Run Norton scans to check for threats on Mac

Your Norton product provides a range of scans to protect your Mac from malware and network threats. You can also create your own scans with parameters you specify. The following virus scans are available:

Quick Scan: Quickly scans the most vulnerable areas of your Mac.

Full Scan: Performs an in-depth scan of your system, including checking your storage drives and memory for malware.

Targeted Scan: Scans specific folders or any external drives connected to your Mac.

Custom Scans: You can set up scans with your own parameters, including scheduling your custom scans to run regularly and automatically.

Run a Quick Scan, Full Scan, or Targeted scan

1. Open your Norton device security product.

2. On the left pane, click Security.

3. In the Security dashboard, in the Scans tile, click Open.

4. In the Preset scans tab, click Start next to the scan that you want to run. In the case of Targeted Scan, select the files or folders you want to scan and click Open. To customize your scan settings, hover your cursor over the relevant scan and then click (the gear icon). For more information, read Manage Norton Scans settings on Mac.

5. A progress screen appears while your Norton product performs the scan.

   The progress screen does not appear when you run a custom scan. Full Scan may take several minutes or more to complete, depending on the number of files and the performance of your system.

6. When the scan is complete, you can view the summary of the scan that your Norton product last performed. Your Norton product automatically takes appropriate action on any infected file that it detects during the scan.

   By default, your Norton product quarantines the suspicious files. This way, your Norton product prevents the infection from spreading and infecting other files on your Mac.

7. Verify the scan results carefully and do one of the following:

   • If you want to resolve all the threats, select all the detected files, and click Resolve All.

   • If you think the detected file is safe, you can exclude a file from scans. Hover your cursor over the detected file, click (the three dots icon), and then click Add Exclusion. In the alert, click Add.

     Excluding a file from the Norton scans reduces the protection level of your Mac and should be used only if you have a specific need. You should only exclude items if you are confident they are not infected.