Yes and no.There is a considerable lot less known malware for OS X then windows so they are less prone to virus's. However,there not malware proof and if any one says different is clearly mistaken or just ignorant.I strongly believe market share has everything to do with this. I have OS X latest MT Lion and I still take proper precautions as I would with windows.I even run F-Secure AntiVirus for macs just in case.From what I understand the biggest killer for macs is trojans. On that note, I feel totally secure on a mac but I also feel the same way when I am on windows.However,only when I am on my own rigs do I feel safe with mac or windows.
There should be a poll asking: 1 Do I fell safe with a less targeted Mac and only a handful of untested AVs? 2 Do I fell safe with a oh so targeted Windows and an array of well proven security solutions? To answer this poll's question: I would not feel safe with Mac.
Yeah I find that the GateKeeper is very useful, as it's easy to change between the modes. If you don't find what you're looking for in the Mac Appstore then you can simply change the mode, and then change it back.
yes I leave mine at default so I can still install outside the app store from only developers with a unique ID from apple.Of course this don't stop exploits but it helps from malware from bad software.
Not immune but i do think there is a lower chance of getting infected. (Since it's not targeted as much as Windows)
Mac, Linux, and mobile devices are not immune to attacks. Remember the bad guy is always lurking and watching. Edit: Who the heck voted yes?
Quoting Jim Hacker from Yes Minister, you say: That's not the question. The question is, can the OS prevent user mistakes? And the answer is no. The choice of the operating system is mostly irrelevant to user security. Good security is architecture-independent. Mrk
Definately not secure. But much more secure from malware than Windows becuase of the tiny userbase compared to Windows, meaning that malware writers rarely target OS X. However, I have read reports where some security experts consider OS X to be less secure than Windows. This is an imporant point as some Mac users think they can't get infected due to OS X being more secure than Windows, when it is actually due to the lack of malware.
Maybe it's just me but I wish the poll had options like these: If Yes, so what? If No, so what? I don't know, so what? J kiddin'...
I've found that many people that I know who have Macs think that they are secure from all malware yet Apple themselves have tacitly dropped their old claims that they don't get malware.
I have asked many Mac users if they have every used Mac's built-in Imaging App to make an Image of their hard drive to a Safe Location. They seem to have never heard of Mac's build-in Imaging App, and they don't seem to care.
No, GateKeeper is like Linux repositories, effective, but not foolproof. Of course it can be (like the rest of them), but malware security is hardly the only factor when selecting operating systems.