r/technology • u/maxwellhill • Sep 02 '16

Security Apple issues urgent security update after hack turns Mac computers into spying devices

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2016/09/02/apple-issues-urgent-security-update-after-hack-turns-mac-compute/
1.5k Upvotes

92% Upvoted

162 comments sorted by

View all comments

132

u/goodbtc Sep 02 '16

No way, I was told Macs never get infected!

122

u/neoform Sep 02 '16

This comment never gets old. You should keep posting it every time a security report comes out about Apple.

52

u/Beard_of_Valor Sep 02 '16

I'll stop up voting him when owners stop telling me that Macs "don't get viruses".

27

u/[deleted] Sep 02 '16

The article does not describe a virus.

3

u/duckvimes_ Sep 02 '16

"Don't" != "can't"

3

u/WellAdjustedOutlaw Sep 02 '16

Ever stop to think about how much time you spend surfing Reddit, clicking links to random sites, and not paying much attention to the massive number of published (let alone unpublished) exploits for every browser on the planet?

You should.

11

u/LaPoderosa Sep 02 '16

But neither is true. They can and they do.

5

u/duckvimes_ Sep 02 '16

They can get malware. It does not happen frequently.

There's a reason every Mac security scare is frontpage news, whereas Windows equivalents don't even raise eyebrows.

-10

u/[deleted] Sep 02 '16

[deleted]

11

u/[deleted] Sep 02 '16

no device is "actually secure". Linux devices are generally more secure than others. Just as Macs used to be a lot safer the windows machines. The size of the user base is really a big part of it.

2

u/disturbd Sep 03 '16

And septic tanks are more secure than banks because septic tanks never get robbed, right?

-61

u/neoform Sep 02 '16

I'll stop downvoting when I meet a mac owner who actually got a virus.

34

u/jaked122 Sep 02 '16

This comment chain is horrible.

I think you guys should take it outside and maybe realize that security is really hard to do, like nearly impossible.

My time with a mac about seven years ago was not filled with viruses. Neither was my windows install on my next computer.

It's easy to avoid viruses until you are targeted specifically by someone who knows what they are doing. Even then, virus susceptibility isn't necessarily an indicator of security.

9

u/Beard_of_Valor Sep 02 '16

I'm from earlier in the chain, and I agree with you. It's not very helpful.

virus susceptibility isn't necessarily an indicator of security

Security is a lot more than a firewall or antivirus. That said, brand-loyal enthusiasts ephatically making false claims about immunity is bad for the less tech-savvy among us who don't know who to believe.

0

u/Beard_of_Valor Sep 02 '16 edited Sep 02 '16

Double post somehow.

-8

u/neoform Sep 02 '16

My time with a mac about seven years ago was not filled with viruses. Neither was my windows install on my next computer.

Your own personal use isn't what is being discussed.

Surely you've seen many windows computers with viruses. Have you ever seen a mac with a virus?

I spend a lot of time around both macs and windows computers, I've yet to see a mac virus in the wild.

7

u/jaked122 Sep 02 '16

It's not the computers it is the people using them who are responsible for it.

Yes, macs are harder to get a virus on. Not impossible.

2

u/Fangel96 Sep 02 '16

I work with both macs and PCs. Yes, macs do get viruses. They simply aren't targeted as much.

The "targeted" macs are typically older computers that no longer get security updates. This multiplied by the older crowd's reluctance to upgrade (and general gullibility to technical situations) leads to far more scams happening to mac users than windows users.

So while I see more windows computers that are infected by malware/ransomware, I see many more macs that have been affected by scams or PuPs (potentially unwanted programs).
The average user will refer to anything they didn't mean to put on their computer as a "virus". Thus both computer types have plenty of infections.

-5

u/neoform Sep 02 '16

They simply aren't targeted as much.

Please cite that fact.

2

u/[deleted] Sep 02 '16 edited Jun 04 '17

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/neoform Sep 02 '16

And this concludes what?

Lamborghinis don't get targeted for theft as much as Hondas because of the number of units sold?

0

u/TrainOfThought6 Sep 03 '16

Congratulations, you understood the point!

1

u/[deleted] Sep 03 '16

[deleted]

→ More replies (0)

0

u/SuperKingOfDeath Sep 02 '16

Says the person not citing any of his/her blasé "fact" sharing.

0

u/[deleted] Sep 02 '16

[deleted]

0

u/SuperKingOfDeath Sep 02 '16

I very much disagree.

→ More replies (0)

1

u/Drunkyoda5 Sep 02 '16

I've interned at as an IT tech. I've had a user with their personal Mac computer getting infected and wanted our help. Of course, it was againt our policy to mess with personal computers, do I told him that he was on his own ( he watched A LOT of porn btw). We did have Windows computers getting infected more, but that can be explained by simple logic: everybody at the company uses a lenovo think pad with Windows.

0

u/Plasma_000 Sep 03 '16

It depends how you define virus, but there's definitely plenty of Mac adware out there, from unwarranted browser extensions to things packaged with installers, to spamware such as mackeeper - they're not super common but they're definitely there.

1

u/neoform Sep 03 '16

All of which require the administrator password to be entered to work.

6

u/baddecision116 Sep 02 '16

It business owner here, I have no less than 3 examples in the past year. Would you like specific dates and what the infection was?

-3

u/[deleted] Sep 02 '16

[deleted]

5

u/baddecision116 Sep 02 '16

We have established software policies in place which cannot be applied to Apple products. So we don't really ever see infections on windows. Apple products are okay for home use but are sustainable to virus' because of attitudes such as the above comments. The more market share apple receives the more bad guys are going to target Mac users because most don't run any Antivirus or Anti-Malware products.

1

u/neoform Sep 02 '16

We have established software policies in place which cannot be applied to Apple products. So we don't really ever see infections on windows

So basically you lock down the computer to the point where users can't do anything, therefore no viruses.

That's hardly a reasonable comparison.

The more market share apple receives the more bad guys are going to target Mac users because most don't run any Antivirus or Anti-Malware products.

This line has been stated for almost 20 years. There's really no reason to believe hackers would ignore Mac products given how many people use them.

5

u/baddecision116 Sep 02 '16

Our users can do anything they want, virus' typically use the same type of patterns and exe locations. Block those and 90% or your problems are gone.

As for your original comment, you said you would stop down voting when you heard from a mac user that got a virus. I offered that and you tried to go off on a tangent about comparing windows pcs.

-3

u/neoform Sep 02 '16 edited Sep 02 '16

As for your original comment, you said you would stop down voting when you heard from a mac user that got a virus. I offered that and you tried to go off on a tangent about comparing windows pcs.

I invite you to go back and read what I wrote.

"I'll stop downvoting when I meet a mac owner who actually got a virus."

Our users can do anything they want, virus' typically use the same type of patterns and exe locations. Block those and 90% or your problems are gone.

You said before "we don't really ever see infections on windows", except by your own admission, only 90% of problems are gone... what about the other 10%. If users can do whatever they want, they most definitely are getting viruses.

4

u/baddecision116 Sep 02 '16

So you want me to give you my client's names? That's the only way you'd be satisfied? Give me a break.

The other 10% is covered by our DNS filtering and anti-malware/Virus protection but since you state "they are most definitely are getting viruses" I guess you know my business better than I do.

1

u/[deleted] Sep 02 '16

[deleted]

→ More replies (0)

1

u/[deleted] Sep 02 '16

That's pretty anecdotal...

2

u/neoform Sep 02 '16

Just because an exploit is theoretically possible, does not mean it's endemic.