You have to wonder just how much money Microsoft may be making out of
all this <smile> I won't go on about it as its off-topic a little but
I read an article in a Technology bulletin this morning which talked
about how someone had written some Malicious code which replaced the
Microsoft Genuine Advantage pthing for Windows XP, well all I can say
is rubb salt into Microsofts wounds Nice, good and propper <smile>.
On 08/07/2006, at 11:56 AM, LARRY WANGER wrote:
Check this out.
Security Company Recommends Macs
By Walaika K. Haskins
July 5, 2006 3:30PM
"There are far, far fewer threats on Apple Macs than there are on
PCs," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos. "So
home users who
simply want a computer to do some Web surfing, exchange e-mails, take
photographs, buy music, or make movies may find it's a much simpler
life from the
malware point of view if they used a Mac instead of a PC."
A new breed of malicious software has replaced viruses and worms as
the weapon of choice for Internet criminals looking to steal money
from unsuspecting
netizens, according to a study published Wednesday by security firm
Sophos.
The report found that during the first half of 2006, the number of
new worms and viruses emerging on the Internet dropped significantly,
overshadowed by
a new, dangerous species of Trojan horse. These Trojans, according to
Sophos, now outnumber other new viruses and worms by a four-to-one
margin.
In light of all the new malicious software targeting Windows PCs,
Sophos recommended in the report that Windows users swap their
current systems for a Mac.
Making the switch to a Mac, the company said, will help safeguard
against the new breed of attacks.
"Because there are so many poorly protected home computers out there
running Windows, the hackers haven't had to write Mac versions of
their viruses," said
Graham Cluely, senior technology consultant at Sophos.
Trojans on the Rise
Last month, Sophos identified 180,292 different types of malicious
code actively circulating on the Internet, representing an increase
of more than 40,000
over June 2005. The bulk of these ne'er-do-well programs are written
to target Windows users.
"The criminals responsible are obviously making money from their
code, otherwise they'd give up the game," Cluley said.
During the first six months of 2006, Trojans accounted for some 82
percent of new threats. Hackers prefer this type of malicious
software, Sophos found,
because it can be targeted at a particular group of people to
increase the likelihood of tricking users into handing over information.
Unlike the old days of computer viruses when hackers wrote and
released their malware in a quest to grab headlines and impress their
peers, today's malicious
code writers want as little publicity as possible, Cluley noted.
"If a virus makes the front page of the New York Times, that's bad
news for today's hackers," he said. "They don't want users to be
aware of what they're
up to, so they like to infect a smaller group of people and steal
from them (identities, bank account information, and so forth)
without them realizing
that they have been infected at all."
Choose a Mac
Cluley said that, after years of recommending that users take steps
to better protect their computers with constantly updating security
software, it is
clear that most users are not listening.
"Every antivirus program on the planet detects [the older viruses],
but clearly some PC home users aren't running any effective antivirus
[software] at
all or haven't bothered updating it," Cluley said. "So why not switch
to a computer which simply cannot be infected by these threats?"
The Sophos report indicated that the first malicious software
targeting Apple's Mac OS X did not emerge until February 2006. The
company also found that,
in contrast to predictions from the SANS Institute and other security
companies, there has been no deluge of viruses targeting the Mac.
Odds are, Cluley predicted, that Macs will "continue to be the safer
place for computer users" for some time to come.
"There are far, far fewer threats on Apple Macs than there are on
PCs," he said. "So home users who simply want a computer to do some
Web surfing, exchange
e-mails, take photographs, buy music, or make movies may find it's a
much simpler life from the malware point of view if they used a Mac
instead of a PC."
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