Simply put, they do, and in the circles of heated computer debates between the Mac and Windows users, this topic is still a very popular one to fight about, Over the years’ Mac users have shared the phrase “Macs don’t get viruses like Windows”. There’s functional truth in the statement. A virus written to attack vulnerabilities in the Windows operating system or Windows software won’t affect the Apple OS, however, there is common software between them, that can carry vulnerabilities across the both platforms.
Viruses and malware designed to take advantage of applications like Java (which runs software independent of the host operating system). In 2012, a virus named Flashback infected some 600,000 Mac OSX systems causing a bit of a stir, this virus used an exploit in the Java program.
There are of course good reasons as to why Macs get less virus and malware troubles than their PC counterparts, market share has a lot to do with it, there is simply so many more millions of Windows systems out there for hackers and virus writers to attack, therefore, you could argue more vulnerability.
It’s quite likely the prevalence of malware/viruses in Mac is masked by multiple factors. The main one being, not all virus/malware is obvious to the user, and most users who are not running any virus protection at all, could well be infected with something malicious, and have no idea about it. This isn’t something to panic about, but if you are a Mac user, it might be worth your while looking into a virus protection program because it is clear to see, you are not entirely immune, just less likely to have virus problems.
In the long run, it would be foolish to think the Mac is completely safe from virus and malware, and with increasing market share we will only see increased attraction from people who make viruses to start taking a closer look at the Mac, and find more vulnerabilities there.
I’ve done some research for you and found some virus protection for your Mac. The following virus protection programs are ones I trust and recommend, keep in mind that a free virus program will be less effective than a paid one.
I’d love your thoughts on this. Please leave a comment in the comment section below.
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