How to use the Surfshark Antivirus on macOS – Surfshark Customer Support

In this article, you will learn how to use Surfshark Antivirus on your macOS device.

Make sure you have Surfshark VPN for macOS downloaded directly from our website and an active Surfshark subscription with Surfshark One, or Surfshark One+. You can purchase it on Surfshark's pricing page.

Don't have the app downloaded? Check out how to install Surfshark Antivirus on macOS.

Use Surfshark Antivirus on macOS

Open the Surfshark application and select the Antivirus tab:
Now, you will find yourself on the main Antivirus dashboard, where you can find all of its features:

In the Antivirus window, you can manage your device's security through the following sections:

Manual scans

In this window, you can choose how thoroughly you want to scan your device:

Full scan: scans all files on all your drives;
Quick scan: scans the Documents, Downloads, and Desktop folders only;
Custom scan: scans only the specific files or folders you select. You can also use this to scan external storage devices like USB sticks or external hard drives. To start a custom scan, drag and drop your files into the designated area or click file or folder to browse your device.

You will also see a notification at the top if you have a scheduled scan pending, with a shortcut to Check schedule if you need to make changes.

Extra tools

In this section, you can manage additional security features:

Webcam protection: if your macOS device has a webcam, the feature will prevent unauthorized access to it. Read more on how to use the webcam protection feature on macOS;
Ransomware shield: select applications or folders to be protected from ransomware attacks. Read more on how to use Surfshark's ransomware shield on macOS;
Email scam checker: enable scam detection directly within your Gmail inbox to identify and block phishing attempts. Read more about this solution and how to use it.

Quarantine

With this option enabled, quarantined files (in other words, harmful files) will be automatically deleted in 60 days.

Protection history

The Protection history section allows you to track and review the security activity on your device from the last 6 months. Here, you can find details such as:

Scan results: view when a scan was completed and how many threats were found;
System events: monitor key milestones, such as when Antivirus was first installed or updated;
Activity timestamps: each entry includes a specific date and time, providing a clear timeline of your device's protection status.

Note: If any threats have been found on your device, we highly recommend removing the files containing them immediately to secure your device. You can do that directly through the Surfshark app.