Apple Recommends Using AntiVirus Under OS X

One thing that Apple users have long been able to brag about is the overall security available on the Mac. For the most part, though, it’s not so much that it’s secure, it’s that OS X has never been the main target of virus and malware writers, or the target of various other exploits. Given the continuing market share growth, though, that’s changing, and changing fast.

According to Apple themselves, users should consider using an AntiVirus, which is quite a statement, given their ambitious advertising campaigns that portray OS X as being impenetrable. The three recommendations given on their support page are McAfee VirusScan for Mac, Symantec Norton AntiVirus 11 for Macintosh and Intego Virus Barrier X5.

Being mostly a Linux user, I also feel like I don’t have to worry that much about viruses, but the truth is, I feel the same way whenever I use a Windows machine, too. As long as you are careful and don’t needlessly download everything you see, you absolutely don’t need one. I ran Windows full-time for two years without using one, before moving to Linux, and I didn’t encounter a single one. Just play it safe, that’s the key.

So what caused Apple to change its tune? One major factor appears to be the rise in non-OS attacks. While Apple’s base OS is relatively secure, many of its programs, both Apple and third party have numerous vulnerabilities; among them Flash and Apple’s Safari web browser. Dave Marcus, director of security research and communications at McAfee states, “Apple is realizing that malware these days is targeting data, and valuable data exists just as much on an OS platform that is a Mac as it does on an OS platform that is Windows.”