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  <h1 class="topictitle1">About scanning for threats</h1>

  <div><p><strong>On-access
		scanning</strong> is your main method of protection against threats. Whenever you access (copy, move, or open) a file, 	 <span class="keyword">Sophos Anti-Virus</span> scans the file and grants access to it only if it does not pose a threat to your Mac. By default, on-access scanning is turned on and preconfigured with the recommended settings for protection. We recommend that you don’t make changes to the settings unless there is a specific need or problem that you are aiming to address.</p>
<p><strong>On-demand scans</strong> provide additional protection. An on-demand scan is a scan that you initiate. You can scan anything from a single file to everything on your Mac to which you have access:</p>
 
	  
	 <a name="concept_9B9F4D9F86404E409D89E11C48A1A379__ul_4F424761FB70487AA32981241632FABA"><!-- --></a><ul id="concept_9B9F4D9F86404E409D89E11C48A1A379__ul_4F424761FB70487AA32981241632FABA"><li id="concept_9B9F4D9F86404E409D89E11C48A1A379__li_E04FE9C431BA4C3A8F417E78B3457E8C"><a name="concept_9B9F4D9F86404E409D89E11C48A1A379__li_E04FE9C431BA4C3A8F417E78B3457E8C"><!-- --></a><p><strong>Scan This Mac</strong></p>
<p>Scan all files to which you have access on local volumes. If you authenticate as an administrator, files to which you do not have access are scanned as well. Any removable storage devices that are inserted are included.</p>
<p>You might want to run this scan because you want to deal with a threat that
						<span class="keyword">Sophos Anti-Virus</span> has detected or you want to discover
					that files are infected <em>before</em> you need to use them.</p>
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<li id="concept_9B9F4D9F86404E409D89E11C48A1A379__li_A7FC21A126684EFCAEDBC8A26233F55F"><a name="concept_9B9F4D9F86404E409D89E11C48A1A379__li_A7FC21A126684EFCAEDBC8A26233F55F"><!-- --></a><p><strong>Custom scans</strong></p>
<p>Scan specific sets of files, folders, or volumes.</p>
<p>You might want to run a custom scan because you want to scan only suspicious parts of a disk or you want to discover that files are infected <em>before</em> you need to use them.</p>
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<li id="concept_9B9F4D9F86404E409D89E11C48A1A379__li_2F7E62AB6C3147EF85D1194F9069DA6D"><a name="concept_9B9F4D9F86404E409D89E11C48A1A379__li_2F7E62AB6C3147EF85D1194F9069DA6D"><!-- --></a><p><strong>Finder item scans</strong></p>
<p>Scan a file, folder, or volume that you have selected in Finder.</p>
<p>You might want to run a Finder item scan for one of the following reasons: you want to scan the contents of an archive or compressed file <em>before</em> you need to open it, you want to scan something before you email it, or you want to scan a CD or DVD.</p>
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<p>You can set up <strong>email alerts</strong> so that any scan type can warn of threats or serious errors.</p>
<p>You can also use <strong>Terminal</strong> to run scans from the command line.</p>
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<div class="familylinks">
<div class="parentlink"><strong>Parent topic:</strong> <a href="../concepts/Scanning_for_threats.html" title="">Scanning for threats</a></div>
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