The New Apple of Malware's Eye: Is Mac OS X the Next Windows?

For more than 26 years, Apple Computer has, for the most part, avoided the security spotlight. This good fortune is at least partly due to its significantly smaller share of the personal computer market, especially when compared to behemoth Microsoft. In fact, Apple has been perceived as a platform and technology that is "virus free" and "immune" to security flaws-particularly those that have plagued Microsoft over the past 20 years. But as Apple's Macintosh OS X operating system (Mac OS) gains ground in the market and Apple's consumer technologies, such as iPod and iTunes, continue to enjoy widespread popularity, security researchers and hackers will increasingly point their digital lock picks toward the Mac OS and other Apple products, making Apple a growing target for malware attacks.