Another security myth busted
Published Wed, May 30 2007 12:18 PM
Technorati Tags: Computers and Internet, Software Development
Remember those "Mac Vs. PC" commercials? Do you remember how some of them tout Apple's superior record with regard to software security?
Mac Guy: "Hello, I'm a Mac."
PC Guy: "And I'm <sniffle> a PC"
Mac Guy: "What's wrong?"
PC Guy: "Oh, just this virus."
Mac Guy: "Achoo!"
I've never believed that Macs are inherently more secure than Windows systems. Name an operating system, and it's just about a sure bet that there are security vulnerabilities waiting to be discovered. Windows is famous for them simply because they're a bigger target than other systems, but they're not alone in practicing "security through obscurity".
For the second time this month and the fourth time this year, Apple Inc. has patched its QuickTime media player to close critical holes.
The security update for QuickTime 7.1.6 that Apple posted today comes on the heels of a 17-patch collection for Mac OS X unveiled last Thursday and fixes two bugs in the software's handling of Java. One of the pair could result in what Apple traditionally calls "arbitrary code execution," which means that an attacker could hijack the computer. "By enticing a user to visit a Web page containing a maliciously crafted Java applet, an attacker can trigger the issue," Apple's advisory warned.
The second vulnerability, Apple said, could give an attacker access to data in the computer's memory, which might include sensitive or confidential information such as passwords for logging onto a network or Web site.
On May 1, Apple released new versions of QuickTime for both Mac OS X and Windows to plug a hole uncovered during a highly publicized $10,000 hack challenge at the CanSecWest security conference in Vancouver, British Columbia. Before the hacking contest bug fix, Apple had issued QuickTime security updates on March 5 and Jan. 23.
Earlier this month, Copenhagen-based security company Secunia ApS released data that showed one in three installed copies of QuickTime were not fully patched, making it three times more likely to pose a threat than Internet Explorer and six times more likely than Firefox.
Apple's Quicktime is three times as likely to pose a threat as Internet Explorer? Tell me again which system has the better reputation for security?
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TexasFred responded with:
 | I love my PC and IE7, and I have never had an issue with IE, and I have been using it since I had Win95..
Maybe it's just me but changing to MAC is totally out of the question, I like to use what I know and what works for me... |
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