Not all applications and programs on the internet are always completely safe. Many of these downloadable apps are actually malicious software , and that is why you should always check whether it is a malicious program or not. macOS performs this task before executing it but sometimes it cannot, giving the error “you cannot verify that this app does not contain malicious software”. We teach you what it means and how you can solve it.
Why can’t macOS verify software?
Due to how a particular application is developed, macOS may not be able to determine if it is non-malicious software. This throws the error “You cannot verify that this app does not contain malicious software” . But it doesn’t always mean that an unverified application is going to pose a danger to a computer, as a developer has simply not been identified.
A very common way of being able to distribute malicious software is to take an application, edit it and distribute it as if it were an authentic app. This is why any application that is not signed by a verified developer is considered malicious.
How to avoid security problems on Mac
If an application when opening it in macOS throws this error, we must make all the alarms go off. We must always be suspicious and assume that we are dealing with malicious software before carrying out a series of checks.
It is important that whenever possible, applications are downloaded from the Mac App Store . In this case, all the apps have been verified by Apple and the developers are known and their code is totally safe. But unfortunately not all the applications that we use on a daily basis are in this official store and we must resort to downloading them from different websites.
In these cases we always have to fully trust that we are doing the download from the official website of the developer. There are always some websites that try to install malicious software on our Mac. This is why you always have to download from the official websites and have proof that it is a used application and that you can trust. There are many cases of malware that has entered Mac due to the execution of this type of program. These are very similar recommendations to those given when opening unknown email messages.
Open app from unidentified developer
If you fully trust the application that could not be tracked if malware exists or not, you can still open it by skipping this warning given by the operating system. To access it, simply follow the following steps:
- Enter the Finder and search for the application in question.
- With the Control key held down , click on the app and hit ‘Open’.
- Confirm that you want to open it and it will be saved as an exception in your security preferences.
This is not the only way to make this jump to macOS security advisories. A button will appear in the system preferences for authorization one hour after a specific app has been blocked. Simply follow the steps below, once the app has been blocked:
- Enter System Preferences.
- Scroll down to the ‘Security and Privacy’ section.
- In the ‘General’ menu, in the lower right corner you will see a button to authorize the downloaded application.
It is also important to note that in this same security preferences window, it must be made clear that applications downloaded from the App Store and identified developers are allowed. In this way we ensure that the operating system reviews each of the downloaded applications. But in the case of having an unidentified developer, it will always throw us the warning.
In this easy way you can skip the safety warnings. Obviously, each must act accordingly and authorize those applications that are trusted to guarantee the security of the software.