OS X hacked... in half an hour?!

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OS X hacked... in half an hour?!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nf/20060306/tc_nf/41948

from the article...

{i}It took a hacker less than 30 minutes to gain root-level access to Mac

OS X, according to a report from ZDNet. The hacker who penetrated the system called the Mac "easy pickings."

The security breach took place on February 22 after a Swedish devotee of the Mac set up a Mac Mini as a server and invited all takers to try to compromise the system's security to gain root-level control. Once a hacker has gained root access to a computer system, the attacker can install applications, delete files and folders, and use the computer for any nefarious purpose. [/i]

This is the intel Mac Mini, right?

note to self: don't webserve with those...

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Needs clarifying

The Mac to be hacked was intentionally set up to allow users to SSH into it and set up their own home account.

Jon
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Gee, they interview a guy at

Gee, they interview a guy at the end who advises mac users to buy and install security software. Oh, don't forget that he's an upper level manager at Symantec. :rolleyes: He claims there's 200 viruses for Macs. Where, back in OS 9? The whole article reads like a scare article to drum up business for AV vendors... You give somebody an account on a machine, and they use a vulnerability to gain root access. I don't get the correlation to that and "200" Mac viruses.

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Response by Dave Schroeder
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"any nefarious purpose." W

"any nefarious purpose."

What about non-nefarious hackers?

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only 200 viruses that's a tin

only 200 viruses that's a tiny drop of water compared to the over 100,000 for the pc

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