Boot camp will herald rise in Mac OSX flaws

Experts at the Sans Institute claim there has been a sharp rise in number of flaws being discovered in the Mac OSX.

While the outfit confirms that the Mac machines are still safer than those running Windows, it says that is only because there are so few of them, hackers don't bother exploiting them, writes sister title the Inquirer.

However, according to Sans semi-annual update, 'The number of flaws being discovered in the operating system is leaving its reputation as a secure alternative to Windows in tatters.'

Sans believes Apple's move to Intel processors will attract more attention to its operating system. Boot Camp, its software to run Windows natively on a Mac, will also mean that hackers will be researching ways to get viruses to jump from Microsoft's operating system to Mac or Linux partitions.

A spokesperson said that the feeling of security felt by many Apple users when surfing the web was a mistake, because 'there’s a significant amount of research going on for security vulnerabilities in the Mac OS.'

In 2005, 52 vulnerabilities were found in the Mac OSX; so far this year 17 have been discovered. One third were considered critical.

Windows, though, continues to be the number one target for hackers.

Despite a significant decline in vulnerabilities being reported in Windows services such as Internet Information Server, mail services and NetBios, Sans said there had been a sharp increase in Windows Metafile flaws and Internet Exploder vulnerabilities.