Apple Addresses 'Mac Defender' Threat With Security Update 2011-003 for Snow Leopard

While i dont know the actual threat of his particular 'malware', I think apple needs to do a lot better than this in future. Such hot fixes need to be available within a couple of days max. If i wanted to use a virus/malware prone PC for weeks, i'd have simply opted for a windows machine instead of the mac!

And it should be available for 10.5 as well.

While i dont know the actual threat of his particular 'malware', I think apple needs to do a lot better than this in future. Such hot fixes need to be available within a couple of days max. If i wanted to use a virus/malware prone PC for weeks, i'd have simply opted for a windows machine instead of the mac!

Apple have just made the very sensible step of allowing auto-updating of their malware definitions list. Future malware shouldn't require a formal Software Update:

"File Quarantine

Available for: Mac OS X v10.6.7, Mac OS X Server v10.6.7

Impact: Automatically update the known malware definitions

Description: The system will check daily for updates to the File Quarantine malware definition list. An opt-out capability is provided via the "Automatically update safe downloads list" checkbox in Security Preferences. Additional information is available in this Knowledge Base article: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4651"
From http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4657

This security update also makes the system automatically and in the background update the File Quarantine definitions daily.

Nope. Just Windows ME.

It's not that you find viruses on Windows ME computers. It's that Windows ME IS a virus.

Nice! :)

There are exploits for mac os x, linux and windows. It's just a gamble, and you might get hacked in either systems. If the mac user base continues to grow we should expect more malware.

The best protection is to be smart, and be careful to with the sites you visit.

No, I can't imagine it. I'm running Windows 7 on my PC. I also have a Mac Mini, but I don't use it nearly as much.

I don't get viruses on Windows. It's a myth spread by the elitist Apple fanboys. Although, I guess I can be a bit elitist in a way in the Apply fanboy world for loving my iPhone 4, but wishing Apple would let us sideload Cydia or something.

I spent several hours wiping and reinstalling the OS on my in-laws' Dell. It would dial-out using the modem (yeah, they had a modem) to a 1-900 number in jamaica or something every night because of a "surf-by" virus they had gotten by just surfing to the wrong web page.

Windows machines certainly do get viruses. I even got one or two myself back in the day.

I used a windows XP computer for 4.5 years running XP without antivirus and got 1 virus (closed windows and ended programs). This was completely my fault. I clicked on the thing instead of quitting the program.

After researching the virus I downloaded some anti-malware software (got rid of some other crap that I never knew was there but never affected me. Half a dozen is not much after 4.5 years with no antivirus running XP). No Fix. Safe mode worked.

Then I thought, lets try the old fashioned down to earth way. Open task manager on startup (before virus could activate and deactivate task manager). This was an old computer and it took 5 minutes to boot. Force-quit the process. Deleted the file.

Not really that bad. Of course I did get the virus and there was some other malware on the computer but nowhere as near as bad as some of you are making out.

Only for 10.6.7? What about 10.5.x or those on lower versions of 10.6? I almost understand 10.5.x... but this list exists in all versions of 10.6.x IIRC...

You almost understand 10.5? Well that's very nice of you. Many of us on 10.5 decided to wait until a full new OS comes out like Lion rather than going for a half measure like snow Leopard and we should certainly not be punished for doing so.

So we must suffer because we are on a slightly earlier OS?

No we should get an update to tackle this too.

Certainly the most flattering. ;)

:) lol, yup. Of course your general Joe schmoe gets viruses on Windows, which I was never denying in my posts. The way he worded his reply is true, and the way I worded my reply is true also because I don't get affected by viruses. I don't download every file under the sun. Most files I download have to do with development, iTunes files like music or apps or podcasts, or TV Shows. I am mostly a content producer or a program creator and not a rampant teen that clicks on every link that he/she sees without thinking.