I’m a Japanese person using Dorico on a Mac. Even though I use Dorico 90% of the time, my Mac’s system data has ballooned to 1.8TB, causing Dorico to occasionally fail to save. I called Apple support and they were able to resolve the issue. It turns out that a virus scanning program I had installed was creating temporary files. In this age of the Internet, they were able to remotely identify the cause. Apple support was amazing! It’s important to be careful with software of unknown origin. This forum is full of talented people, so perhaps this is common knowledge.
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Glad you’re up and running again.
While acknowledging that malware is a very real and serious threat, I’d suggest that traditional third-party AV software is not really the solution anymore.
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Thank you! I feel like one of the advantages of Macs in the past was their resistance to viruses. I spend every day deleting phishing emails, but why do I keep doing such a pointless thing? I wish everyone would just get into music. Nowadays, you can make music on your own using software like Dorico!
Most malware these days attacks the weakest spot – the user.
Click on this link to learn more! 
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Link isn’t working. Do you have an 800 number I can call?
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What does this mean? I’m Japanese, so I can only communicate by email! I don’t know the 800 number either. Also, it’s said these days that it’s better not to click on links even on official websites.
Ben and Dan were making jokes, which probably don’t translate well.
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Yes, the link isn’t a link, but it was a trap! People will try to click on it, which shows how malware works.
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Which anti-virus software are you using, @adagio4evergreen?
Pace @benwiggy’s very wise (if I may say) comment, there are still ways to eliminate malicious intrusions which won’t generate such temporary files - and/or can be configured not to do so.
I’m very sorry, but I identified the cause and deleted it immediately, but I can’t remember the name of the software. I’m pretty sure it started with “i.” I’m sure I’ll remember it if I look at it again. I try to only install things through Apple, but using software I don’t remember well is my biggest regret. I’d like you to share information, but I’m truly sorry. Please forgive me, I’m a 71-year-old man.
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No problem, @adagio4evergreen 
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One of the best anti-virus systems is BitDefender.
Another is ClamXAV; much less corporate.
MacWorld consistently recommends Intego - I used to use it. But it caused kernel panics 
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I understand your position: technology is so complex. Good luck!
I have been using Intego VirusBarrier for about 3 years now, and have had no problems. There are other components in the Intego package, but I have not installed them. I wonder if maybe one of those was causing your kernel panics?
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Thanks, Steven; that’s possible, isn’t it.
I settled on Intego about ten years ago; was happy at first. But then was abroad with only a MacBook that I needed to be totally reliable. Obviously it was not. Intego admitted the bug and promised a fix. But I felt I couldn’t risk it. So switched to BitDefender, which has been excellent ever since.
I also moved away from ClamXAV (again a very helpful support team) because it skipped directories which I wanted to include in any scan - and, again, a fix was promised. But - as I have found - BitDefender seems to work really well.
On @benwiggy’s point (which I hope most of us would agree with), it has to be said that spam emails can - and do - still try and install malware. I see that with the scans BitDefender does. It removes them; but they are sent and trashed without any user intervention.
I suspect that the OP would be happy with any of the market-leading anti-virus packages.
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I was under the distinct impression that commercial 3rd party anti-virus packages were unnecessary on Mac. That the ‘built-in’ protections within MacOS were sufficient. I seem to recall an Apple-authored essay on this topic that says 3rd party solutions are a waste of money and time. (That such is needed only on Windows.)
Am I mistaken? I know for a fact that the two biggest sellers (no names, as I’m averse to lawsuits, but I’m sure you know who I mean) do more harm than good. One in particular that made my previous Mac almost unusable. I don’t open even remotely suspicious emails and I don’t try to install aps that are not via the Apple Store. Do I really need to worry?
And on modern Windows (ex. Windows 11) the built in protection is so good now that you don’t need third party solutions anymore there either. Completely different from even 5-10 years ago when I would always use a third party antivirus solution.
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