If you own a Mac, you're far less likely to have a virus scanner than a Windows user. For many years, Mac users have relied on the fact that Macs just weren't that widespread, and that meant most malicious attacks were targeted at Windows.

Times are changing, and ClamXav is one of many antivirus programs aimed specifically at Mac users. It's free, and it's built around ClamAV, so it has the support of a well established open source community.

ClamXav is designed to be lightweight and non-intrusive. Users can quickly quarantine or trash a file with a click, and the Sentry service acts as a constant disk monitor without dragging performance down. All in all, ClamXav is ideal for Mac users who want simple protection and minimum fuss.

Other benefits include:

• Scheduled updates and definition downloads, making it less likely that your work will be interrupted.
• A list of favourite scan locations.
• An easy-to-edit exclusions database that's easy for a novice to get to grips with.
• Scanning of all files or a small sub-section.

While viruses aren't yet a pressing problem for Mac users, one malicious attack could wipe your data for good. Don't leave it to chance.