Coverage chart / Microsoft Defender
Keep Microsoft Defender up to date on your Mac
Microsoft Defender is covered by Floodtide. It shows up in your update list the moment a newer version ships. Microsoft Defender can also update itself, but only once you open it, and only itself.
How Microsoft Defender gets updated
Floodtide's own signed catalog lists where Microsoft Defender's developer publishes each release, and Floodtide reads that source directly to learn which version is current. When yours is behind, the row appears under Updates with the version that is out.
The developer publishes the version but no download Floodtide can check, so Floodtide does not install this one itself. The update comes from Microsoft Defender's own updater, or from the developer's site.
Questions about Microsoft Defender
Does Floodtide update Microsoft Defender?
Floodtide tells you when Microsoft Defender has an update. Microsoft Defender is in Floodtide's signed catalog, which reads the version its developer publishes, so a new release appears in your update list with no configuration. The developer publishes no download Floodtide can check, so the update itself comes from Microsoft Defender's own updater or the developer's site.
How does Floodtide install a new version of Microsoft Defender?
It does not install this one itself. It shows you the new version as soon as Microsoft Defender's developer publishes it, and you update from Microsoft Defender's own updater or the developer's site.