Microsoft is rolling out its Windows Defender anti-virus software to Apple's operating system MacOS, with full virus and threat protection along with the usual ability to perform quick or full scans.
Defender is currently built into Windows 10, offering anti-virus protection by default.
While in the process of creating a dedicated Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) for Mac, the software giant has renamed its Windows Defender ATP to Microsoft Defender ATP, the company informed via a blog-post on Thursday.
" We’ve been working closely with industry partners to enable Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) customers to protect their non-Windows devices while keeping a centralized “single pane of glass” experience. Now we are going a step further by adding our own solution to the options, starting with a limited preview today," Eric Avena, Senior Content Developer, Microsoft wrote in the blog-post.
For businesses, a limited preview would be available for trying out the anti-virus protection in environments that have both Windows PCs and Macs.
"Now we are going a step further by adding our own solution to the options, starting with a limited preview today," Avena said.
In the limited preview, this app provides next-generation antimalware protection and allows end users to review and perform configuration of their protection. This includes running scans, including full, quick, and custom path scans, reviewing detected threats and taking actions on threats, including quarantine, remove, or allow.
Users will also be able to configure advanced settings such as disabling or enabling real-time protection, cloud-delivered protection, and automatic sample submission. Users can also add exclusions for files and paths, manage notifications when threats are found and manually check for security intelligence updates.
To keep the client up to date on MacOS, the software giant is using its AutoUpdate software, available on devices running MacOS Mojave, MacOS High Sierra, or MacOS Sierra, The Verge reported.
As ATP is limited to businesses, it remains unclear if Microsoft is also planning to bring a consumer version of Microsoft Defender to the Mac.