Security researchers are trying to get the word out to mac users that the cat is out of the bag: Mac users need to be concerned with viruses as much as anyone else. April saw the largest saturation of mac virus activity ever witnessed, infecting an estimated 600,000 machines within a few days of its initial detection. Apple has attempted to roll out updates and educate users to try and halt its spread but, as of this writing, the exploit is still vulnerable to infection by a new variant. The number of new infections has gone down but researchers say they can’t be entirely sure their detection methods can accurately measure it. Companies like Symantec and Kaspersky are actively working on combating the storm.
It’s a common fallacy that macs can’t get infected with viruses. More accurately, macs get infected with viruses that are left fallow because they are designed to affect windows machines; this doesn’t stop infected macs from spreading infection, via infected files, to windows machines. Mac users, thinking themselves immune to viruses, have gone on their merry way; clicking and opening anything without a care. Outside that umbrella other users have learned more diligence in what they do online. This has created an interesting environment for developers of malicious code as Apple gets more and more popular. Not only does this leave mac users unaware of their hidden potential to infect windows machines, it also presents a demographic of people, unaware of the dark side of the internet and safe browsing habits.
SpireTech recommends Symantec Endpoint Anti-Virus suite for mac.