I've been a little behind in posting my newsletter articles to the blog. This one is from last week, the follow-up to this article will be posted very soon.
---------------
I'm writing this in Borders right now where I'm sitting with my laptop, trying to get caught up on some work.
In this issue of my computer newsletter I'm going to answer a question from Jenna, who writes in with a question about
viruses:
>Dear Worth,
>I am a newly admitted grad student and decided to look at
>notebooks so I could be a little more mobile this fall.
>After working on a custom-built desktop PC for 6 years,
>I was thinking of getting an HP notebook. However, after
> watching your tutorials, I thought better of it and bought a Mac.
>So far, so good.
>
>Most of the new laptops operate with Windows Vista, which I
> didn't really want to deal with, after hearing all the negative
>reviews. I'd used both Macs and PCs as an undergrad, so the
>Mac is already like second nature. Thanks for the good advice!
>
>My question for you is, do Macs need antivirus software, and
>if so, what kind? The sales guy at Best Buy didn't seem to think
>it was a necessity, but I'm always wondering if it wouldn't hurt
>to have some kind of virus/spyware protection.
>
>Also, why is it that the Macs are less prone to viruses?
>
>Jenna Eichberger
Well Jenna, first off, thanks for writing in with your question, and I'm glad you found my tutorials to be of help!
At this point in time there are basically *zero* viruses for Apple's Mac computers. On the Windows side (i.e. any computer not made by Apple) there are thousands of them.
There is one trojan (which is a malicious program that's sort of like a virus) written for Macs, but it has never spread because of some of the security built into the Mac software (more on that later).
Because of this, I think it is OK to go without running antivirus software on your Mac for the time being, as long as you're not also running Windows -- for those who don't know, Macs have been able to not just run all of the Mac software, but any Windows program as well since 2006.
Viruses attack flaws or vulnerabilities in specific programs, or in the operating system (i.e. Windows XP or Vista, Mac OS X -- see my video explaining operating systems for more details). All of the existing viruses, worms, etc. (with the exception of the one I mentioned above) are written specifically for Windows.
So if you run Windows, whether it's on a Mac or a computer made by HP, Dell, etc. it is critical to protect yourself with a good antivirus program.
Unfortunately, the most popular antivirus programs for Windows are not necessarily the best ones.
In my opinion, McAfee and Norton antivirus, for example, are pretty poor at protecting you. I've cleaned up viruses and other infections from computers running those programs before, and studies have found them to have up to an 80% *failure* rate at detecting the latest threats. Beyond that, Antivirus programs can at the best of times bog your computer down, but Norton is especially bad about this in my experience.
The program I recommend to Windows users is the one I use on my PCs (including my Macs when they run Windows) is called Kaspersky Internet Security. I cover how to download, install, setup and use Kaspersky in my Ultimate Beginners Bundle of Easy Lessons for Windows, as well as a lot of other important security steps that will help protect you if you use Windows.
My lessons for Mac do cover security issues too, but I don't have to focus on it to anywhere close to the same degree as I do with Windows.
As for *why* Macs have so few viruses? Well, there's a couple of reasons for this, which I'll cover in my next newsletter. And along the way we'll cover a few things that will help you better understand computer security and how to protect yourself and the important personal or business data on your Mac or Windows PC.
And we'll do it all in Plain English.
Until next time, take care, and enjoy
Worth Godwin
Plain English Simplicity for a Complex Modern World
P.S. In the next article I'll be talking about how the newly discovered botnet-spawning trojan affects the question of Mac computer security.
---------------
I'm writing this in Borders right now where I'm sitting with my laptop, trying to get caught up on some work.
In this issue of my computer newsletter I'm going to answer a question from Jenna, who writes in with a question about
viruses:
>Dear Worth,
>I am a newly admitted grad student and decided to look at
>notebooks so I could be a little more mobile this fall.
>After working on a custom-built desktop PC for 6 years,
>I was thinking of getting an HP notebook. However, after
> watching your tutorials, I thought better of it and bought a Mac.
>So far, so good.
>
>Most of the new laptops operate with Windows Vista, which I
> didn't really want to deal with, after hearing all the negative
>reviews. I'd used both Macs and PCs as an undergrad, so the
>Mac is already like second nature. Thanks for the good advice!
>
>My question for you is, do Macs need antivirus software, and
>if so, what kind? The sales guy at Best Buy didn't seem to think
>it was a necessity, but I'm always wondering if it wouldn't hurt
>to have some kind of virus/spyware protection.
>
>Also, why is it that the Macs are less prone to viruses?
>
>Jenna Eichberger
Well Jenna, first off, thanks for writing in with your question, and I'm glad you found my tutorials to be of help!
At this point in time there are basically *zero* viruses for Apple's Mac computers. On the Windows side (i.e. any computer not made by Apple) there are thousands of them.
There is one trojan (which is a malicious program that's sort of like a virus) written for Macs, but it has never spread because of some of the security built into the Mac software (more on that later).
Because of this, I think it is OK to go without running antivirus software on your Mac for the time being, as long as you're not also running Windows -- for those who don't know, Macs have been able to not just run all of the Mac software, but any Windows program as well since 2006.
Viruses attack flaws or vulnerabilities in specific programs, or in the operating system (i.e. Windows XP or Vista, Mac OS X -- see my video explaining operating systems for more details). All of the existing viruses, worms, etc. (with the exception of the one I mentioned above) are written specifically for Windows.
So if you run Windows, whether it's on a Mac or a computer made by HP, Dell, etc. it is critical to protect yourself with a good antivirus program.
Unfortunately, the most popular antivirus programs for Windows are not necessarily the best ones.
In my opinion, McAfee and Norton antivirus, for example, are pretty poor at protecting you. I've cleaned up viruses and other infections from computers running those programs before, and studies have found them to have up to an 80% *failure* rate at detecting the latest threats. Beyond that, Antivirus programs can at the best of times bog your computer down, but Norton is especially bad about this in my experience.
The program I recommend to Windows users is the one I use on my PCs (including my Macs when they run Windows) is called Kaspersky Internet Security. I cover how to download, install, setup and use Kaspersky in my Ultimate Beginners Bundle of Easy Lessons for Windows, as well as a lot of other important security steps that will help protect you if you use Windows.
My lessons for Mac do cover security issues too, but I don't have to focus on it to anywhere close to the same degree as I do with Windows.
As for *why* Macs have so few viruses? Well, there's a couple of reasons for this, which I'll cover in my next newsletter. And along the way we'll cover a few things that will help you better understand computer security and how to protect yourself and the important personal or business data on your Mac or Windows PC.
And we'll do it all in Plain English.
Until next time, take care, and enjoy
Worth Godwin
Plain English Simplicity for a Complex Modern World
P.S. In the next article I'll be talking about how the newly discovered botnet-spawning trojan affects the question of Mac computer security.
Labels: computer question answer, computers questions, macs virus, virus for macs, virus protection macs
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Singamaraja reading your blog
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