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.
Heresy I say. The author as well as the editor should be stoned!!!!
Or at least get stoned.
[Hmmm… are you offering McCollough? – ed.]
So, McCullough, since you work at both – what proportion of Macs do you see with viruses, trojan horses, all those delights vs. PC’s?
Especially since Mac owners are notorious for not keeping Symantec, etc. flush with green$.
Apple is not about to actually compete with Microsoft. They’re just going to keep up with the smoke and mirrors that they’re competitors. Ignore the fact that Apple is actually in the hardware business… move along.
#2. Now moss…let’s not get snippy. Honestly, I’ve only seen one.
BTW, Symantec has been broken for a looooong time. Anyone who uses it is asking for trouble.
Wow, I never thought I would see a story on this blog confirming that Vista was more secure than OSX. About time.
I guess tech journalism isn’t dead after all.
If Apple and Microsoft really cared about security in our web tools, we’d have them by now.
But why hasn’t the open source community stepped up and provided the privacy and security we need?
Between Apache and Mozilla, can’t all our browsing be encrypted and anonymous? Can’t all our email be encrypted, signed and secure?
Forget Apple and Microsoft … can’t the geeks fix this crazy problem?
Best I can tell, all the technology is available and stable — it just needs to be incorporated in our tools.
Wow! Steve Jobs hair is really gray in that pic. and he doesn’t really look like his old self after that operation.
plus he seems a little miffed…
[That photo was taken at his doctor’s office… “Say ahhhhh.” – ed.]
Windows 7 is an inherently unsafe OS delivered by the worst software producer in the world.
SAVE ROY!
That’s all I have…
A hacker today has a visual basic plugin library, bought from a Latvian on Alibaba, downloaded on a torrent and paid in US dollars via. Paypal. Leggo for loons.
Todd Peterson is a communist baby eater who makes wild, unsubstantiated claims on the internet.
Microsoft must be paying someone for this…
So Mac’s are just as susceptible to rootkits and virus and Windows? Really? That’s news to me. So Apple only has 10% of the market, and only 10% of the viruses…or 5%…ok 1%…that would still be hundreds of viruses. Er, am not aware of any rootkit for mac or any standard virus eiher. Yes you can be tricked to download malware (no OS can stop that). I know it is theoretically possible, but still…I don’t know the last time in “real life” outside of Microsoft paid blogs, that someone has said “oh no, you’re using a Mac? Quick for security you should switch to Windows!”
Hahaha. I’ve had an average of 3 Macs running 10-12 hrs/day here for 30 years. Not one virus, trojan malware… zippo… nada. No virus software either. On the other hand, my son has a pretty good business going, fixing the local community’s screwed up Windoze computers.
So just what is the definition of a secure computer? The risk of getting a virus on a Mac is practically zero.
Guess what the University of Waterloo uses for their Engineering courses? How about their School of Architecture? They go with the most reliable, safest systems… that’s the answer I got when I asked.
(My other son is starting U of W in 2 weeks.)
I don’t care if their market share is 2% or 10%… they are worth every penny of their premium. A pain in the ass for even half the price isn’t worth it when you depend on a computer for your livelihood.
Vista and Windows 7 have a unique security feature that the Mac doesn’t have: when you run any program, it automatically crashes, producing a blue-screen-of-death which prevents viruses from infecting your computer.
It’s not a bug – it’s a feature.
(BTW, I’m not a Mac fanboy, I use WinXP which also crashes.)
Chuck, lol. My kids have 2 -3 puters running Windoze XP as well. They are great for playing games and learning how to fix computers.
“…Macintosh is not more secure from a software standpoint than modern Windows…”
Any proof to back up that statement?
In my experience as a Windows user 9 times out of 10 when someone has a BSOD it is user experience, I.E. download or visiting sites that they had no business doing in the first place.
#17, chuck,
With three running XP and two running Vista, the last time I saw a BSOD was when my burner died about three years ago.
My wife and kid use the Vistas and are seriously security impaired. Nope, no problems there.
A lot of malware comes from other countries too and Apple has even less market share. Last I heard it was 3%. That’s not enough for anyone to bother doing malware for. But in the US Apple has made market share gains and they may finally be realizing that its only a matter of time before they are targeted. What is funny is that many Mac user’s who brag about now viruses have never even scanned their computer to verify this.
They just assume they are free. But I my self have talked to a couple Mac users who actually got paranoid and bought a Anti virus program. Guess what? They did have a couple of suspicious malware problems. Looked as though they were never a real issue but still it was a surprise to them.
I would like to see Apple create at least a online scan or a help section on addressing any malware targeting Mac’s. They seem to have their heads in the sand.
@ #16 JimR
Vista/7 have been killing my computer repair business, they don’t get infected or slow down over time. The worst I’ve seen is a few systems where Firefox/IE were overrun with toolbars. Otherwise they were still running fine.
@ #17 Chuck
I haven’t seen a non-hardware issue BSOD since the Windows ME days. There were still some troublesome drivers in the early days of XP (particularly Creative sound card drivers), but the old notion that Windows crashes all the time is BS nowadays.
#17. “Vista and Windows 7 have a unique security feature that the Mac doesn’t have: when you run any program, it automatically crashes, producing a blue-screen-of-death which prevents viruses from infecting your computer.”
Yeah right, all Windows programs crash all the time. You have obviously never worked in a Mac shop. Mac has nothing on the PC’s when it comes to crashing. Archive and Reinstall is the number one Mac fix. Give me a break.
I ran XP on two computers for over six years and never once had a BSOD. I’ve been running Vista on three computers for a year or so and still haven’t had one BSOD. Operator error!
#16
> I’ve had an average
> of 3 Macs running 10-12
> hrs/day here for 30 years
Really. And what Mac would that be since the Mac came out in 1984?
The sandboxing features 10.6 will employ will help out a great deal. Application developers are on the hook to secure their software regardless of the OS the app is installed on. Above all else, the ignorant user is the greatest threat agent.
I use a Vista Netbook and Leopard. Both OS’s are fine (I did have one BSOD on my netbook and one kernel panic on Leopard) Use what you want and enjoy yourself. And for the love of God, quit bragging about your OS and get a life.
>> Nik (no C) said, on August 27th, 2009 at 4:33 pm
>> And for the love of God, quit bragging about your OS and get a life.
I’m with you… it’s silly to identify with an OS.
I regularly use all the three main OS’s plus the old Palm OS. They each have their virtue.
I probably like the Palm OS best because mostly all it does is launch the apps. That’s really all I want in an OS — a platform to run the software I want.
Re: #26, Thomas, I started with a Mac llci in 1989, and I still can’t add.
(It just seems like 30 years)
Re:# 23 Somebody_Else said, I have to admit, my son said that Windows 7 is as efficient and stable as OSX, maybe even better. It sure took Microsoft a long time to get there though.
I don’t get it. On Dvorak’s own “Security Now” Podcast, he’s explained Mac security vs. Microsoft several times. Yes, the size of the installed base is a factor in making Windows a big target. But Microsoft’s real problem is that it started taking security seriously only recently, and is hamstrung with decades of backward compatibility issues. Like image file formats that can contain executable code, ActiveX, “autoplay”, and the idea that virtually all services should be on by default. Apple got to rid itself of a lot of baggage when it shed MacOS 9.