“Apple Computer last month dropped the bombshell that its new Boot Camp software would let Macintosh computers dual-boot and run the Windows operating system. The initial reviews were very favorable. Mac lovers–arguably the eclectic hippies of the computer revolution–finally have a chance to run programs previously unavailable, including proprietary business applications,” Bob Johnson writes for CNET.
MacDailyNews Take: Proprietary Windows business applications. Far out, man! Superzap every mac with love! Hey, man, which way to the commune?
Johnson continues, “But users are now also able to bring all their favorite programs to the new MacTel platform. So it’s time to be on the lookout for security stowaways–the viruses, worms and spyware that are coming along for the ride. The Windows platform (along with Internet Explorer) is clearly the most targeted and exploited operating system on the planet–and it’s now crashing the relatively virus-free Mac party… Here’s the rub–Apple users run virtually no security software on their machines. Until recently, the platform was virtually virus-free, remaining unaffected by most major viruses… Praying that someone hasn’t figured out how to get a virus over the Windows/Mac bridge certainly isn’t going to work… This isn’t just another poke at Microsoft’s often lackluster security. Arguably there’s another side of the coin here. While Microsoft’s vulnerabilities might let intruders into the castle, Apple is giving them the keys to the kingdom and rolling out the welcome mat.”
Johnson writes, “Did anyone really believe the security nirvana for Apple would last? It’s now more vulnerable than ever, and things can only get worse… Apple isn’t immune to the viruses, spyware and more that make any computing environment–including the vaunted Mac–vulnerable. Mac lovers may celebrate the new MacTel platform, but will their enthusiasm wane if malware rears its ugly head?”
Full article, with speculation about viruses for Apple’s iPod, too, here.
MacDailyNews Take: At the end of the CNET article: “Bob Johnson is president and CEO of SecureWave, a maker of endpoint security software.” Just so you know what he sells. Mac users’ enthusiasm won’t wane if malware rears its ugly head because Macs have many other advantages; the ability to surf the Web with impunity (using common sense, like not clicking willy nilly on untrusted downloads and giving them permission to install) is nice, but the Mac also has a better UI than Windows, is better thought-out than Windows, has had attention to detail paid to the the user experiences more than Windows, has better Mac-only applications (iLife, Safari) than Windows, even Microsoft Office is better on a Mac than Windows. Many of us chose Mac over Windows before the Windows malware plague arrived. It’s just another reason why Mac is better, not the only reason. Of course, you have to use a Mac to know.
Furthermore, many longtime Mac users won’t be polluting their Macs with Windows; we don’t need Windows and many are 100% Microsoft-free. Imagine that. The Mac users running Windows the most will mainly be the new users, just switched from Windows. You know, the ones who are quite used to Windows and Windows malware wasting their time already. Their enthusiasm for the Mac would not wane even if Johnson’s bridge-jumping Windows to Mac virus rears its ugly head. We do agree with Johnson on his main point: Windows is inferior whether it’s running on a Dell or a Mac.
Take Apple’s advice from their Boot Camp web page to heart: “Word to the Wise: Windows running on a Mac is like Windows running on a PC. That means it’ll be subject to the same attacks that plague the Windows world. So be sure to keep it updated with the latest Microsoft Windows security fixes.“
And, Boot Camp is a beta; it won’t be the same in Mac OS X Leopard.
As we just wrote regarding Apple’s new “Get a Mac” ads, it bears repeating: Apple has debuted a very strong ad on the virus issue; now we know why the FUD campaign was revved up again lately. If you think it was just coincidence that several news outfits generated stories about “Mac viruses” on and around the day that Apple launches a TV ad stating that last year there were 114,000 known Windows viruses and none for Macs, you’re naive. Microsoft and those that suck on the Redmond teat have long arms, lots of cash, and a desperate desire to protect their Windows money machine. From the mom and pop shops in every town that charge pigeons $99.99 per box to wipe and reinstall Windows on up to corporate IT bigwigs with multimillion dollar budgets and huge, bloated, MCSE-festooned staffs, we must assume that they’ll defend the Windows hegemony to the death, by any means possible, facts be damned. They’ve done it in the past. They’ve done it even today. And they’ll certainly do it in the future.
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Related articles:
Network World: Apple’s Mac OS X is significantly more secure than Windows – May 01, 2006
Anti-Mac FUD machine shifts into overdrive – May 01, 2006
FUD Alert: Viruses don’t catch up to the Mac – May 01, 2006
Minor security flaws found in Mac OS X – April 23, 2006
Microsoft: recovery from Windows malware becoming impossible; better to to wipe and rebuild – April 04, 2006
BusinessWeek: Apple should hire security czar to combat uninformed media FUD – March 09, 2006
Apple Mac remains ‘unhacked’ as University of Wisconsin’s Mac OS X Security Challenge ends – March 08, 2006
Spate of recent Mac security stories signal that Microsoft, others getting nervous – March 06, 2006
Apple Mac OS X clearly offers superior security over Microsoft Windows – March 02, 2006
Apple Mac OS X has a lot more vulnerabilities than Windows XP? – February 28, 2006
Enderle: Security vendors see Apple as next big opportunity – February 28, 2006
As Apple Mac grows in popularity, will security issues increase? – February 27, 2006
The Idiot’s Guide to Mac Viruses For Dummies 101 – February 24, 2006
Wired News: ‘Mac attack a load of crap’ – February 22, 2006
Report: Apple developing fix for automatic execution of shell scripts – February 21, 2006
Ars Technica: Fears over new Mac OS X ‘Leap-A’ trojan pointless – February 20, 2006
Atlanta Journal-Constitution asks: Is ‘Mac virus’ all just propaganda from Mac haters? – February 20, 2006
Mafiasoft: Microsoft to charge $50 per year for security service to protect Windows – February 07, 2006
eWeek: Intel transition a ‘security non-issue’ for Apple Mac – January 30, 2006
ZDNet Australia publishes latest Mac OS X security FUD article – January 26, 2006
IDC: Apple Mac 2005 U.S. market share 4% on 32% growth year over year – January 20, 2006
Analysts: Apple Mac’s 5% market share glass ceiling set to shatter in 2006 – January 09, 2006
ZDNet Australia publishes latest Mac OS X security FUD article – September 09, 2005
Joke of the month: Gartner warns of Mac OS X ‘spyware infestation’ potential – March 30, 2005
Symantec warns about Mac OS X security threat – March 21, 2005
Mac users threatened by Windows? Not having or wanting to install Windows on my Mac I don’t see how I am “threatened”
This asinine comment only begs the question, “How about PC users threatened by Windows? “
Boot Camp is dangerous!
All some hacker has to do is add the capabilities to write to HFS+ Mac partition in thier windows malware and there goes what little Mac security there is.
The Pro’s say it’s better to utilize virtualization software like Parellels because Windows would then run in a “sandbox” under Mac OS X.
much safer.
Barrel? check. Fish? check. Gun? check.
Let’s party!
I have no problems running windows with parallels. I only run a few programs, don’t use it for connecting to the web and only have it running while I’m using the programs. I don’t see how I’m risking anything. Common sense kept me from getting viruses when I was using a PC all of the time. I risk even less now.
Need windows? Buy a Windows computer.
This will all be a moot point if Leopard can run Windows apps sans Windows. The real question is, “Can Apple run Windows apps sans Windows and avoid Windows flaws and exploits all together?”
Need windows? Buy a Windows computer.
Need Windows? Buy Windows and run it on your Mac.
Kill Dell, HP and Gateway in the processes.
Just checked out the article and caught sight of the author Bob Johnson. Bob looks quite crusty – the sort of guy who, despite his title of President and CEO of SecureWave, still has to ask his 10 year old grandson to help him out when he has a problem with his PC. The rest of the time, he just sits rocking back and forth in his chair with his flies undone whilst staring out of the window. Ignore him – he’s an arse tube.
Oh, I get the Johnson’s drift, “Windows sucks whether it is on a Mac or a PC.” Gee, I never would have figured it out without yer brilliant insight. I apologize for not recognizing yer radiant intelligence earlier.
Like I pointed out a few days ago, and MDN succinctly points out, MS and it’s cronies put out the FUD campaign in an effort to pre-empt Apple’s campaign. Sorry bastards.
Reasons why OSX is safer than Windows:
A common notion is that Mac OS X and Linux are virus-free because they offer virus writers a much smaller “audience” than Windows. That, as it turns out, is a myth, no matter who repeats it. There’s a much bigger reason virus writers don’t like Mac OS X and Linux.
Unix [which underlies Mac OS X] and Linux ARE more secure, because they have been developed, open-source style, by people who know exactly what they are doing. Unix and Linux have had at least 10 years of battling hackers to better themselves. This leads to an extremely secure environment.
Here are some simple design decisions that make Mac OS X and Linux much more secure than Windows XP. For example:
* Windows comes with five of its ports open; Mac OS X comes with all of them shut and locked. (Ports are back-door channels to the Internet: one for instant-messaging, one for Windows XP’s remote-control feature, and so on.) These ports are precisely what permitted viruses like Blaster to infiltrate millions of PC’s. Microsoft says that it won’t have an opportunity to close these ports until the next version of Windows, and who knows when that’s coming.
* When a program tries to install itself in Mac OS X or Linux, a dialog box interrupts your work and asks you permission for that installation — in fact, requires your account password. Windows XP goes ahead and installs it, potentially without your awareness.
* Administrator accounts in Windows (and therefore viruses that exploit it) have access to all areas of the operating system. In Mac OS X, even an administrator can’t touch the files that drive the operating system itself. A Mac OS X virus (if there were such a thing) could theoretically wipe out all of your files, but wouldn’t be able to access anyone else’s stuff — and couldn’t touch the operating system itself.
* No Macintosh e-mail program automatically runs scripts that come attached to incoming messages, as Microsoft Outlook does.
Linux and Mac OS X aren’t just more secure because fewer people use them. They’re also much harder to crack right out of the box.
theNewMacDude:
The only product released from Redmond on time and in great quantities is FUD. It’s a pathetically shameful that Microsoft’s only operational department is its “Office of Disinformation, Deception, and Deceit”. No doubt, these guys’ jobs are secure.
Mike K…you ought to be writing these articles. I don’t know if you stole that or wrote it yourself, but it was perfectly written. I hate myths, the myth that viruses don’t exist for the Mac because there are fewer Macs is right up there with Elvis being alive.
Bob needs to play with something else if he thinks there’s virtually no security software on OS X…
Firewall on by default, non-root (or administrator) accounts, etc.
Sort of sounds like his software isn’t needed on OS X (software that creates access control lists of processes). Well, UNIX permissions are pretty compelling when done right.
How to interpret FUD:
“There has been a significant increase in Mac viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and exploits.”
The total number of flaws for Mac has increased 40% from 5 to 7.
“There has been a substantial decrease in Windows viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and exploits.”
The number of flaws for Windows has decreased a significant 20% from 71,000 to 56,800.
guess it is time to buy this morons security software…….NOT.
I can see the point, But all you have to do IF you really need to run that odball winBLOWS program is use Parallels or some other virtualization tool.
The best part of a virtual machine is IF you do a backup of your system as you should, when the virtual winBlows machine gets a virus, you just dump it, restore it from your backup, and you are done.
Not that hard to figure out, and kinda makes fun to let winBlows get as fdsked up as you want. If you go online, it will.
The other fun thing is that the virtual machine runs with a 0.0.0 IP if you set it up properly so there you go, no hassles, no problems, no rebooting into an alien and hostile OS. Keep winBlows in a safe and contained envronment
You know, I’m not one to take conspiracy theories seriously, but the sheer number of Mac virus articles that have come out in the last week makes no sense otherwise. It’s been months since we’ve had any kind of “exploit” (actually we’ve never really had one but you know what I mean) and Apple fixed it almost immediately. There have been no other “exploits” since then, but now, just before Apple starts the largest, and best, Mac TV ad campaign in years, we get all this stuff drudged up as though it just happened last week? Sorry, but something stinks in Redmond, and this time it’s not Ballmer’s armpits.
A Mac that is running Windoze via Boot Camp is not a Mac. A Mac is a Mac when its running Mac OS X. Together, these two components are what constitute the Mac and the experience.
Do you know how to tell if it’s FUD? Just look at the writer. Does he report on the Mac? Have you ever seen him report on the Mac? Is he some “security expert” from a firm that makes its money from Windows’ security?
You can almost tell immediately by using that criteria that it some paid placement article that Microsoft probably wrote in their PR department. And if anyone does not believe that is what happens, they are extremely naive.
This is the best phrase ever to come out of MDN. It’s worth a repeat.
“As we just wrote regarding Apple’s new “Get a Mac” ads, it bears repeating: Apple has debuted a very strong ad on the virus issue; now we know why the FUD campaign was revved up again lately. If you think it was just coincidence that several news outfits generated stories about “Mac viruses” on and around the day that Apple launches a TV ad stating that last year there were 114,000 known Windows viruses and none for Macs, you’re naive. Microsoft and those that suck on the Redmond teat have long arms, lots of cash, and a desperate desire to protect their Windows money machine. From the mom and pop shops in every town that charge pigeons $99.99 per box to wipe and reinstall Windows on up to corporate IT bigwigs with multimillion dollar budgets and huge, bloated, MCSE-festooned staffs, we must assume that they’ll defend the Windows hegemony to the death, by any means possible, facts be damned. They’ve done it in the past. They’ve done it even today. And they’ll certainly do it in the future.”
Why all the noise coming from the security community about Mac’s being vulnerable? Why the scare tactics? Why the fear, uncertainty and doubt? Money. Money. Money.
Their entire little empire is based on fear and money. Mac users don’t have the fear and don’t spend the money because there’s no need. If Windows users continue to switch to Macs, these FUDmeisters will do anything and everything to create a new revenue stream (Macs) and protect an old revenue stream (Windows users).
Kudos to MDN for the constant reminders.
Bambi Hambi
Mac360
Just FUD. Move on.
ndelc – Never attribute to malice what can be adequately explained by stupidity.
Lily,
Stupidity explains why the stories were run in the first place but why the rehash now?
“Sorry, but something stinks in Redmond, and this time it’s not Ballmer’s armpits.”
Or it’s both.
@Mike K
I totally agree with you. However I have a few remarks. Ports are no “backdoors”, they provide means for having more than one service/daemon on a particular server, 65535 to be exact. If you compare a server with an apartment building then the address of the building is the IP address. Then the apartment number is the port. If you want to delever something to an apartment you have to know the street address of the building (the IP address) and the apartment number (the port number).
Another reason why MAC OSX and Linux/Unix are safer is that they have not been built in a monolithic way like Windows. Most of their functionality has been built as separate modules, independant of the rest of the system. This way of building a system is very easy to debug.
Windows has been built as a large monolythic system with functionality spread all over the system. This way even Microsoft engineers cannot oversee exactly the implications of their modifications/designs.