Apple Archive

Macs, the Virus Scare, and Safe Computing

- 2004.04.16

Low End Mac Reader Specials

Memory To Go Special: MacPro 8 Core 8GB kit $232 / 4GB kit $116 / 2GB kit $72. New Macbook 2GB DDR3-$65. HARD DRIVES available -- Free shipping / LIfetime warranty.

Download Typestyler, still the Ultimate Styling Tool for Internet, Print and Video Graphics. Works great in Classic with a Native OS X Version on the way. Free Tryout: www.typestyler.com

LA Computer Company: Specials on AppleCare, iMac's, Apple Batteries and Apple A/C Adapters. Also Great prices on Used Apple Computers. Call 1-800-941-7654 Click Here.

Mac users can finally play Party Poker for Mac. Not only that, they can also learn how to play PokerStars for Mac.

Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.

Compare products like desktop computers, laptops, and LCD TVs side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for a new cell phone GPS products or MP3 players. The Ciao network makes searching products easy for you.

With Intego's announcement of the new "virus" for Mac OS X on April 8, for a while it seemed as if there was a bit of a panic through the Mac community - "What do you mean there's a virus for OS X?"

The thing is, this "virus" was only a demonstration of how Mac OS X could be vulnerable to malicious programmers, not code that actually did damage to any system.

This brings up the question: Do you need to have virus scanning software installed on your machine to be safe from viruses?

Back when the classic Mac OS was the standard - especially System 6 and 7 - there were several different viruses that would attack (mainly) the resource forks of different files. Some would just slow down the computer; others would actually render your files useless.

One of the most famous Mac viruses was the AutoStart virus, which could be prevented simply by turning off CD-ROM Auto Play in the QuickTime Settings control panel.

There were, of course, different antivirus software packages, like Disinfectant, SAM (Symantec Anti-Virus for Mac), and Virex. These days pretty much the only viruses that can (and do) infect Macs are Word macro viruses, and they infect only Microsoft Word files. These aren't harmful to your Mac, but they can spread easily and damage your Word document.

If you exchange Word documents with others on a regular basis, it makes sense to have some sort of antivirus software installed. As for myself, I have no antivirus software installed on either my G3 (with OS 9) or my PowerBook G4 (with OS X 10.3), as I usually just create and edit my own Word files and don't use use ones created by others.

Last week's MP3 Trojan horse virus announcement shows that Mac OS X is not invulnerable to viruses. There's no way to say that damaging viruses couldn't be released for it.

Protection

The best ways to protect your computer remains pretty much the same as always. Don't open unknown email attachments and don't download suspicious looking files. Even if they can't damage your computer, they could be forwarded accidentally to an unsuspecting Windows user.

This brings me to my final question. Do even Windows users need antivirus software?

Not really. If you don't download anything from the Internet or read email on your PC, antivirus software is probably not crucial. Spyware and adware are almost certainly something to protect against, however, and you may want to run an online virus scan once in a while just in case. But full time antivirus software really isn't necessary on any platform, as long as you take the proper precautions.

The nice thing about the Mac is that this all really isn't needed if you're careful, but it's not due to the Mac OS being a more secure operating system. It has everything to do with the amount of the market share the Mac currently enjoys. With less than 10% market share, a Mac OS virus wouldn't attack anywhere near the amount of computers that a Windows virus generally attacks. Therefore, there's less incentive for viruses to be written for the Mac OS.

Editor's note: There's an ongoing debate regarding the lack of Mac viruses. OS X viruses are a real possibility. With approximately 10 million users, OS X has about 2-3% as many users as Windows. This means that it's less likely a virus creator will be using a Mac or choose to attack it.

A further problem is spreading the virus. Most Windows viruses spread via email, although some are now using peer-to-peer networks, and if a virus sends itself to 100 users, odds are that 90 of them are using some version of Windows - and that some of their computers won't be adequately protected against viruses.

Using the same distribution vector, a Mac virus might reach 2 to 4 OS X users.

A further complication is having the virus actually infect a Mac. Unlike the Windows world, where Microsoft Office and email applications are the norm, Macs don't have Visual Basic installed and Mail isn't going to automatically open and run attachments.

Macs aren't invulnerable to infection, but even if one were to make it into the wild, it would have difficulty spreading itself - and it would do limited damage, since huge portions of OS X are only accessible with administrator access. dk

Basically, be cautious and viruses won't be a big issue. I've never had a Mac virus, and the most I've had on a PC is a bit of spyware.

Recent Apple Archive articles

Links for the Day

Recent Content on Low End Mac

Recent Deals

About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts

Entire Low End Mac website copyright ©1997-2008 by Cobweb Publishing, Inc., unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Advice presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all. Please report errors to .
  LINKS: We allow and encourage links to any public page as long as the linked page does not appear within a frame that prevents bookmarking it.
  Access our RSS news feed at http://lowendmac.com/feed.xml.
  Email may be published at our discretion; email addresses will not be published without permission, and we will encrypt them in hopes of avoiding spammers. If you prefer your message not be published, mark it "not for publication." Letters may be edited for length, context, and to match house style.
  PRIVACY: We don't collect personal information unless you explicitly provide it. For more details, see our Terms of Use.
  Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, iBook, iMac, eMac, iPod, iPhone, PowerBook, MacBook, MagSafe, Mac Pro, Apple TV, and AirPort are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are hereby acknowledged.


Have a question?
Ask an expert!

Navigation

Used Mac Dealers
Apple History
Best Used Macs
Video Cards
Email Lists
InfoMac's Low
End Mac Forum

Favorite Sites

MacSurfer
MacMinute
MacInTouch
MyAppleMenu
InfoMac
Macs Only!
The Mac Observer
Accelerate Your Mac
RetroMacCast
PB Central
MacWindows
The Vintage Mac
   Museum
DealMac
DealsOnTheWeb
Mac2Sell
ramseeker
Mac Driver Museum
JAG's House
System 6 Heaven
System 7 Today
the pickle's Low-End
   Mac FAQ
Abandonware
   Petition
Mac vs. PC Info

Affiliates

The Apple Store
Mac Connection
MacMall
TechRestore
MacResQ
ExperCom
Crucial Memory
batteries.com

Advertise

All of our advertising is handled by BackBeat Media. For price quotes and advertising information, please contact at BackBeat Media (646-546-5194). This number is for advertising only.

Open Link

Problems viewing this page with Internet Explorer 5.5 or 6? It works fine in other browsers, including IE 7. We recommend Firefox for those using Windows, as it is standards based and more secure than IE 6 (and earlier). More LEM visitors use Firefox than any other browser.