Intego Mac Internet Security X9 review
Our Verdict
Intego Mac Net Security X9 shines brightly in a couple of areas, but it ultimately doesn't hold up to the best Mac antivirus apps.
For
- Solid malware protection
- Blistering fast scans
- Excellent legacy macOS support
Against
- Expensive
- Limited feature set
- Disjointed user interface
Tom's Guide Verdict
Intego Mac Cyberspace Security X9 shines brightly in a couple of areas, but it ultimately doesn't hold up to the all-time Mac antivirus apps.
Pros
- +
Solid malware protection
- +
Blistering fast scans
- +
Splendid legacy macOS support
Cons
- -
Expensive
- -
Express feature set
- -
Disjointed user interface
Intego Mac Net Security X9: Specs
Malware protection: Skillful
System bear upon, groundwork: Light
Organisation affect, scans: Adequately heavy
macOS compatibility: 10.9 Mavericks and later
Browser extensions: No
Firewall: Yes
Hardened/secure browser: No
Parental controls: No
Password manager: No
Ransomware file protection: No
Scan scheduling: Yes
Webcam protection: No
VPN: No
Support options: Email, FAQs
Intego Mac Internet Security X9 offers a couple of standout features and has unbelievably fast malware scans and remarkable legacy support going all the way back to macOS x.9. This is coupled with a solid track record when information technology comes to Intego'southward operation in third-party malware testing.
Still, at $fifty a year for a single device, it is difficult to recommend Intego Mac Cyberspace Security X9 over some of its competitors among the best Mac antivirus programs. It feels alike to what you lot get for free from Avast Gratuitous Security for Mac, while something similar Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac offers more features and a better user interface at a lower toll. (Tom's Guide readers become half off for the showtime yr.)
Read on for the rest of our Intego Mac Net Security X9 review.
Intego Mac Internet Security X9: Costs and what's covered
Intego Mac Cyberspace Security X9 is $50 per year for a unmarried device or $93 per year if y'all pay for two years at once. You tin bump up to a maximum of five devices for $85 per year for a unmarried twelvemonth or $153 for two years.
If y'all need coverage for both macOS and Windows, that can exist added for an additional $xi to $xv. An Intego client-support representative told u.s. via browser chat that Intego created its own Windows malware-detection engine and did non license it from another vendor.
Mac Internet Security X9 includes antivirus software, VirusBarrier X9 and a firewall, NetBarrier X9. The former covers antivirus protection against a wide variety of malware including adware, keyloggers, spyware, Trojan horses and more. The latter is aimed at monitoring your network traffic for potential security threats.
Intego besides offers its Mac Premium Bundle X9, which adds a macOS system cleaner for performance enhancement, parental controls and backup software. The Mac Premium Package starts at $85 for a single device for i twelvemonth and goes upwardly to $269 to comprehend up to 5 devices for 2 years.
If you need coverage for both macOS and Windows, y'all can add together that for an boosted $eighteen to $57 depending on the plan you lot choose.
The parental controls, which Intego calls ContentBarrier X9, tin can besides be bought in a stand-alone parcel that starts at $80 per yr for a unmarried machine. Likewise, the system cleaner can be bought in a packet called Mac Washing Machine Secure X9 starting at $65 a year for a single Mac.
Both of these bundles likewise include VirusBarrier X9 and NetBarrier X9, so yous can mix and friction match the features you lot want.
Intego Mac Internet Security X9 runs on macOS 10.nine Mavericks and above.
Intego Mac Net Security X9: Antivirus protection
Intego covers all of the bases with its antivirus protection, referred to equally VirusBarrier. Its antivirus scanning can be scheduled to run at regular intervals or as one-offs, but too as existent-time protection as soon every bit y'all complete the initial setup. Any connected external drives will be included in virus scans, and optionally this tin cover connected iOS devices also.
Any threats identified will be shifted into the Quarantine tab within VirusBarrier. If a known secure file is being flagged for some reason, yous can manually place information technology in the Trusted Files tab to avert future imitation positives.
VirusBarrier volition likewise browse your Apple Mail for any threats, including Windows-based threats and so that you lot don't unknowingly pass on malware to Windows devices in your local network.
Intego Mac Internet Security X9: Antivirus operation
In social club to determine the overall efficacy of Intego Mac Internet Security X9's malware scanning, nosotros relied on the Deutschland-based AV-Test and Austria-based AV-Comparatives labs, which conduct regular evaluations of major antivirus apps and services.
During the Nov-Dec 2020 testing by AV-Test lab, Intego Mac Internet Security X9 detected 98.5% of "widespread and prevalent" Mac malware. During this same circular of testing, Avast Free Security for Mac, Norton 360 Standard and Trend Micro Antivirus for Mac all outperformed Intego Mac Internet Security X9, getting 100% each.
| AV-Exam, most recent exam | AV-Test, previous test | AV-Comparatives, most contempo test | AV-Comparatives, previous test | |
| Avast | 100% | 98.vi% | 100% | 100% |
| Bitdefender | 97.3% | 98.8% | 100% | 100% |
| Intego | 98.5% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Kaspersky | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Norton | 100% | 100% | Not tested | Non tested |
| Trend Micro | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Bitdefender and Kaspersky'due south Mac antivirus programs were not tested at this time. In Baronial-September 2020, Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac detected 97.3% of Mac malware; in May-June 2020, Kaspersky Internet Security for Mac detected 100%. Intego was non evaluated in either round.
Intego Mac Internet Security X9 did avoid any faux positives in Nov-Dec 2020, meaning all detections were accurate, but this was true of its competitors besides. Information technology too detected more than 99% of Windows malware.
This was an uncharacteristically poor performance for Intego Mac Internet Security X9. Information technology had previously failed to detect 100% of malware threats in AV-Test's evaluations only one time since April of 2017. In Feb-March 2020, information technology spotted 100% of Mac malware.
Turning to the AV-Comparatives testing, Intego Mac Cyberspace Security X9 was not part of the June 2020 testing, but it received a perfect 100% in the June 2019 and July 2018 tests. In July 2017, it roughshod just brusque of this marking with a 99.6% detection charge per unit. Avast, Bitdefender, Kaspersky and Trend Micro were all part of the June 2019 test too and received a perfect 100%.
Intego Mac Internet Security X9: Security and privacy features
Intego is again quite reminiscent of Avast Free Security for Mac in that in that location only isn't much going on with the app outside of handling your antivirus protection — which is after all its express purpose.
Intego'due south Prophylactic Browsing On feature is really just a check of the settings on your installed browsers. It verifies that the born condom-browsing feature on your browsers is active, but you can opt to have Intego ignore specific browsers if you adopt. It'south nice that Intego draws your attention to the thing, merely obviously, this is something y'all could do yourself.
The other master component of Intego is the NetBarrier firewall. This looks at incoming and outgoing data from your Mac to ensure that aught malicious is being injected and that your individual data isn't being rerouted somewhere unintended.
NetBarrier will apply unlike standards depending on whether you lot are on a domicile, work or public Wi-Fi network. Information technology will try to detect the nature of the network itself, but you can alter it manually if needed.
Intego Mac Net Security X9: Performance and arrangement impact
In social club to measure the performance touch of Intego Mac Internet Security X9, nosotros ran the Geekbench 5 benchmarking test prior to installing the app and so ran a series of tests with the tool afterwards installation. The 2016 MacBook Pro xiii-inch laptop that we used for the review had a 2.9Ghz Intel Core i5-6267U processor, 8GB of LPDDR3 RAM and a 256GB SSD with 42.18GB of files installed.
| Post-installation | Full scan | Quick browse | |
| Avast | 0% | 27% | 3% |
| Bitdefender | 0% | 19% | 1% |
| Intego | 0% | 34% | three% |
| Kaspersky | three% | 12% | iv% |
| Norton | 0% | 12% | 0% |
| Trend Micro | 1% | 46% | 1% |
Running our Geekbench five test prior to installing Intego Mac Internet Security X9, the MacBook Pro accomplished a score of i,843, which only dropped to 1,838 post-obit the installation of the app. That almost imperceptible hit was too replicated past most of the antivirus apps that I reviewed, with Kaspersky showing the biggest drop at a mere 3%.
The total scan was much less successful for Intego, resulting in a 34% functioning hit. That placed it only ahead of Trend Micro (46%). Avast (27%) was its next closest competitor, while Bitdefender (19%) was well ahead and Kaspersky (12%) and Norton (12%) showed performance impacts that were just a chip more than a third of Intego'due south.
A quick scan went better for Intego with just a iii% drop, matching Avast (3%) and edging out Kaspersky (4%). Nonetheless, that was outclassed by Bitdefender (1%), Trend Micro (ane%) and Norton (0%).
Intego Mac Internet Security X9'south first deep scan took 6 minutes and 22 seconds and scanned 623,142 files. That was astoundingly fast. The closest full scan was Avast (ten:25), and Intego was about six times faster than the slowest scan from Kaspersky (39:05). This speed probably goes a long fashion to explaining Intego's more significant performance hit.
Intego'south quick scan looks at the most mutual areas for viruses or malware. For my system, this scanned 185,491 files in just eleven seconds. This was such a preposterously fast time that I ran it several times to brand sure in that location wasn't a error, but it came through almost identically each fourth dimension.
While Norton (00:13), Bitdefender (00:xvi) and Avast (00:eighteen) all finished within seconds of Intego, they did so while scanning far fewer files: 591, 14,765 and 1,943 files respectively.
Intego Mac Cyberspace Security X9: Interface
Given the pretty bare-bones feature set of Intego, I feel like the app could practice a ameliorate chore of streamlining its user interface. There are essentially simply two components to the app — VirusBarrier and NetBarrier — merely at that place'southward no way to access one from the other. The Intego icon in the menu bar gives you lot access to both components forth with NetUpdate, only it'southward odd to non let yous admission the entire suite from a unmarried window.
VirusBarrier is pretty straightforward. The chief tab is Scan and it gives you a prominent status department confirming that your Mac is safe, with the date and time of the terminal scan and a glanceable await at whether you take each of the primary features turned on.
These chief features include Real-Time Scanning, Scheduled Scans and the Safe Browsing check. Real-Time Scanning settings are very basic, merely allowing you lot to toggle it on or off with the option to receive an email at a specific address if anything is detected.
Scheduled Scans lets you choose between either a full or quick scan conducted daily or weekly. Opening upward its avant-garde options adds the ability to prepare up multiple scans, choose monthly scans, and select specific devices to browse.
Condom Browsing, every bit previously mentioned, just turns on the built-in safe browsing characteristic on your installed browsers. Clicking Check At present displays a page confirming this with the option to ignore any of the browsers.
I find the one-off scanning to be a niggling oddly subconscious. Yous access a single quick or full browse by clicking on the icon at the right of any listed devices in the left column of VirusBarrier.
I'd presume the reasoning is that betwixt real-time scanning and scheduled scans you should rarely need this, but with so few features it'due south a fiddling odd to accept to click through to run into ane of them.
The other two tabs in VirusBarrier are Quarantine and Trusted Files. The one-time will evidence any potential malware with the pick to trust, delete or repair the files. Trusted Files, every bit previously mentioned, is for annihilation that is being flagged accidentally, and y'all add files to information technology past clicking the plus push in the lower-left corner.
NetBarrier is even more intuitive, with the primary Firewall tab showing an animation on the left side of the app depicting which barriers yous have in place along with the current profile you are using (Home, Work or Public Hotspot). On the right side, you can tweak any of the incoming or outgoing connections to the internet or your router including specific exceptions.
Applications is the only other tab for NetBarrier. It gives you lot a listing of any apps that are trying to connect to the net, with the ability to block, allow or force a program to ask for permission earlier it is able to connect. Once more, you tin can set unlike rules for Home, Work or Public Hotspots.
This can get a bit daunting to track every bit it includes everything, like mDNSResponder and other behind-the-scenes apps, that nearly won't be used to seeing, but it's well implemented and simple enough to spot-manage any obvious offenders.
Intego Mac Internet Security X9: Installation and support
Intego Mac Cyberspace Security X9 can be downloaded direct from the company'due south site. The DMG installation file is 100.5MB in size. The app itself then takes upward 136.8MB on your SSD.
As with Norton 360 Standard, you demand to restart your Mac before y'all tin actually start using Intego. Basic installation including the time to restart my MacBook Pro was only over iv minutes.
Setup first prompts you to choose the level of protection that you would similar. Minimum scanning protects you only from macOS and iOS malware too as malicious scripts, while Standard and Maximum as well cover Windows, Linux and Android malware as well every bit hacking tools and keyloggers. The primary departure betwixt Maximum and Standard is that the former runs a Quick Browse after every malware-definition update, which is probably advisable.
You are then prompted to grant the app total-disk access. Next, you'll select NetBarrier, which just requires that you choose whether you are on a home, public or piece of work Wi-Fi network. And then you're all set to go. Start-to-finish setup time should be iii to five minutes.
Intego Mac Internet Security X9 doesn't offer phone back up. Users can either submit a support request and expect a response via email or endeavour to detect the answer in the knowledge base or user manual.
Intego Mac Internet Security X9 review: Bottom line
Intego Mac Internet Security X9 is a solid Mac antivirus app, but it but doesn't offer enough to hold it upward to its competitors. The bland feature set and relatively high cost make Intego too hard to recommend over Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac or Norton 360 Standard.
If yous are drawn to the more bare-bones appearance and limited number of features, and so save yourself some coin and become with Avast Security for Mac, which is free. The one truly standout feature for Intego is its scanning speed, and that simply isn't reason enough to recommend an antivirus app when today the vast bulk of the piece of work is done past existent-fourth dimension scanning anyway.
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Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/reviews/intego-mac-internet-security-x9
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