'Home users should buy Macs' - Sophos

By Steve Malone

Posted on 6 Jul 2006 at 11:08

Security firm Sophos is suggesting that users who are concerned about the security of their systems should consider switching to a Mac.

'Macs will continue to be the safer place for computer users for some time to come - something that home users may wish to consider if they're deliberating about the next computer they should purchase' stated Sophos's senior technology consultant, Graham Cluley.

The July update of the Sophos Security Threat Management Report notes that while the first malware for Mac OS X was detected in February 2006, it has not spread in the wild and was not the beginning of serious attention from the world's virus authors. This is not only because the Mac OS is inherently less vulnerable than Windows XP, but also because the relatively small numbers of Macs versus the number of PCs out there makes it a much less attractive target.

However, the report also says that Vista will be a more robust operating system although it regrets that Microsoft has had to delay general availability until 2007.

The company also warns that cyber criminals are becoming more sophisticated in the ways in which they attempt to conceal their activities.

As a result, according to Sophos, new Trojans now outweigh viruses and worms by 4:1, compared to 2:1 in the first half of 2005. The reasons being that email borne viruses which caused world-wide panics a few years ago are much less prevalent than they once were. Sophos's figures show that only one in every 91 of all emails were infected so far this year, compared with one in every 35 for the same period in 2005

This is partly due to increased security software installed on most PCs and the dawning realisation among cyber thieves that they stand a better chance of making money from their victims if they do not draw attention to themselves.