Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

mac viruses???

T

thekid055

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 3, 2004
11
0
I'm thinking about making the big switch. One of the reasons...I'm tired of all the Windows security issues! I haven't heard much about Mac viruses. I'm sure there are some out there but just figured that you just don't hear much about them because Macs only cover a small percentage of computer users.

So my question(s)...are there serious viruses/trojan horses out there for macs?? What virus software does OS X come with (if any)?

...others reasons why I'm considering the switch...I've heard/read a lot of good things about mac. I've been using computers most of my life. Starting with a commodore 64 (just for games) and have been a windows person since 3.1. So I figured it was time for a little change. Right now I have a p3 600mhz Gateway desktop that's almost 5 yrs old and a 2 yr old Sony Viao 16.1" (aka 8lb brick). I'm leaning towards the 12" PB, but have not ruled out the 15" PB. I guess I'll make my final decision after I get to see them in person.
 
I have been a mac user for 2 years now and I work at a mac reseller, I personally have only heard of one virus on macs that does something to microsoft office. Norton has one and mcafee has one that I use called virex, it is free with a .mac subscription.
 
I've never had a virus on OSX, but back in the OS9 days I got worms.

I don't know the difference because I've never had to worry with viruses, but having worms sounded a lot more disgusting.

The worm, by the way, was an innocuous little sucker. He played music CD's without being asked to, and after a quick patch, he went away.

In all seriousness, virtually everyone I know uses Macs and none of us has ever had a virus.
 
There is no viruses for osx, however that doesnot mean it cannot be done.a while back there was little scare because someone thought that the first trojan for the mac showed up.it ended up false, the creator however explained that there was no malice involve but instead to show that a virus is possible to produce for osx.i believe it was called mp3virus.gen but im not sure, all i kow is that it supposedly masquerade itself as a mp3 file.
 
There are no (zero, zilch) real-world viruses for OS X. Occasionally Apple will post a security update to close off a hole that *could* have been exploited, but no one has ever exploited them, before OR after the patch. It's true to an extent that the reason is because of low marketshare, but more importantly, OS X has enough built-in security that virus writers would have a tremendously difficult time getting the virus to actually accomplish anything.

I would recommend the 12" only if ultraportability is important for you, many people say the size is quite enough to do normal work on, but unless you must have the small size (and they are quite tiny), the extra real estate may come in handy.

paul
 
If you are on the go I strongly recommend the 12" PB. This is my first Mac since Apple II, and I chose to switch from PC portable to Mac for its stability. On portable machines, I really don't do heavy stuff and use it for classes or computing on the go.
I see 15" and 17" to be useful, if I had to have a laptop as a full time comp. 12" has longer battery life as well and it is compact.
 
Like every OS, OSX has some security flaws that leave your computer vulnerable to hackers at times, but as a normal person you almost certianly don't need to worry about this. Me and my family have been using OSX since 10.0 and none of us have ever gotten a virus.
 
There have been two trojans for OS X so far. One is/was a proof-of-concept trojan, that would run code hidden inside an MP3 if you double-clicked on it. However, the code would be stripped from the file if it passed through something that didn't support resource forks (i.e. Windows, if not compressed in a Stuffit file (.sit)). The other was disguised as a full, working, retail version of Microsoft's Office 2004 on several p2p networks. When opened, it would erase your home directory. Considering it showed up about a week or so before Office started shipping... :rolleyes:

The there are the Office macro "viruses", of which there are about 530 (last time I checked anyway, probably more now). Simple to defeat, don't run Office/Office macros.
 
Since all has been said about (non-existent) viruses on Mac OS X, I only post to recommend the 12" PB. I own one of the older versions myself and I love it. I even use it as my primary computer. I, too, switched only 6 months ago.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back