How long before we get hit with a virus?

tacojohntacojohn
Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
Just read ANOTHER article about people switching over (students mainly). I know a ton of friends that have switched or probably will on their next computer. No viruses is a huge seller.



I'm just wondering how secure OS X really is?



How are most viruses distributed on Windows? Using the same methods can they be distributed on OS X? How are PC's infected so easily?



If we had as many viruses for OS X as there are for windows would the story be the same or would they easily be contained?



I'm just wondering how secure we really are...



-taco
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 32
    buonrottobuonrotto Posts: 6,368member
    Remember that the easiest way to get malware onto a computer is to simply let the user install it or to have them grant it access to their stuff. If it looks like IE, many people think it is IE. Same goes for lots of installers, apps, scripts, emails, etc. Macs are just as vulnerable, obviously, to people making mistakes as Windows. It was largely my fault that my computer became infected with malware yesterday, because an email message appeared to have been undeliverable, when in fact, it was just posing as a standard delivery error message. I made the mistake of opening it, and it did the rest.



    Macs do have security issues from time to time, many of which are not a big deal because they often require someone to be logged in under your admin or root account at your computer, that is, they are not remote vulnerabilities. But Macs do not have as many open ports as windows does by default, and it does have a built in and effective firewall. It doesn't allow apps to run without the user being aware of it either. Usually, the most vulnerable aspect of the OS is the scripting runtime. I don't know much about this, but I believe that scripting on a Mac is somehow safer to, but I couldn't offer much detail or proof.



    If we do see a lot more people using Macs, we probably will see more malware targetting Macs and affecting users. I doubt it could come anywhere near what goes on with windows though, unless everyone takes Mac security for granted and make mistakes. Users are probably the weak point in the chain.
  • Reply 2 of 32
    curiousuburbcuriousuburb Posts: 3,325member
    The last "Virus" I saw on a Mac was an MDEF variant in about 1997.



    The only "infected" Mac files I've seen since then were ALL due to Word Macro Viruses.

    No actual system infection or self-propagating spawns for more than seven years.



    Almost four years into my use of OS X and zero viruses.

    I'll say three more years before we get hit with anything serious.
  • Reply 3 of 32
    not unlike myselfnot unlike myself Posts: 2,037member
    I'd say that until Apple holds a 90% marketshare virus writers won't bother. Simply not effecient and to readily patched.
  • Reply 4 of 32
    stoostoo Posts: 1,490member
    Quote:

    The last "Virus" I saw on a Mac was an MDEF variant in about 1997.



    The last Mac virus I saw was on MacUser UK's 'Best Cover CD Ever". Had some cool stuff on it, including OpenDoc, CyberDog and 7.5.5.
  • Reply 5 of 32
    paulpaul Posts: 5,278member
    http://daringfireball.net/2004/06/broken_windows

    great article that explains why mac users do not tolerate malware of any kind
  • Reply 6 of 32
    talksense101talksense101 Posts: 1,738member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Paul

    http://daringfireball.net/2004/06/broken_windows

    great article that explains why mac users do not tolerate malware of any kind



    Thank you for that article link. It is a great new way to approach the problem of viruses.



    Quote:

    Arguing that it?s technically possible that the Mac could suffer just as many security exploits as Windows is like arguing that a good neighborhood could suddenly find itself strewn with garbage and plagued by vandalism and serious crime. Possible, yes, but not likely. The security disparity between the Mac and Windows isn?t so much about technical possibilities as it is about what people will tolerate.



    And Mac users don?t tolerate shit.



  • Reply 7 of 32
    aquaticaquatic Posts: 5,602member
    Damn straight. Even though computers for hours every day I rarely use PCs. I just ignore them, until a problem from them on the network starts causing me problems.



    I am the dorm tech in my dorm this year. I am dumbfounded at how stupid PC users are. Pretty much every single PC in my dorm, and that is hundreds, has 10 viruses, 5 adware, a few trojans, 10 spyware. Mostly from music downloading programs, and clicking on stupid malicious links, from AIM viruses, and crap that takes advantage of Windows shipping insecurely like MS Blast. It's not just M$. People are stupid. They get pissy when they get viruses while they are stealing music. Dumbasses. They get all pissy when I tell them that if they want to steal music they'll have to deal with viruses and spyware (no I don't know of any PC downloading program without them except iTunes with its sharing/myTunes, and no I don't care enough to do research and install it for them.) They also get pissy when I mention Macs. Some people are receptive though and about 20 people are going to ditch PCs for Macs simply because I explained they don't have viruses or popups. How come Apple hasn't done a COMMERCIAL with a PC users sitting next to a Mac users. The PC user has tons of pop-ups, viruses, tons of virus protection software making annoying dialogues pop up, then the PC users eventually has to erase their drive, "lose everything" and reinstall Windows. A little clock shows they spend hours doing this. The Mac users is playing music in iTunes, making iMovies, surfin' Safari, doing AIM, and doing work in Word. A clock shows they do this in 10 minutes, then they go out and skateboard or something while the Windows user is watching the Windows re-install dialogue. Eh?



    However if everyone in the dorm had a Mac, I wouldn't have to work, I could just sit in the lounge and get paid $8.25/hr and do nothing from 4-8 Mon-Fri! Of course then many of us techs would be unemployed eh? It's a conspiracy! Techs recommend Windows to stay employed!
  • Reply 8 of 32
    not unlike myselfnot unlike myself Posts: 2,037member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Aquatic

    Techs recommend Windows to stay employed!



    Kill him, he knows too much already.
  • Reply 9 of 32
    psgamer0921psgamer0921 Posts: 393member
    Really, is it that OS X is virusproof, or nobody cares to write one for the small Mac (Yet growing )population?
  • Reply 10 of 32
    ian8ian8 Posts: 16member
    as it was said before, apple doesn't have enough market share to attract any serious viuses, thus we remain virus free
  • Reply 11 of 32
    shetlineshetline Posts: 4,695member
    One thing you can be sure of...



    If and when a nasty virus hits OS X, you'll hear about it all over the news, and many, many people will act as if this one virus overshadows the hundreds and thousands of Windows viruses, sneering about OS X's "laughable" advantage in this area.
  • Reply 12 of 32
    newnew Posts: 3,244member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by shetline

    One thing you can be sure of...



    If and when a nasty virus hits OS X, you'll hear about it all over the news, and many, many people will act as if this one virus overshadows the hundreds and thousands of Windows viruses, sneering about OS X's "laughable" advantage in this area.



    So true...



    I wonder why no Mac-hating PC-techhead hasn't written a mac virus yet.
  • Reply 13 of 32
    curiousuburbcuriousuburb Posts: 3,325member
    People have tried...
  • Reply 14 of 32
    paulpaul Posts: 5,278member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Paul

    http://daringfireball.net/2004/06/broken_windows

    great article that explains why mac users do not tolerate malware of any kind



    I'm posting this link again because almost every question in this thread is answered by it...
  • Reply 15 of 32
    newnew Posts: 3,244member
    Could a Unix virus affect OSX?
  • Reply 16 of 32
    placeboplacebo Posts: 5,767member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by psgamer0921

    Yet growing



    Where'd you get that idea?
  • Reply 17 of 32
    placeboplacebo Posts: 5,767member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by New

    Could a Unix virus affect OSX?



    First, ask yourself the question, "Could a Unix virus infect Unix?"
  • Reply 18 of 32
    toweltowel Posts: 1,479member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Paul

    I'm posting this link again because almost every question in this thread is answered by it...



    Correct me if I'm wrong, but it's not just community expectations. Because of OSX's permissions system, I don't think you can write a self-propogating worm. You can write something that will wipe a user's home directory, but it can't touch the rest of the system, or propogate itself, without the user typing in their administrative password. OSX requires that the password be typed even if you're already logged in as an administrator.
  • Reply 19 of 32
    newnew Posts: 3,244member
    hehe... so what dumb stuff would I have to do to get a unix virus on my mac?
  • Reply 20 of 32
    curiousuburbcuriousuburb Posts: 3,325member
    Probably go back to a much older, unpatched kernel to "enable" some vulnerabilities.
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