“Apple’s Mac OS X remains almost completely free of any sort of malware threat despite several years of availability, a significant market share, and even an entire month dedicated to pointing out its flaws,” Shaun Nichols reports for vnunet.com.
Nichols reports, “And security experts are not exactly sure why. In an article for the McAfee Avert Labs blog, security researcher Marius van Oers pointed out that Mac malware is ‘pretty much non-existent at the moment.'”
Nichols reports, “The researcher said that out of 236,000 known pieces of malicious software, only seven affect Mac OS X. ‘With an estimated OS X market share of about five per cent on desktop systems we would expect to see more malware for OS X,’ said van Oers.”
“The Mac OS X system is not inherently more secure than other operating systems, according to the researcher,” Nichols reports.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Mac OS X is inherently more secure than Windows. Period.
Here we go again, once more for old time’s sake:
“Security via Obscurity” is a myth. Mac OS X has zero (0) viruses. For six years and counting. Zero Mac OS X users affected outside of a lab with old, non-updated Mac OS versions that were intentionally infected.
The idea that Windows’ morass of security woes exists because more people use Windows and that Macs have no security problems because less people use Macs, is simply not true. Mac OS X is not more secure than Windows because less people use OS X, making it less of a target. By design, Mac OS X is simply more secure than Windows. Period. For reference and reasons why Mac OS X is more secure than Windows, read The New York Times’ David Pogue’s mea culpa on the subject of the “Mac Security Via Obscurity” myth here.
Macs account for roughly 10% of the world’s personal computer users — (some say as much as 16%) — so the first half of the myth doesn’t even stand up to scrutiny. Macs aren’t “obscure” at all. Therefore, the Apple Mac platform’s ironclad security simply cannot logically be attributed to obscurity.
There are zero-percent (0%) of viruses for the Mac OS X platform that should, logically, have some 10-16% of the world’s viruses if platforms’ install bases dictate the numbers of viruses. The fact that Mac OS X has zero (0) viruses totally discounts “security via obscurity.” There should be at least some Mac OS X viruses. There are none. The reason for this fact is not attributable solely to “obscurity,” it’s attributable to superior security design.
Still not convinced? Try this one on for size: according to operating system release, according to analysts at Bank of America Securities, there are “22 million Mac OS X users” in the world and there are still zero (0) viruses. According to CNET, the Windows Vista Beta was released “to about 10,000 testers” at the time the first Windows Vista virus arrived. So much for the security via obscurity myth.
Related articles:
Microsoft’s Live OneCare ‘security’ failureware: dead last in test of 17 Windows security apps – March 07, 2007
Bill Gates has lost his mind: calls Apple liars, copiers; slams Mac OS X security vs. Windows – February 02, 2007
Security firm: 38-percent of malware already Windows Vista-compatible – January 22, 2007
FUD Alert: CNET tries to equate Windows’ insecurity to handful of Mac OS X proof-of-concepts – December 02, 2006
Microsoft’s Windows is inherently more vulnerable to severe malware than Apple’s Mac OS X – August 23, 2006
Chicago Tribune falls for the ‘Security Via Obscurity’ myth – August 14, 2006
Symantec details more security holes in Microsoft’s Windows Vista – July 26, 2006
Symantec researcher: At this time, there are no file-infecting viruses that can infect Mac OS X – July 13, 2006
Sophos: Apple Mac OS X’s security record unscathed; Windows Vista malware just a matter of time – July 07, 2006
Gartner analyst tries to propagate discounted Mac OS X ‘security via obscurity’ myth via BBC – July 06, 2006
Sophos Security: Dump Windows, Get a Mac – July 05, 2006
Security company Sophos: Apple Mac the best route for security for the masses – December 06, 2005
Apple Macs are inherently safer and more secure than Microsoft Windows – November 22, 2005
BusinessWeek columnist propagates discounted ‘Apple Mac security via obscurity myth’ – September 06, 2005
16-percent of computer users are unaffected by viruses, malware because they use Apple Macs – June 15, 2005
Another columnist trots out Mac OS X ‘Security through Obscurity’ myth – April 03, 2004
Columnist tries the ‘security through obscurity’ myth to defend Windows vs. Macs on virus front – October 01, 2003
Shattering the Mac OS X ‘security through obscurity’ myth – August 28, 2003
Virus and worm problems not just due to market share; Windows inherently insecure vs. Mac OS X – August 24, 2003
Wiseguy, I am Chinese and I have had a Mac in China, since 1987.
If the availability of malware is based on market share…
5% (Apple’s market share) of (let’s say) 250,000 viruses etc…is 12,500.
There are 12,500 viruses for Mac OSX? Not here buddy.
I think a large reason that Macs don’t have as many viruses is the people who use Macs. With Windows users there is no sense of community. It is just your computer, because the whole world uses Windows. With Macs you have a community of people who go against the norm for a better computer experience. For Windows users they love to write viruses because it effects everyone who uses a computer, people they feel no association with, but Mac users I would assume don’t write them because they don’t want their tight knit community to have a security breach.
I agree the theory isn’t probably 100% true, but I think there is a lot of truth to it. Windows users have no sense of community, Mac users do.
OS 9 had some viruses and it was same if not less in installed base. OS X has been around about half as long as Mac OS from v.1.
Then why aren’t you writing Mac viruses?
By the way, I have a friend in Beijing named Wong, who drives a cab. Maybe you know him.
@Cubert
Cubert, your “Holy Grail” analogy is so much classier than my “hooker” analogy. Your mind ran to a higher plane and I’m mortified to say that my mnd ran into the gutter.
And we’ve ALL seen how quickly the internet, TV, and other mainstream media jumps on any hint or shred of a report that OS X has a problem, or a “possible” exploit or virus or trojan or whatever you want to call it that day. It instantly becomes FRONT PAGE NEWS. And then they mutter and mumble under their breath when it turns out to be blown out of proportion or unverifiable and put the retractions/corrections on page 29. Or they just ignore it and go on sputtering the FUD.
Lack of decent operating system from Micro$oft is even more baffling.
The National Security Agency – the U.S. government’s cryptologic organization, has given Mac OS X 10.4 a glowing endorsement for security.
MDN: “Macs account for roughly 10% of the world’s personal computer users — (some say as much as 16%)”
I would LOVE for this to be true, and really want to believe that, but where are the facts? Where is the solid, indisputable evidence? Evidence on the internet, as a whole, points that Macs make up about 5-6% of the world’s computers, and I think it is pretty clear, given the average mac users demographics, that they are far more likely to be used as a desktop or portable computer by an active Internet savvy user. Also, a large percentage of PCs are used only as servers, but a very small percentage of Macs are servers – an area I think Apple needs to really get aggressive in, and hope that they do when Leopard is released.
Anyhow, show me evidence, not hearsay.
“For six years and counting. Zero Mac OS X users affected outside of a lab with old, non-updated Mac OS versions that were intentionally infected.”
In the last month, people had thier private data stolen while on MySpace with Macs and PCs & the culprit was a QuickTime flaw addressed in the most recent OS security update. Some of the exploits happened prior to the release of the patch from Apple.
Not trolling- just simple factual information. The last time I checked, QuickTime is a component of OS X. Core Image, Adio,Video, etc all tie in to QuickTime on OS X.
I’m getting tired of the ‘Doze sycophants trumpeting “market share” as their excuse for why NO EXPLOITS have happened to OS X users.
In their warped little minds, 4% obviously means something akin to 50 or 60 computers, but the fact is that there are 22 MILLION Macs out there.
Malware authors would be complete fools to ignore 22 MILLION machines, especially when the VAST MAJORITY of them have NO A/V protection installed.
22 MILLION computers, owned by an argueably more affluent crowd, most of which have NO 3rd PARTY PROTECTION installed, at all, makes it apparent to me that OS X is more secure than ‘Doze.
Jim, i am not questioning your character, why bother, you already gave the answer before the question….
secondly, http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/14729 first hit i got from google. you may have heard of it, it is a search tool used on them there internets…
there have also been a few apache bugs, a wireless bug on the intel based systems, etc. etc. etc. most of them found due to BSD security research or Apple themselves, and most of them cleaned up without the general public ever knowing. as you demonstrated.
it is the extraordinary clam that requires extraordinary proof. you claim there is not and has never been a flaw in OS X’s security. prove it.
a few others here are simply pointing out that while there have been flaws, they have not led to exploits in the wild because Apple has a superior architecture and backs that up with simple intelligent know how and default service settings. which of these makes sense?
magic word “results” as in intelligent security has good “results” but don’t confuse it with magic.
@WiseGuy
“The botnet Taylor had tracked was created using a known security hole not in Linux or OS X, but in something that runs on top of the operating system. This is PHP, a development programming language built specifically for Web sites.”
Puhleeez! The first link is even worse as it offers zero evidence or information regarding it’s claim! These aren’t hacks of OS X. It’s PHP. It wouldn’t matter what box it was running on.
No offense, but, I think you need to be a little more intellectually honest.
I know of only one- Ding. But I knowingly put it on my Mac and can remove it at will. Permissions, permissions, permissions. Something Windows “experts” fail to understand.
Don’t worry, Falkirk! Go here to see that my mind is in the gutter, too.
http://macdailynews.com/index.php/weblog/comments/13026/
@Cubert:
Ah, great minds think alike!
@WiseGuy
“The botnet Taylor had tracked was created using a known security hole not in Linux or OS X, but in something that runs on top of the operating system. This is PHP, a development programming language built specifically for Web sites.”
Puhleeez! The first link is even worse as it offers zero evidence or information regarding it’s claim! These aren’t hacks of OS X. It’s PHP. It wouldn’t matter what box it was running on.
No offense, but, I think you need to be a little more intellectually honest.
Please stop claiming that Windows using population is clueless or stupid. Not everyone is expert in everything and has all the time on his/her hands to read all the forums including this. Do you all know everything about the car you buy, the food you eat, the clothes you wear, the press you read, the coffee you drink? I don’t think so. Some other people may be laughing at you for those reasons and call you stupid and clueless because you eat artificial, processed food full of chemicals that will ultimatelly kill you.
It does not bring us closer to anything by calling people names. Let the marketing machine reach them and convince them. Some people don’t even know there is Apple and not because they are stupid, but because they don’t care. There are other things in life than Apple.
Going back to ancient Rome, the thieves said always rob a big villa because there is lots of access. Never rob a small home. The small one is likely to be secure with a mastiff dog waiting for the thief. So the lesson? Go after MS. Lots of ways to get in and lots of potential loot once you are inside.
Microsoft security guru wants Vista bugs rated less serious
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&taxonomyName=operating_systems&articleId=9013378&taxonomyId=89
“Please stop claiming that Windows using population is clueless or stupid. Not everyone is expert in everything and has all the time on his/her hands to read all the forums including this. Do you all know everything about the car you buy, the food you eat, the clothes you wear, the press you read, the coffee you drink? I don’t think so. Some other people may be laughing at you for those reasons and call you stupid and clueless because you eat artificial, processed food full of chemicals that will ultimatelly kill you.
It does not bring us closer to anything by calling people names. Let the marketing machine reach them and convince them. Some people don’t even know there is Apple and not because they are stupid, but because they don’t care. There are other things in life than Apple.”
No, I don’t know things about cars, but if I needed to have the same certificates that a mechanic has just to keep a NEW car running, then the car is a big piece of $#!+!!!
I was at Costco yesterday, and they have a software section. I’d installed Bootcamp and Parallels and thought, “hey, I’m going to look at this XP software to see about these ‘great applications’ I haven’t been able to run on my Mac.”
It was a huge pile of things like “Super Registry Enhancer” and “Ultra Malware Blocker 9” and Mega Antivirus this and that.
Oh, so this is what I’ve missing….
‘Lack of Apple Mac malware baffles expert’
If they are baffled, then they are not experts.
‘The Russians and Chinese Can’t afford Mac’s’
Hell, I didn’t know they could even afford Big Macs…
“Back in the OS 7 and OS 8 days there were over 50 viruses on the Macs.”
I can definitely attest to this. I was in service back then and saw many
ill affected Macs. A few of the viruses were catastrophic.
THINK makes a good point.