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Are the new Intel based Macs more susceptable to viruses than the old PowerPC Macs?

Sparky asked in Tech Products about 1 year ago | Report

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  • Dinolock_small
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    No.

    In most modern, consumer-level computers, the architecture of the machine has little influence on how secure it is.

    Security is almost entirely determined by the software running. OSX is fundamentally different from Windows on many levels which is why viruses are much less of a problem in general.

    That is not to say viruses and other malware doesn't exist in OSX. In fact, Gizmodo has an article on it posted today:

    http://gizmodo.com/5800729/the-non+alarmists-guide-to-mac-malware-protection

    But, in general, you are much less likely to make a mess of your Mac with viruses than you are with any Windows 7 machine.

    I personally do not use any antivirus software on my (Intel) Macbook Pro laptop and use Microsoft Security Essentials for my home and work Windows 7 desktop PCs.

    protosaurus answered in Tech Products about 1 year ago | Report
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  • 6521205-0-large_small
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    No. As proto says it's OSX which is the key. But the thing that has saved Macs has also been their limited market share. It's not worth designing things to attack a small portion of your target. This is esp. true because Macs have been almost non-existent in business and they are often a preferred target.

    But all that is changing as Macs gain market share and there is evidence that a growing number of nasty shit heads are developing attacks for OSX.

    infernactual answered in Tech Products about 1 year ago | Report
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