We kept rereading Larry Blasko’s piece regarding the MSBlast worm and the importance of applying patches because he seems to be lumping Apple Macintosh in with Windows PC’s as if both platforms are somehow equally affected by the worm. We couldn’t quite believe it or thought perhaps we were being paranoid. What do you think?
Blasko writes, “In this case, the virus-like worm is called LovSan, Msblast or Posa. You don’t have to do anything in particular to get it, just be connected to the Internet. And it’s supposed to be poised to strike Microsoft’s software update Web site, crippling it, and probably the Internet, when hundreds of thousands of home computers all try to visit the site at once.”
Okay, so far, but it would have been far clearer and very simple to stipulate that it’s only Windows “home computers” that are affected and not Macs – especially in light of this section of Blasko’s piece:
“…when Microsoft or Apple or any other competent authority says there’s a security flaw and here’s the fix, take the fix. The dufi (plural of dufus) who are having problems are having them because they were too dumb or too busy to take preventive measures.”
Good advice, but does that read to you as an attempt to include the Mac platform into the MSBlast worm plague along with Windows? Ordinarily, maybe it wouldn’t read that way, but Blasko fails to mention that the MSBlast worm does not affect Macintosh when, again, it would have been very easy to do so.
Also of interest is Balsko’s attempt to trivialize the MSBlast worm, “…in August not a lot usually happens, but newsprint and airtime still need to be filled, so there’s a tendency to take an annoyance and exaggerate it to a national emergency.” Last week The Mercury News reported that the MSBlast worm had affected “as many as 1.4 million computers worldwide” and “could take weeks [to clean up] and cost hundreds of millions of dollars in lost productivity.”
MacDailyNews is left wondering why Blasko wrote the article the way he did and we can’t help thinking that the casual reader would read that article and come away with the impression that all personal computers (Windows, Linux, Macs, etc.) were affected by MSBlast when, in reality, only Windows personal computers suffered from MSBlast.
Blasko’s full Associated Press article, “PC users must keep tabs on patches” is here.
You’re being paranoid.
I’m not so sure. Associated Press seems to be on the MS payroll. other recent AP articles are questionable and seem to be “against” Macs as well – either by omission or error. I’ll look to see if I can find the links. The question remains, why include the word “Apple” in that article and use the phrase “home computers” instead of clearly saying only Windows was affected, Mac was not? It would be very simple, but it was not done – by a professional writer who measures every word, one would think. This might be a masterful attempt to taint Mac and absolve Microsoft of a problem not affecting Macs and caused by Microsoft. Why?
He is a bit unclear, but I find it funny that he’s basically saying that it was not a big deal, and only a big story because there was no other news, yet fails to see the irony that he too has used it as fodder for space filling.
Recent AP biased Mac article here:
http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/business/6251236.htm
As the old Wendy’s add said:
“Were’s the beaf?”
No Mac’s . . . were ever affected. Period.
Does AP article imply Macs were affected?
Yes, subtly, it does do that. And rather well, too. Of course, I have been told at least five times by Windows users that Adobe was dropping support of Mac, too. And many more times that Microsoft owns apple. These misleading articles are concocted on purpose. Follow the money.
I just think he didn’t have time to write in about Macimmunity before his PC rebooted, and rebooted, and rebooted….
Yes, you’re being paranoid. I agree that it would have been (too) simple to mention that Macs are not affected. Shame on him. However, his point, badly made or not, is still relevant: When the maker of your operating system tells you to apply a patch, apply the patch.
How long do you let those recall notices from your car dealer sit?
I don’t get 76 recall notices per year from my automaker. If I did, I’d switch to another brand of car.
Everyone knows I use Macs–they see my PowerBook. I’ve been asked a TON of times whether I got the Blaster virus or not. When I say Macs can’t get the viruses that are out there, they give me an odd look like, “how can THAT be?”
I think non-tech people hear Macs don’t get the same viruses and have trouble believing it. They figure they’ve been following the stories on virus after virus for years… how could they NOT have come across such a major fact in the press? Must not be true. Macs MUST be susceptible to all these well-known viruses.
The truth–there are no OS X viruses yet.
Is everyone certain Macs are not infected by blaster? At the moment, I’m using the osx system that came with my imac 2 years ago because the os9.1 platform became corrupted over the past 2-3 days. My Netscape browser would not work and once I switched back and forth between 9.1 to osk to 9.1, my IE browser failed as well so I couldn’t download a patch. Is there any point in doing so now? I’m using the IE mac 5.1 that came with the computer. Should I abandon it and download the latest netscape and is it possible then to import my bookmarks from my corrupted netscape from the 9.1 platform? Same question about all the email I was saving on 9.1 in outlook?
Thanks
Sonny, Macs are definitely NOT affected by MSBlaster. I would recommend that you download Apple’s Safari browser and never look back. Once you see the speed of this browser, you’ll understand. Get it here for free:
http://www.apple.com/safari/
john
funny defnition of free dowload. free only after you pay $130 to download osx jaguar to operate safari. also have to pay to update osx to run new netscape. and yes, my netscape and outlook were corrupted by msblaster on os9.1. let’s face it, mac is every bit as lame as microsoft. both are run by gangsters.
Sonny! you are dense!!
danox
so enlighten me.
Well Sonny, MSBlaster was built to taken advantage of a recent security hole discovered in the MICROSOFT WINDOWS OPERATING SYSTEM, therefor it has zero affect on OS X or any older Macintosh operating systems.
Sonny, you can also just buy the OS X Jaguar upgrade CD for $19.95 from various places (http://hardcoremac.com/ is one) and use that. Well worth $20 for the increase in speed, reliability, and robustness.
Sonny: Safari is great, and so is Jaguar–and there is no possible way for any Mac to get MS Blaster. In fact, there are no viruses for Mac OS X and almost none for OS 9. And the reason some apps (even not from Apple) require the latest version of Mac OS X is that OS X is growing and changing so fast. That is one of the advantages–and disadvantages of a new and revolutionary OS. Your 2-year old OS X is way beyond what’s out now. (And your OS 9 problems sound frustrating–but nothing to do with any Windows issue.)
But I do NOT advise buying Jaguar. Wait and buy Panther–it will be a HUGE advance over anything you’ve used yet, and greatly improved over Jaguar too. Save your money–Panther is coming later this year.
Meanwhile, I can highly recommend the browser Camino. It’s based on Mozilla (open-source Netscape) but is very fast and easy to use. I’m not sure if it works with OS X 10.0 or not, but it does work with 10.1, and it’s a small download so not too hard to try out.
http://www.mozilla.org/projects/camino/
This isn’t the place to offer detailed tech support–maybe try the forums at maccentral.com (you’re likely to get help rather than name-calling there)–but you CAN get your old bookmarks into Camino, and your old mail into Mac OS X Mail. Just be sure to tell people which version of OS X you are using. (Or, just ask for help fixing OS 9 and then start fresh with a Clean Install of Panther later, complete with Safari, the new iTunes, etc.)
Good luck–and don’t be afraid of MS viruses!
by way beyond I meant… way behind
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zack
the $19.95 cd will be an update from 10.2 – 10.2.5. You can’t get a jag upgrade for 20 bucks, but harcoremac does have one for $79.99.
MSBlaster is not a macro. it is an exe that has nothing to do with Netscape or OutLook. Runs only on Windows NT, 2000, XP and Windows server.
Sonny:what are you talking about?? MSBlaster on 9.1???? Looks like some Windows troll washed your brain.
I had since yesterday 76 attempts to operate on port #135 on my OS X (lots of PCs here got infected even with the firewall in place) MSBlaster is knocking at the door but speaks a language my Mac does not understand and goes away as it tried to come.
Being a .exe MSBlaster has no possible way to run on OS X system, less even infect a OS 9.1.
If you know you cannot install and run Microsoft NetMeeting on OS X then you know MSBlaster cannot install itself and run on OS X either.
It is as simple as that.
PS
When infected PC users ask why OS X is not infected it is only because they are computing illiterates. Could not spell Unix even if told 100 times how to.
Sony:
I have a feeling that you put that comment out there to elicit responses from the group……and from the looks of things, you got what you were looking for. If you are using a iMac, then you would’ve read that some of the iMacs needed downloads a year or so ago…..and, you wouldn’t be using IE too much right now (as M$ has decided to 86 IE, including all support for the Mac)–and, moreover, if you were using OS X, then why wouldn’t you be using Safari or Mozilla to browse?
Go to the Apple site, download what is needed (for free) and take care of your iMac…….back away from the Micro$not products……they are not good for you nor your mac………
Help me! Help me!!!!!
I’m the latest victim of the MSBlaster –my Quicksilver is melting… so are my hands…
The MSBlaster is infecting my brain!!!!
OH, THE HUMANITY!!! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!
I don’t know if it was msblaster but I got a virus on my macintosh — G4- computer today. It was infected at work when I used Outlook with the preview window open. I had no virus detector tho. Tomorrow IT is going to disinfect.
Ingrid: what you got is a Outlook macro. What you will do is infect others Windows users if you are not careful.
Fact is the macro EXPECTS to be in a Windows environment.
Symantec Norton Anti-Virus till version 8 for Macs did not even cared about removing M$ virii and worms from Apple computers as they do not affect them. As I said: the only damage you can do is spreading the virus (macro in this case) to other colleagues using Windows whose computer instead will be highly affected.
Norton Anti-Virus vs 9 is the very FIRST version which cleans a Mac and protects a Mac from receiving a Windows virus/worm. It must be a tell tale that Mac ARE indeed more present nowadays as the ONLY reason for that is not to have a Mac on the same corporate network infect other Windows peers PC.
Anyway, corporates now starts to recommend NOT to use Outlook on PCs, what the heck are you doing with it on a Mac?
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PS
I know, it might be mandated by your IT managers: one more reasons to laugh at how people is shooting their own feet by tying up both hand with Micros**t products.
PPS
Nobody said a Mac could not receive a Micros**t virus/worm from the net, the down to ground truth is Mac users could not give a s**t.
We laugh at them.
And not, it was not MSBlaster, that is an exe that does not need Outlook.
What you got is the revised version F of SoBig. So far I received it 8 times LOL