Spreading the aloha of Macintosh, Hawaiian music and island culture from the sunset side of Haleakala volcano on the wonderful island of Maui

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Saturday, April 23, 2005

Just say - No thanks I have a Mac! VIRUSES! OH SHIT! VIRUSES AND SPYWARE MAY BE EATING YOUR BRAIN! Hi Scott.... I keep getting ads from Earthlink saying there is a free spyware program that I should install? Are Macs subject to spyware issues? And if so, should I install the spyware pkg? Earthlink, those clunky dweebs, are now spamming all their patients about a package for Macs they claim will prevent 'Spyware' infestations. This is the second call I've gotten from clients in as many days so I'd better put it out for everyone and save myself repeated explanations. First: There are no spyware programs on the Mac that I know of. And (repeat after me...) THERE ARE NO MAC VIRUSES! The best way to think about this is that viroids are a monkey problem and we Macintosh users are fish! We can't catch monkey diseases. Now if you're running Virtual PC on a Macintosh, you'll need to have all the protection you can get, but any viruses that do infect your virtual Windows can't jump over the wall and pounce on your Mac. So, while Mac users currently don't have to worry about viruses, you can transmit one to a PC user by forwarding infected email, or running the Microsoft Entourage email program which can allow infections to bounce around inside your MS Office programs attempting to do damage but only being inconvenient. The best way to prevent this is simple: Don't ever so much as even run Microsoft Entourage. Viruses are programs that can screw up your computer or make it do things you don't want. A 'Virus' actually sticks itself onto another program and uses that to reproduce. Some PC viruses are so well planned that they move around and metastasize themselves all over the place so the only way to get rid of them may be to erase your hard drive. Viruses infect Windows computers because it's so damn easy to infect Windows - you just cough in the general direction of a PC and it'll fall over. But since the release of OSX, there have been no viruses that effect Macs, and so far, no malicious spyware programs either. By the way, many people think that by not opening suspicious emails, they won't get viruses on their PCs. Wrong-O Keemowasabi - all you have to do is log on to the internet and you've opened the gateways and the dells. It has been said with good authority that the average sterile life span of a virgin, unprotected PC on the internet is twenty minutes. A 'Spyware' program is software that sneaks into your computer to quietly hide while informing it's evil creators all about you, your PC, credit card and the location of your personal porn collection. Spyware can also remove any security on your system allowing malicious creeps to have their way with it, often turning a Windows box into a ponderous slave that sends the evil spawn on to other computers. What a great way to meet new people. There isn't room here to explain why Macs don't get viruses, but the simple explanation is that Mac OSX is not the piece of porous, unsecured shit that Windows is. OSX is based on UNIX so anyone can kill off a virus without asking for Apple's permission or waiting for Microsoft to realize that they have a problem. And of course, you won't get any coverage on MSNBC by creating a Mac virus. Software companies that make anti-spyrus programs want to instill a climate of fear in users who hear all the media drivel about the danger of viruses. I find it strange that whenever the right-wing-media goes into panic-mode over a new virus, they never mention that Macintosh users are not effected. Software companies want you to buy their useless programs 'just-in-case'. The problem with installing these programs just-in-case is that they often cause more trouble than the viruses they are supposed to protect you from. I describe antivirus software as 'Hiring someone to stand at the front door of your house and hit guests over the head with a bat in case they might be burglars". What most 'AnitVirus' programs do is simple: they attempt to prevent an unfamiliar program from being installed. Unfortunately, any software that comes out after your virus program was released can be considered unfamiliar and blockaded. Also, those wonderful system and security updates that Apple provides for free look just like viruses so you may not be able to update your software. Now pay attention: this means that if you have an anti-virus program installed you might not be able to take advantage of Apple's free and frequent security updates, thereby making your computer more susceptible to security problems. In fact you may not be able to install any software at all unless you completely disable all anti-viroid applications. Finally, and logically - anti-spyrus programs must be constantly updated in order to deal with the latest pranks and tricks invented by those wacky, creative virus and spyware authors. So unless you compulsively download their monthly updates, you are not protected against anything except last year's viruses. My best advice is to keep up with Apple's automatic Security Updates and you should be in good shape. If you already have an anti virus program and are incurably paranoid, don't install it, but download and store the monthly updates 'just in case'. Norton Anti-Virus seem to be fine, Virex has been known to cause problems. There is also a very real likelihood that any software you get email about is actually spyware from someone pretending to be Earthlink, so to parachute the words of Nancy Reagan: Just say no "I have a Mac!" 9:07:58 AM    comment []