Mac Computers Are No longer Safe! “It Doesn’t Get Viruses” Advertisement Changes to “It’s Built To Be Safe” Due To Mac Vulnerabilities
Mac Computers Are No longer Safe!
Apple/Mac operating systems (OSX) have become extremely vulnerable to Trojans since early 2012, most notably due to the wide spread of the Flashback Trojan which infected nearly 1,000,000 Mac computers.
The Flashback Trojan is responsible for rendering older Mac systems as well as turning Java updates for Mac OS X obsolete. Many older Mac computers no longer function due to the Flashback Trojan and can no longer enable Java without updating to Mac operating systems Lion 10.7 or Snow Leapord 10.6.
Apple previously claimed “It doesn’t get PC viruses. A Mac isn’t susceptible to the thousands of viruses plaguing Windows-based computers. That’s thanks to built-in defenses in Mac OS C that keep you safe, without any work on your part.” but the sudden risk and vulnerabilities in Mac systems (due to Trojans) have caused the Cupterino-based company to remove the once powerful statement on the top sidebar of their popular online store to a headline which now reads “It’s built to be safe. Built-in defenses in OS X keep you safe from unknowingly downloading malicious software on your Mac.”. (image below)
So, what else did Apple change?
Besides the sidebar advert shown above, Mac also removed and changed this following header and paragraph:
[Normal_Box]
Safeguard your data. By doing nothing.
“With virtually no effort on your part, OS X defends against viruses and other malicious applications, or malware. For example, it thwarts hackers through a technique called “sandboxing” – restricting what actions programs can perform on your Mac, what files they can access, and what other programs they can launch. With File Vault 2, your data is safe and secure – even if it falls into the wrong hands. File Vault 2 encrypts the entire drive on your Mac, protecting your data with XTS-AESW 128 encryption. Initial encryption is fast and unobtrusive. It can also encrypt any removable drive, helping you secure Time Machine backups or other external drives with ease. Other automatic security features include Library Randomization, which prevents malicious commands from finding their targets, and Execute Disable, which protects the memory in your Mac from attacks.”[/Normal_Box]
- And changed it to this the header and opening sentence to this:
[Normal_Box]
Safety. Built right in.
“OS X is designed with powerful, advanced technologies that work hard to keep your Mac safe. “[/Normal_Box]
Do you feel like Mac owes you something?
Mac advertised their “anti virus” – “susceptible to viruses” type statements everywhere, all the time, for years. The fact that the information they provided was false (Macs are obviously completely vulnerable to viruses) has caused many Mac users to switch to PC (which is alraedy plagued by many viruses).
Why are Mac users switching to PC?
PCs are much more user friendly to manage detection and removal of malware and viruses than Mac OS X even though both Windows and Mac operating systems are certified secure by the DoD. Symantec has called the newer iterations of Microsoft Windows the most secure mainstream operating system in the consumer market.
But, Windows has more viruses, damnit! Right?
Yes, right. Windows is a much larger target for infection and provides a larger sample size than Mac OS X. Collected data from malware or virus software as well as Windows themselves is used to study and adapt to new threats as they present themselves. Therefore vulnerabilities are discussed much more often throughout the massive amount of PC communities. It’s kind of like playing 2 on 2 basketball with your 2 neighbors whom don’t own a single pair of athletic shoes and you have Lebron James (PC) on your team who plays basketball (deals with threats) professionally.
