Skip to Content
OS X Yosemite: The Missing Manual
book

OS X Yosemite: The Missing Manual

by David Pogue
December 2014
Beginner
874 pages
30h 11m
English
O'Reilly Media, Inc.
Content preview from OS X Yosemite: The Missing Manual

OS X and Security

OS X has a spectacular reputation for stability and security. At this writing, there still hasn’t been a single widespread OS X virus. There’s also no Windows-esque plague of spyware (downloaded programs that do something sneaky behind your back).

The usual rap is, “Well, that’s because Windows is a much bigger target. What virus writer is going to waste his time on a computer with 8 percent market share?”

That may be part of the reason OS X is virus-free. But OS X was also built more intelligently from the ground up. Listed below are a few of the many drafty corners of a typical operating system that Apple has solidly plugged:

  • OS X has always come from the factory with all of its ports shut and locked.

    Ports are channels that remote computers use to connect to services on your computer: one for instant messaging, one for Windows’ remote-control feature, and so on. It’s fine to have them open if you’re expecting visitors. But if you’ve got an open port that exposes the soft underbelly of your computer without your knowledge, you’re in for a world of hurt. Open ports are precisely what permitted viruses like Blaster in 2003 to infiltrate millions of PCs.

  • In OS X, no program (like a virus) can install itself without your awareness. You’re notified at every juncture when anything is trying to install itself on your Mac. In fact, every time you try to download something, either in Safari or Mail, that contains executable code (a program, in other words), a dialog box warns ...

Become an O’Reilly member and get unlimited access to this title plus top books and audiobooks from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers, thousands of courses curated by job role, 150+ live events each month,
and much more.

Read now

Unlock full access

More than 5,000 organizations count on O’Reilly

AirBnbBlueOriginElectronic ArtsHomeDepotNasdaqRakutenTata Consultancy Services

QuotationMarkO’Reilly covers everything we've got, with content to help us build a world-class technology community, upgrade the capabilities and competencies of our teams, and improve overall team performance as well as their engagement.
Julian F.
Head of Cybersecurity
QuotationMarkI wanted to learn C and C++, but it didn't click for me until I picked up an O'Reilly book. When I went on the O’Reilly platform, I was astonished to find all the books there, plus live events and sandboxes so you could play around with the technology.
Addison B.
Field Engineer
QuotationMarkI’ve been on the O’Reilly platform for more than eight years. I use a couple of learning platforms, but I'm on O'Reilly more than anybody else. When you're there, you start learning. I'm never disappointed.
Amir M.
Data Platform Tech Lead
QuotationMarkI'm always learning. So when I got on to O'Reilly, I was like a kid in a candy store. There are playlists. There are answers. There's on-demand training. It's worth its weight in gold, in terms of what it allows me to do.
Mark W.
Embedded Software Engineer

You might also like

Windows® 7 Visual™ Quick Tips

Windows® 7 Visual™ Quick Tips

Paul McFedries
Myśl w języku Java!

Myśl w języku Java!

Chris Mayfield Allen B. Downey

Publisher Resources

ISBN: 9781491948484Errata Page