Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Computer

Apple Macs Now Targeted By Viruses

mac-anti-virusTo this day, Apple Mac owners have always boasted that it was more secured than Windows run computers especially as Apple computers don’t use anti-virus programs. However, it appears that due to its increasing popularity, the once strong immunity to viruses and malware could be waning. Just recently, security experts are warning Mac users of an increased threat from hackers and criminals who now find Mac as a more attractive target.

According to Graham Cluley, a spokesman for Sophos – an online security firm, ‘there has been a marked increase in malware aimed at Macs in the past few weeks’ with many seeking to take advantage of its apparent lack of anti-virus protection.

Examples of scareware programs targeting Mac users is ‘Mac Defender’ or ‘Mac Protector’ which infiltrates a Mac computer through a fake Google images result or an Internet pop-up designed to convince victims that their computer is infected by a virus. Once this malware is downloaded (with or without the users consent), the machine becomes breached.

Mac users therefore now have to be careful about Websites being visited and beware of disguised programs that appear genuine for the Mac OSX operating system. Furthermore, users should double-check before actually installing any unfamiliar programs on their Macs.

Talking Point

Do you have an anti-virus program installed on your Mac?

Written By

Thanks for reading this article. If you're new here, why don't you subscribe for regular updates via RSS feed or via email. You can also subscribe by following @techsling on Twitter or becoming our fan on Facebook. Thanks for visiting!

17 Comments

17 Comments

  1. Sara

    May 31, 2011 at 10:31 pm

    There is someone at our office who is always boasting about his Mac being the best. I will definitely have to show him this article, because I knew it was only a matter of time before Mac was no longer invincible. Do you think this will slow down their sales any bit?

    • Admin

      June 1, 2011 at 8:03 am

      I’m not sure about Mac sales being affected cos as you well know, Apple followers are one of the most ‘fanatic’ ones out there.

  2. Nawaz

    June 1, 2011 at 12:11 am

    It is a threat to the users of Mac.Now all users of Mac should go for security measures.

  3. zain

    June 1, 2011 at 2:12 am

    Good and interesting information about the Mac users. Hackers are too technical persons that can make their paths.

  4. rpb

    June 1, 2011 at 10:45 am

    Great! Everything was going so well for mac users!! 🙁

  5. reeha

    June 2, 2011 at 9:25 am

    thanks admin for alarming us about these threats, now all the Mac application users will surely go for security measures. great helping post

  6. Harvey

    June 2, 2011 at 8:00 pm

    The Mac world has expanded so this was laways inevitable. Macs ae still better in my view 😛

  7. Gina

    June 2, 2011 at 9:33 pm

    No waaaay!!! Mac’s have been working perfectly and even the attractive “no anti-virus protection needed” has been a great selling point. I knew that technology was developing faster before my eyes, but this isn’t good. Is the protection necessary now?

  8. Josh

    June 4, 2011 at 5:45 pm

    I’m glad I’m one of those “anti mac” user. My friend really wants me to buy mac before because it is virus free and no need to install antivirus. Sooner or later I’m really sure that mac will be a virus prone also because many hackers out there are really trying to be the number 1 to create virus/malwares for mac just for money.

  9. John

    June 6, 2011 at 6:10 am

    people said that Mac is the safest os
    the news disappointed me

  10. Emma from Craigslist pvas

    June 7, 2011 at 12:20 am

    I was just thinking of buying a mac at the weekend aswell, maybe il wait and see what happens with these virus’s on them. I hope they can prevent virus on them and il go ahead and get 1.

  11. arthurprudentt777

    June 7, 2011 at 4:57 pm

    Hi there,
    I could not understand why the hackers where ignoring the Apple Macs in the first place, as the prices of Apple Macs show that owners have funds. It means that the hackers would have more food from the Apple Macs owners than from the owners of other brands.
    Regards. Arthur

  12. Naked Crook

    July 27, 2011 at 5:04 pm

    Join the club Apple…

    Also…in the previous comment to mine…that is, without a doubt, totally incorrect.

    It is called Market Share!

    PC has roughly 90% of the consumer Market share. Apple and Linux make up the other 10%

    Let the numbers talk. If you wanted to cause damage…which would you pick? Clearly…you would attack Windows OS.

    Apple is sorely unprepared for the influx of viruses that will come their way. This is why Apple is being targeted.

  13. joe

    August 30, 2011 at 2:28 am

    This one goes out to all the apple fanatics out there! watch out! lol..

  14. kevin

    September 19, 2011 at 7:52 am

    can the rumors that they are the only ones that created the viruses in the first place? then they’ll create an antivirus of their own virus and boom! income! 😉

  15. jimbolaya

    January 21, 2012 at 5:25 am

    Weak article. You are quoting a security firm that sells anti-virus software and probably wants to break into the Mac market. That’s hardly an unbiased source. First of all – MacDefender is malware and not a virus. I have been doing research to compare number of viruses for PC’s and for Macs, and there is no evidence of a single virus in the wild for the Mac. There is this one MacDefender malware that everyone is jumping up and down about, but it affecting maybe a thousand mac users. Which means that a thousand mac users over the years have been hit by any kind of exploit whereas around 10,000 PC users are hit by an exploit per day. The fact is that virus and malware writers are not targeting Macs. I’m not saying they are more secure, but virus writers aren’t targetting them. They already have expertise in compromising windows and a huge market as well as toolkits that make it easy to write viruses and malware. Also Mac owners tend to be better educated, and less likely to fall for malware. Remember that a dumb user has to click on the thing that is a pop-up window that says their computer is at risk and install the thing. For that reason, I think malware and virus writers go for the lowest common denominator which is windows.

  16. Gerry

    February 19, 2012 at 1:39 pm

    The hackers will go where the largest numbers of opportunities are that take the least effort to exploit. The tablet computer and Android devices are certain to be big targets in the future.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

You May Also Like

Digital Marketing

Digital Marketing has become an entire industry that has its metrics and tools to measure the progress and performance of a website and increase...

Tech

In today’s digital era, where the Internet plays a vital role in our lives, it’s important to put security and privacy first. With the...

Tech

Tailgating is a smart use of social engineering by intruders to get around traditional security systems. It involves people using rare, natural opportunities to...

Web

If you are looking for a way to protect your home internet in the modern era, you have to think about viruses and malware....