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WildCowboy

Administrator/Editor
Staff member
Jan 20, 2005
18,375
2,801
Wait...a "security vendor" is proclaiming that Macs are soon to be besieged by viruses/malware/etc? They wouldn't be trying to sell anything, would they?

We've been waiting a long time for widespread attacks on OS X, and we're still waiting. That isn't to say that it isn't coming, but they've been saying it for years and it still hasn't come to pass. The sky is not falling.
 

MacsAttack

macrumors 6502a
Jul 2, 2006
825
0
Scotland
There are a number of steps that can be taken to harden OS X against attack i.e. turn on the firewall, don't run with admin rights as default.

However right now the number of real threats can be counted on the fingers of one foot.
 

Sherman Homan

macrumors 6502
Oct 27, 2006
463
0
The biggest threats are user errors. Apple has been religious about patches, there are realistically no viruses. There are other irritants like popups and such.
 

beatsme

macrumors 65816
Oct 6, 2005
1,204
2
there are vulnerabilities in OSX. I'm not entirely sure that they will result in exploits (by which I mean viruses), if only because understanding UNIX requires more dedication than the average cracker is willing to give. And I doubt that the people who really do understand UNIX would be interested in dealing with the script kiddies.
 

Macmadant

macrumors 6502a
Jun 4, 2005
851
0
This is a Sad fact of the mac getting popular (No-one give me any C**p about this not being true), and were going to have to get used to it, Mac OSX isn't virus proof, or anything else, it just asks you for your password when something needs to happen, any tom, dick or harry will enter it and let a virus begin, because they think it is to do with updates, only those very familiar with the mac would see what needed the password.
 

thejadedmonkey

macrumors G3
May 28, 2005
9,156
3,265
Pennsylvania
How does this work? Can it infect without asking for a password?

Basically, is this another false alarm like that last "virus", or is this the real deal?
 

MisterMe

macrumors G4
Jul 17, 2002
10,709
69
USA
How does this work? Can it infect without asking for a password?

Basically, is this another false alarm like that last "virus", or is this the real deal?
It is another proof-of-concept, not a real virus. What is going on is that the antivirus people are s#itting their pants over the pending release of Vista. Vista will include an antivirus utility, which these people fear will kill their business. They are trying to create a market among Mac users to mitigate their losses on the Windows side. Long story short--move along. There is nothing to see here.
 

RacerX

macrumors 65832
Aug 2, 2004
1,504
4
Macs had viruses before Windows, and I'm sure that Macs will some day have viruses again.

What we as Mac users need to keep in mind is the relative threat of malicious software on Macs compared to other threats to our Macs and ourselves. And then act accordingly.

You see, for the average Windows user malicious software is not just a threat, it is an inevitability... that is just the world they live in. They are more likely to have problems with malicious software than they are to... say, get a flat tire on their car... or get into an accident... or get robbed... or any number of other bad things that could happen to a person. So to them, malicious software is an in your face threat that they must actively deal with on a daily basis. Vigilance is the key in the Windows world.

But we aren't in the Windows world, so we need to react to this according to our threat level.

For a Mac user running OS X over the past 5 years, the threat of malicious software is far less than their threat of dying in a plane crash... or getting killed by an earthquake/tornado/hurricane... or getting struck by lightning. Mac users are more at risk of dying in a terrorist attack (or even dying in Iraq) than we are of our Macs getting attacked by malicious software.

We as Mac users should put all of those threats a head of worrying about malicious software. And in fact the physical theft of your Mac is thousands of times greater than any threat you or your Mac face from malicious software. :eek:

Where vigilance is the key for Windows users when dealing with malicious software, the Mac user has to keep all this in perspective.

And even when malicious software comes back to Macs, perspective will still be important. Because today and any time in the near future, taking steps against malicious software aimed at your Mac is like buying insurance for glaciers for your home.

What we should also note is that nearly all articles on this subject are written by Windows users. And to them, the idea of zero practical threat from malicious software is something they can't get their minds around. For them, this must be a fantasy to not practice vigilance. And that we, as Mac users, must therefore be delusional. Which is why there will be hundreds of articles warning Mac users to adopt the same level of paranoia that Windows users have... which won't even be warranted after malicious software does finally return to our platform.


Perspective people, perspective. :D
 

MisterMe

macrumors G4
Jul 17, 2002
10,709
69
USA
Macs had viruses before Windows, ...
Microsoft produced a product called Microsoft Windows before the Macintosh was released. Suffice it to say, there were no Mac viruses before Windows. If you mean that there were Mac viruses before there were Windows viruses, then that is a small point. The number of MS-DOS viruses were legion.
and I'm sure that Macs will some day have viruses again.

....
This does not follow. The heyday of Mac viruses occurred during the reigns of System 6 and System 7. The design of the OS allowed antivirus software to quickly beat back the pestilence and to virtually eliminate viruses as threat to the Mac. Between the introductions of System 7 and MacOS X, most viruses on the Mac were actually cross-platform Microsoft Office macro-viruses. During the reign of MacOS 9, there was maybe one or two Mac-specific viruses.

MacOS X is inherently even more secure than MacOS 9. This is by design. For virsuses to return as a threat, MacOS X will have to be redesigned to be less secure. Either that or the virus developers will have to discover entirely new ways to penetrate a system and to propagate their progeny while simultaneously catching Apple asleep at the switch.
 

WildCowboy

Administrator/Editor
Staff member
Jan 20, 2005
18,375
2,801
Microsoft produced a product called Microsoft Windows before the Macintosh was released. Suffice it to say, there were no Mac viruses before Windows. If you mean that there were Mac viruses before there were Windows viruses, then that is a small point. The number of MS-DOS viruses were legion.

Microsoft released Windows 1.0 in November 1985. As we all know, Apple released the Mac in January 1984.
 

RacerX

macrumors 65832
Aug 2, 2004
1,504
4
Everyone...

While I am well known as someone who will argue for the sake of arguing and I could write a long and detailed post countering MisterMe's points... in this case, I'm not going to.

Why?

Because what I wrote is far to important to let MisterMe side track the issue.

 

SC68Cal

macrumors 68000
Feb 23, 2006
1,642
0
Well said RacerX. As usual.

Your best defense against viruses and malware is to prevent the opportunity for malware to be installed system-wide.

This means do not use an admin-level priv. account for daily use.

The only other thing that I would add is that if you are a Mac user on a corporate network, your probably going to have to get anit-virus software so that you do not become a security risk to the windows part of the network.
 

yellow

Moderator emeritus
Oct 21, 2003
16,018
6
Portland, OR
I would also like to add this:

http://www.osxbook.com/blog/2006/11/05/on-mac-os-x-viruses/

A very interesting blog by Amit Singh, one of the most knowlegable Mac gurus around.

An excellent snippet:

Amit Singh said:
What this newborn Mac OS X virus essentially demonstrates is merely a manifestation of how operating systems work. Portraying this as a newly found threat is just not right, at least if you do so without clarifying that this is how operating systems work; you can do this on any operating system in general; you could do this on ancient UNIX; the real threat is not every such individual program but flaws that might allow such malware to spread; and so on. And no, the fact that this particular one does its job by mucking with Mach-O structures doesn’t justify the terror alarm. What’s next? Saying that “Mac OS X allows sensitive information to be leaked (because you can read files on Mac OS X)”? Wouldn’t it be far more worthy and worthwhile to point out and address real vulnerabilities in Mac OS X?
 
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