TECHNOLOGY

Apple security 'ten years behind Microsoft,' says Kapersky boss

Mac OS X users will come under increasing threats from malicious software, as Apple's market share continues to rise, according to a leading security firm.
Following the recent Flashback scare, which infested over 600,000 Macs, Eugene Kapersky, founder and CEO of Kapersky, says cyber criminals will continue to target Mac users.
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Furthermore, Kapersky reckons that Mac OS X, for so long considered virus-proof, is actually more susceptible to infection than Windows.
'No difference between Mac and Windows'

He says because Microsoft has built up years of experience in tackling viruses, Trojans and other malware through software patches, it has a distinct advantage.
He said: "I think they (Apple) are ten years behind Microsoft in terms of security. For many years I've been saying that from a security point of view there is no big difference between Mac and Windows.
"(It's) just a question of time and market share. Cyber criminals have now recognised that Mac is an interesting area.
"Now we have more, it's not just Flashback or Flashfake. Welcome to Microsoft's world, Mac. It's full of malware.
"Apple is now entering the same world as Microsoft has been in for more than 10 years: updates, security patches and so on. We now expect to see more and more because cyber criminals learn from success and this was the first successful one."
Apple recently used a Java software update to rid infected Macs of Flashback, but the company attracted criticism over how long it took to acknowledge the problem.