Friday’s release of the new version of the Mac OS, dubbed Snow Leopard, could include some security features that would make it secure, or at least push it closer to the level of security that Vista and Windows 7 have, experts said this week.
Contrary to popular Mac fanboy belief, Macintosh is not more secure from a software standpoint than modern Windows; it’s merely safer to use because malware writers prefer to target the platform with the biggest install base, according to Charlie Miller and Dino Dai Zovi, co-authors of The Mac Hacker’s Handbook, which came out this spring.
“Apple hasn’t implemented all the security features that Vista has,” Miller said. “They made some improvements in Leopard, but they are still behind.”
If there is any truth to rumors circulating about Snow Leopard, the operating system security playing field could become more level as of this weekend and Mac users will really have something to brag about.
It had to happen sometime. As Apple gains a larger percentage of the market, hackers/spammers will become more interested.
#19 “…Macintosh is not more secure from a software standpoint than modern Windows…”
Any proof to back up that statement?
#33 “Any proof on the contrary?”
As a reader, I don’t have to disprove something the author says. The burden of proof is on him. He should be able to back up his statements. Especially when most evidence points to the opposite conclusion. If he can’t support his claims, it puts into question everything else he says.
The Mac’s security seems to be mainly based on obscurity, and any serious security nut will tell you that’s not good enough.
The fact that you have to resort to personal attacks reveals the weakness of your argument.
Notice that I have not made any statements. I didn’t say OS X is more secure than Windows. I merely asked if the author had any proof to back up his statement. He doesn’t. Because there is no conclusive proof. There is plenty of evidence that can be used to argue both sides.
The whole issue could be resolved by the authors saying, “in my opinion”.
Look at #35’s statement. The word “seems”. That’s all you need. And I agree with him.