True or false: when you use the Mac platform, you never have to worry about security again?
At the risk of offending all the Apple Macintosh users and supporters out there, the answer is a resounding false.
That’s not to say the Mac isn’t inherently secure but rather there are many factors to consider. Here are my top three:
- Applications vulnerabilities
- User/operator ignorance
- Malicious code on the web
Basically the things that are outside your control and at times outside the control of any operating system.
“Huh? What did you just say? Did he just say my Mac isn’t secure?”
That’s probably the question bouncing around in some of my readers thought process right now. Let me sum up the issue nicely with one example of a potential vulnerability:
Don’t assume that just because the base operating system is essentially secure that everything else that ships with the operating system is as secure.
There are quite a few Mac OS X and Mac OS X Server boxes that get cracked because of poorly configured PHP/Perl/Web/Database applications.
There are areas where lack of knowledge and outside threats can still cause lots of problems in the Apple Mac environment.
Before you jump down my throat, no I’m not claiming that this makes the Mac insecure. Only that you still need to understand where the various threats lie.
Agree? Disagree? State your case.
If you want to find out all the latest news on tech why not subscribe to our RSS feed?
At the risk of starting an argument, I’ll say without a doubt that the laptop I’m using right now is more secure than any Mac straight off the shelf AND it has nothing to do with the OS. It has everything to do with how I use it.
Hey RT.
I’m with you. My laptop is also secure and not because of the OS per se, it’s how things are set up and how it’s running.
My post is directed to a lot of people who are always saying that Mac’s don’t have issues with security or virus’s.
Next up, Mac’s are also PC’s… yes folks, a Mac is a Personal Computer just like a Windows based machine
I would argue that the operating system’s intrinsic design is inherent to its use, and how that usage is also limited to the design. Therefore, the level of maximum security is tied to the OS’s design. The OS is everything.
That was a whole lot of running around in a circle without really making a point Dylan.
“The OS is everything.”
It seems that you didn’t even read this article before you hit the submit button.
The OS is not everything when it comes to securing a machine.
An Operating System can be secure but software running under said OS can cause security issues if it has holes and/or vulnerabilities which was a main point of the post from what I can tell.
What I got from this post was even Macs have security issues because of flaws in third party software.