Tech Dose #2.4.1 - Macs Can Be a Target As Well
Thursday, April 16, 2009 at 11:08AM
When news like the rampaging Conficker virus hits, Mac users often feel a certain sense of comfort — if not smug superiority — knowing it doesn’t affect them.
But just how relaxed (or smug) should Mac users be? It’s true that very few viruses have been written for Macs — and none are spreading actively right now. Similarly, hacker programs distributed by malicious Web sites typically run only on PCs.
Yet Macs’ relative safety is primarily due to their still-slim market share. They’re simply a waste of time for today’s attackers, who are trying to accomplish crime on a large scale by infiltrating millions of computers. And there’s nothing inherently more secure about a Mac. Researchers found 26 vulnerabilities in OS X in 2008, about the same as in Windows Vista (27), according to the security software maker Symantec. If its market share rises enough, the Mac will become a target and attacks will succeed.
Sound advice as I am sure as Macs becomes popular, hackers will make them target as well. It is just a matter of time.