Macs are NOT more secure according to security pros

I get the question a lot: “Aren’t Macs more secure?” Not really.

Over the years, following consumer computer security issues, the general impression I have is that the Mac OS has more vulnerabilities — and that Apple takes longer to plug the holes than Microsoft. (This may no longer hold true — but at one time it did.)

Even more recently, I read the following in the April 1, 2010 issue of Windows Secrets newsletter:

Safari may be the most-vulnerable browser

The first browser to fall in the CanSecWest competition was Safari, mostly due to Charlie Miller’s expertise in Apple code. There’s been a long and loud debate about why hacking is such a problem on Windows yet relatively unheard of on the Mac.

Given the huge commercial nature of today’s malware attacks, the answer is not that Macs are more secure (they’re not, according to almost every security expert) or that hackers have it out for that evil empire called Microsoft. The answer most likely comes down to money. Mac’s approximately 8% market share simply does not offer sufficient monetary return on a hacker’s time investment. Mac users are just plain lucky.

For an interesting and somewhat worrisome article on Mac malware, read Andy Greenberg’s March 25 article, “The bounty for an Apple bug: $115,000.”

That all said, and just for the record, I was a Mac guy before I was a Windows guy. There are things I love about the Mac OS — such as ease of use and consistent interface from one application to another; and there are things I dislike: too often you are compelled to use the mouse; the folks at Apple think it is okay to install spyware and use malware techniques to get their software on your machine because they are Apple Computer.

Same goes for Windows: there are things I like and dislike. More freeware. Greater ability to use the keyboard to control programs and the OS.

Either way, don’t think you are “safe” or “in the clear” just because you are riding a Mac. When you are on the internet, much as it is in the non-virtual world, exercise caution and as much common sense as you can muster. Be careful and sensible about who and what you trust.