I figured out the other day that programming computers must be very tough.
We are all very fond of bashing Microsoft. But if you think about it, they have managed to create an operating system that works on over 80% of the computers out there. This is not a closed loop where they control the hardware environment. It is wide open and out of Microsoft’s control.
Microsoft also attempted to make things easy for the end user. Drag and drop utilities from anywhere to anywhere, an interface that encourages sharing between applications and so on. The side effect of this ease of use has made computers vulnerable to viruses and trojans. And before you start commenting on the security of the MAC, be aware that attacks on the MAC are beginning to appear and the operating system is showing the same vulnerabilities as Windows.
Microsoft has begun locking down the computer. Each lock-down appears to reveal another potential point of entry, which is followed by another patch and so it continues. And again, the MAC is subject to the same list of patches, as is the Linux operating system.
Adobe has also been subjected to some issues recently as well, with Adobe Acrobat showing potential vulnerabilities, as has Flash. Sun’s Java environment has joined the list. All these programs keep releasing new versions and patches, which creates a non-ending spiral of updates to correct vulnerabilities.
We are not talking about one company having these problems. The list is getting longer each day and includes the leading software companies: Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, Symantec, Mozilla, and on and on. It seems that no one is immune to this, and we cannot blame Microsoft for the problems faced by all these companies.
The programmers in these companies are very smart people. And the companies seem to know what they are doing. It just must be really difficult to program.
You make a good point regarding Apple and security.
The fact is, if malicious hackers bothered to take a fraction of the time they spend exploiting security flaws in Windows and devoted it to exploiting Mac OS, Apple’s security “reputation” would fly out the door.
Mac OS X is easily as vulnerable if not more vulnerable security wise as Windows XP (Vista is actually quite closed down). The difference is the point you make in your second sentence – 80% or more of home computer users are on a Windows PC.
If you made your money as a malicious hacker who would you target?