Apple .Mac has disbanded Virex support

Apple, which took over Virex support for personal from McAfee more than a year ago, dropped the anti-virus software at version 7.5.1 after deeming the support costs for rolling out version 7.6 not worth it.

Since disbanding Virex support for .Mac customers following Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger´s release and incompatibility with the anti-virus utility. Sources reported that Apple has seen a slide in .Mac sales since eliminating Virex, which had proven to be a particular attraction for Windows switchers purchasing new Macs at Apple retail stores. It was known that Apple retail employees are instructed to maintain a 40 percent attach rate for .Mac (meaning 40 percent of new Macs purchases should also include purchase of .Mac account) a quota that´s been difficult to meet since its inception.

Virex 7.7, featuring support for Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, is currently in public beta testing but McAfee has no plans to target individual users with its release.