Alert from Defender

Jeffrey Eisele 0 Reputation points
2026-10-13T19:00:05.7566667+00:00

Defender tells me to go to my MacBook Air to address an alert but there are no further instructions about where to go on my Mac and what to do.

Microsoft 365 and Office | Microsoft 365 Defender | For home | MacOS
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  1. Norah-L 11,700 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2026-10-14T00:09:32.54+00:00

    Hello Jeffrey Eisele,

    The message means that Microsoft Defender detected something on the MacBook Air, so the alert must be reviewed on that Mac.

    Here are some suggestions you can try:

    1. On the MacBook Air, open Microsoft Defender from the Applications folder. You may also see the Defender shield icon near the clock at the top-right of the screen.
    2. On the Defender dashboard, look for an alert at the top, or open Alerts to view the security history and select the warning.
    3. Follow the action shown there, such as Delete or Quarantine. Avoid choosing Allow unless you are certain the file is safe.
    4. If Defender shows that protection is incomplete, open System Settings > Privacy & Security > Full Disk Access and make sure Microsoft Defender is enabled.
    5. Restart the Mac, reopen Defender, and check whether the alert has cleared.

    If the issue continues, could you please share the exact wording of the alert, or attach a screenshot of it? Before posting a screenshot publicly, please hide any personal information.

    Also, is Microsoft Defender signed in with a personal Microsoft account, or is this Mac managed by your workplace or school?

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