Do I Need Virus Protection for My New Mac?

Short answer: No.

If you are switching over from the Windows world, this idea might seem uncomfortable. But as you get used to your new Mac, viruses will start seeming like Bad Things That Happen to Other People. Namely, Windows people.

(Disclaimer: I'm not a computer security professional, but I do try to keep abreast of these issues as best I can.)

But I've heard about new Mac viruses in the news
What's the deal with these, you must be thinking. Here's the thing to know as of Summer 2008: The Mac can be vulnerable just like other OS's. It's just that people are not writing and spreading Mac viruses and Mac users aren't being infected by any. Does this mean it's impossible? No. It just means that viruses are not a reality that we Mac users have to face right now.

There have been demonstrations of possible Mac viruses by security professionals. They exist, but they are usually just a proof of concept. These often catch on with over-hyped importance in the media so it often appears as if there is a threat. Also, Mac anti-virus companies will often seize on this news to try to make the threat credible, when what they are really trying to do is sell their software.

What about Windows Viruses?
Windows viruses can only bring down your Mac if you are running Windows on your Mac. And it will likely be contained in the Windows environment. Another thing to keep in mind is that a Mac can spread Windows viruses in files and emails like a Windows computer, but it won't be effected by them. So be aware of suspicious files and forwarding emails with random attachments to Windows users.

Does this mean I am safe using my Mac?
No, your Mac is not safe if you are connected to the internet. You are safe from viruses, but not from Trojan Horses and Phishing schemes. A Trojan horse is "a computer program that appears benign, but is actually designed to harm or compromise the system it is installed on." -Wikipedia.

These programs need your help to download and run on your computer. You download them through some sort of action on your part. Usually this is by tricking you by mislabeling a program from an unreliable site.

In the same way, Phishing is getting you to enter information on a malicious website by tricking you into thinking it's a legitimate website. The easiest way to defeat this attack is to NEVER click on a link from an email you received asking for a response from you. If you bank at Bank of America, never click on a Bank of America link in an email. ALWAYS type bankofamerica.com in your browser.

What should I do to minimize my risk?
There's a nice list of things to do to protect your Mac on MacGeekery.com called Basic Mac OS X Security. The page is a couple years old, but the advice holds true today. Personally, I only do Rule #3: Turn off Services You Do Not Use. Basically, this involves going to your Sharing prefs and only checking the boxes you need. Here's mine:

In particular, stay away from the "Remote…" items.

If you are concerned about Phishing schemes, you may want to use Firefox 3 as it has warnings when you are at a known Phishing site. Apple should hustle and add this feature to Safari.

So why no Mac viruses, anyway?
Many people have put forth various reasons why there aren't any real Mac viruses. Some say Apple does a great job of limiting the Mac's exposure. Some say the UNIX that Macs are built on has been time tested. The reason I think is the main factor is that Macs are just not worth Bad Guy's hassle when Windows provides a larger, easier target. It's a matter of market share. As long as Windows dominates and still has vulnerabilities, it will be more attractive to Bad Guys.

What concerns me about this theory is that Macs are really on the upswing, gaining market share quarter by quarter. I'm not saying the Mac will displace Windows anytime soon, but it might get big enough to be attractive. But I've been following this subject for years and I've heard year after year from Windows defenders, "Just you wait. You Mac guys will get yours." Well, I've had Macs for 18 years now and I'm still waiting.


What about you? Share your opinions and experiences in the Comments section below.

DIG DEEPER

Is There a Virus Threat for Macs? - Mossberg's Mailbox

Basic Mac OS X Security - Mac Geekery

Mac security not so much about the Mac - Cnet News

Anti-Virus On A Mac? Washington Post.com

Mac OS X Viruses: Put Up or Shut Up (part 1) - Wil Shipley

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Your Comments:

It doesn't matter how any times you receive a new definitions file - that has nothing to do with the threat to the mac - and everything to do with them stopping you from being a carrier. A virus cannot drop its payload unless it can exploit a weakness in the operating system. This doesn't affect a Mac. The only threat you have are Trojan Horse infections and even those require you to enter your user name and password (even if you are the administrator) and the best defense against that is common sense.

 Renny Willins
 02/21/2009  at  12:36 AM

Mr. Willins,

Thanks for the information. I send so much to PCs that for their sake I'll keep the protection.

I do have NetBarrier to protect against Trojan Horses, but one still sneaked through.

For what it's worth, I've been told that there are those who think the virus-mongers invading PCs are getting bored because it is so easy, so now they are working on Macs just for the challenge. Who's to say? Someday they might get through.

Meanwhile, I'll look into Mr. Kerins' Rule #3.

 Neil G. Barclay
 02/22/2009  at  02:29 AM

From what I understand, because the mac requires you to enter your administrator's password each and every time a program is to be installed, this prevents malware (if there were any) from being installed without your knowledge (unlike Windows). I tell people to get a decent router and monitor their behavior carefully rather than get virus software. I think those two things will keep an informed mac user pretty safe.

 Lauren
 03/31/2009  at  02:46 PM

The "enter an admin password" dialog is useful, but it's not much of an anti-virus tool. There's plenty of places a virus can hide in the user's Library and other writable areas. Apple's main advantage is that there are fewer ways for the virus to get to run in the first place. No autorun, no ActiveX, ... no initial penetration of the system.

Security is like sex. Once you're penetrated you're ****ed.

 Resuna
 04/01/2009  at  04:39 AM

What is the likeliness of getting viruses from using Internet Explorer on a Mac?

 Jaye
 05/13/2009  at  01:51 AM

Not really high, if you're talking about Microsoft's abandoned IE for the Mac rather than IE in a virtual machine running Windows. Most of the desktop integration that makes IE on Windows such a fertile breeding ground for malware simply doesn't exist on the Mac, though IE on the Mac still has that stupid default behavior of assuming it can safely open files after downloading using the desktop MIME-type handler.

 Resuna
 05/15/2009  at  04:36 AM

Being in the Windows world for my daily living, when I got my Mac, I did what I always do for XP/Vista machines.
1. Created 2 accounts - one for Administration & the other for regular use. Both these accounts have passwords.
2. Made sure that I had to login to the Mac - it will not automatically take me to the "Desktop" post bootup.
May be I don't need to do this. But I feel better.
BTW, I do not have any AV software on the Mac & have been using it for the last 3.5 years without any problem. My Mac is mainly used for video editing & web. It is not used for email.

I am still learning

 Silva
 05/17/2009  at  06:57 PM

Jaye, Mac's don't run IE except when running Windows, so you Mac stuff is safe. But the Windows stuff is just as susceptible as when you are running it on a Dell.

 Chris Kerins
 05/18/2009  at  09:50 AM

There is no latest version of IE for Macs, is there? The website for the university that I attend only uses IE so I've been having a difficult time accessing the registrar page using Safari or Mozilla. Any suggestions on how I can do this properly without having to a) download an age-old version of IE for Macs or b) even having to download IE at all?! Thanks for all your help!

 Jaye
 05/21/2009  at  03:30 AM

Jaye, first let the responsible person know they hired inept people to create their website. Mac use on campuses is exploding and they should know that. Next, see this page on how to make Safari appear as IE:

http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20040319224845605&query=safari+user+agent

 Chris Kerins
 05/21/2009  at  08:36 AM

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