Mac OS X Antiphishing protects you from fraudulent websites

Antiphishing protects you from fraudulent websites.



Phishing is a form of attack in which online thieves try to acquire sensitive information such as user names, passwords, and credit card details by creating fake websites that look like sites from legitimate companies — like your bank or a social networking site. The antiphishing technology in Safari can protect you from such scams by detecting these fraudulent websites. And if you try to visit a suspicious site, Safari disables the page and displays an alert warning you about its suspect nature.

Your Mac stays on the alert.



Innocent-looking files downloaded over the Internet may contain dangerous malware in disguise. That’s why files you download using Safari, Mail, and Messages are screened to determine if they contain applications. If they do, OS X alerts you, then warns you the first time you open one. You decide whether to open the application or cancel the attempt. And if a file contains software identified as malicious, OS X offers to move it to the Trash.

More ways to keep your Mac safe.

While no system can be 100 percent immune from every threat, OS X lets you do even more to keep your information as safe as possible. You’ll find most of these additional security features in the Security & Privacy pane of System Preferences. Here are just a few of the things you can do:

• Turn on a firewall to prevent other machines from accessing services running on your Mac.


• Control access to your Mac by locking your screen after a period of inactivity.


• Set up secure file sharing.

• Securely delete outdated sensitive files with the Secure Empty Trash command.


• Use Password Assistant to create stronger passwords for local utilities like Users & Groups.


• Make sure you’re only running sharing services that you really need.