Mac flaw could let hackers get scrambled data
Mac flaw could let hackers get scrambled data
http://www.reuters.com/article/newsO...56S77Q20090730
The paragraph below is an excerpt from the article shown above:
"They said the Mac's operating system will be an easier nut to crack once hackers start to focus on it. That is because it has a lot more code in it than Windows, leaving room for more vulnerabilities and bugs that hackers can exploit."
I was surprised by the fact that Mac OS has more code than Windows. I have been under the impression that OS X was cleaner and tighter than Windows. It would seem that doesn't preclude it from being bigger than Windows.
http://www.reuters.com/article/newsO...56S77Q20090730
The paragraph below is an excerpt from the article shown above:
"They said the Mac's operating system will be an easier nut to crack once hackers start to focus on it. That is because it has a lot more code in it than Windows, leaving room for more vulnerabilities and bugs that hackers can exploit."
I was surprised by the fact that Mac OS has more code than Windows. I have been under the impression that OS X was cleaner and tighter than Windows. It would seem that doesn't preclude it from being bigger than Windows.
Comments
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I was surprised by the fact that Mac OS has more code than Windows. I have been under the impression that OS X was cleaner and tighter than Windows. It would seem that doesn't preclude it from being bigger than Windows.
Two things. First, this is really the third season of a ungoing series about the annual Black Hat Conference and its break-in contest. Second, just because someone says something doesn't make it true. However, in this case, it is true. Much of that code lies in a part of MacOS X known as Darwin, a certified port of UNIX. You may have heard of it. UNIX is extremely secure.
The comment the number of lines of code is meant to frighten children and old ladies. The design of code is much more important than the number of lines in it. MacOS X is designed extremely well. Apple embraced object-oriented programming with System 7 at a time when Windows was primarily a launcher for MS-DOS apps. The MacOS X frontend is based on OpenSTEP which raised OO development to new levels. OpenSTEP is so modular that it can run on top of either a Unix or the NT kernel.
Lest there be any doubt, Symantec's Norton Antivirus releases a new set of virus definitions everyday. How many of these definitions are Mac viruses. That would be zero. Yet these people keep on saying:
"You just wait...
- ... you just wait until the Mac increases it marketshare.
- ... you just wait until the virus developers turn their attention to the Mac.
- ... you just wait until there is money to be made using the Mac.
- ... you just wait."
Well, they have been saying that for a decade. I am still waiting.Two things. First, this is really the third season of a ungoing series about the annual Black Hat Conference and its break-in contest. Second, just because someone says something doesn't make it true. However, in this case, it is true. Much of that code lies in a part of MacOS X known as Darwin, a certified port of UNIX. You may have heard of it. UNIX is extremely secure.
The comment the number of lines of code is meant to frighten children and old ladies. The design of code is much more important than the number of lines in it. MacOS X is designed extremely well. Apple embraced object-oriented programming with System 7 at a time when Windows was primarily a launcher for MS-DOS apps. The MacOS X frontend is based on OpenSTEP which raised OO development to new levels. OpenSTEP is so modular that it can run on top of either a Unix or the NT kernel.
Lest there be any doubt, Symantec's Norton Antivirus releases a new set of virus definitions everyday. How many of these definitions are Mac viruses. That would be zero. Yet these people keep on saying:
"You just wait...
- ... you just wait until the Mac increases it marketshare.
- ... you just wait until the virus developers turn their attention to the Mac.
- ... you just wait until there is money to be made using the Mac.
- ... you just wait."
Well, they have been saying that for a decade. I am still waiting.Thanx for the explanation.
You just wait...
Well, they have been saying that for a decade. I am still waiting.
You're waiting for Apple to gain enough market share for a hack to be worth a hackers while. I don't see how this can be argued given that Charlie Miller himself says that's why he hacks on a Mac, when time + effort = $$.
Apple sells 10 million computers per year while Windows sells 80 million computers world wide per quarter. Hackers go after the big fish.
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Apple sells 10 million computers per year while Windows sells 80 million computers world wide per quarter. Hackers go after the big fish.
Nonsense. Macs are used by the U. S. Army as webservers. NeXT, now a part of Apple, was the primary desktop computer for the National Security Agency. It is my understanding that MacOS X has supplanted NeXTstep in that role. Swimming in the largest school doesn't make you a big fish. It makes you the food for the biggest fish.
Of that 80 million: