From: Peter H. Coffin (hellsop_at_ninehells.com)
Date: Fri Apr 16 2004 - 13:53:50 PDT
On Fri, Apr 16, 2004 at 11:32:06AM -0700, Martin Joseph wrote:
>
> On Apr 16, 2004, at 10:48 AM, Joel M. Sciamma wrote:
> >
> > I see that Apple's market share is now down to 2.5% and take-up of Mac
> > OS X
> > is just 40% of the installed base - what self-respecting virus creator
> > is
> > going to bother having an impact on so few? ;-)
> >
> This is a dangerously wrong attitude:
>
> http://www.caida.org/analysis/security/witty/
>
> All platforms are potential targets although using "obsolete kit"
> (macOS (preX))) is pretty safe :~)
I'm curious as to what the attack vector to a Macintosh is for the Witty
worm that you cite. As far as I can tell, Witty attacks firewall
software and "network security software" that gives real system
administration people heartburn. BlackICE is vastly installed on
Windows, has a bounty program for getting MORE people to buy it, and
does nothing. Someone writing a virus to attack it has a nice aura of
irony around it, and I have little doubt that the rest of ISS's product
line getting nailed by the same damn thing is a monoculture fallout
effect, not the author's original intent. There's probably more Windows
machines "protected" by BlackICE on the net right now than there are
Macs of *any* vintage connected.
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