the Trash, presuming you're sure you don't need that file.
How To Clean An Infected Macbook Air
[Important Note: Please make sure that you're not trying to remove a virus from a backup created by Time Machine. Time Machine stores backup copies of your files on external hard drives. These files have read-only permissions. This means that these files can be opened (read) but they can't be deleted. This prevents one from accidentally deleting a backup copy of a file. However, if you have a virus-infected file in your Time Machine backup you're also prevented from being able to delete that file. This is fine since the virus can't do any harm anyway.]
