It is a “scary” time of year. Halloween is here, the goblins are out…and hackers are taking bites out of Apple.
Let me start by saying that I love Apple products – all of them. I have been using Apple computers since the Apple Lisa (aged myself a little there).
The subject of Apple computers, viruses and hackers came up in conversations with me long ago and it continues to come up today. The question that I’m almost always asked in these conversations is, “Are Apple computers (Macs) safe from viruses and hack attempts?” The answer was and is “Kind of...”
In the past, Macs were more of a niche product with a cult-like following. The number of Macs was dwarfed by the number of IBM compatible PCs. Hackers and virus creators are looking for mass numbers to get the most bang for their buck, so they attacked PCs.
Since 1984, Macs have been pretty much hacker and virus free, leaving Mac users feeling like they’re getting the best of both worlds – a cool, easy-to-use computer and a problem-free existence.
Those days are gone! Over the past 5 years or so, Apple has taken a big chunk of the PC market. Today, many homes only have Apple products and business Apple users are coming out of the woodwork.
Hackers and virus developers are on the move. I know many Mac users that have been infected with the same email and website viruses that were formerly targeted just to PC users. In fact, in the last two days, I have run into Mac users who are frustrated with having to take their computers to the Apple Store for a complete data restore due to ransom viruses.
I even spoke with a Mac user that had to go to Apple tech support to have his @me.com account password reset because his machine had been hacked. This was a very painful situation for the user because it took 3 days to complete the process and he was without email.
The day has arrived where hackers see that they can make a viable business out of attacking Macs due to the number of Mac users now.
The moral of this story is that ALL computer users need to protect their machines with current software and be careful online. Clicking on links and web browsing carries risk for all of us.
Happy, Safe Computing!
Marty
