Several months ago, I read an article in Consumer Reports that touted AVG antivirus as the best antivirus app for Mac. Consequently, I downloaded and installed the free version. In retrospect, I should have suspected it when I experienced slowdowns in my computer, including apps that were slow to load and some wonky behavior. AVG kept nagging me about upgrading to the paid version (which I ignored) and gave frequent popup messages that tried to scare me by claiming that something was amiss (in truth, after the first attempt at using it to scan my drive, I hadn't opened it). Then, my wife complained that the computer was frozen. I had to do a forced shutdown and immediately went into Console to consult the crash log.

The crash log showed that AVG was the culprit. I uninstalled AVG by using its uninstall feature in its application menu and then searched for leftovers with Spotlight, Easy Find, and Find Any File. Interestingly, Spotlight found very little compared with the others, and I trashed all the detritus. Since then, my computer is back to normal, no issues, no freezes, and apps launch speedily.

Bottom line: AVG is a virus unto itself. I haven't experienced anything like this since Norton Antivirus caused kernel panics, back in the day. DO NOT USE THIS APP!

Thanks for the caution. I have to wonder about Consumer Reports who many people trust as a reliable source of unbiased information. How did they miss the issues? Would they not have tested an "off the shelf" version long enough? Or, could they have gone to the publisher for the software but, given who they are, been given a "cleaned up" version that would not trigger the negative aspects?

I checked AVG out on MacUpdate, and the PC version is apparently a good product, but the Mac version gets knocked.

Consumer Reports is fine, provided that you don't take it as the last word. I suspect that, in the case of AVG, they tested it long enough to see that it detected and removed viruses that CR deliberately introduced, but never had it long enough to see its other issues.

In a related reference to CR, I wanted to buy a dehumidifier many years ago and CR had given a top rating to a GE model. When I read the reviews at CR's website, it stood out that this machine broke down after 6 months. I subsequently bought a Winix dehumidifier, have had it many years, and it still works flawlessly. CR also gives top reliability ratings to the 2011 Honda Accord. I ditched that car when, at only 62000 miles, it needed a timing chain replacement (note, not a timing BELT) and developed a frozen brake caliper. The local Honda dealer soaked me for the repairs ($1700 and $700 respectively). I bit the bullet, had it repaired, and traded it for a 2020 Toyota Camry.

Oh, one more thing: The Honda needed a new battery after 6 years (not a complaint; to be expected) and I replaced it with a Honda battery that failed after one year. Honda replaced it under warranty at no charge, but I began to lose faith in Honda parts.