I do the vast majority of web browsing and viewing emails using my iPhone...Wondering if it is safer than using my laptop

Can you infect your network / laptop with a virus using an iPhone? Did not know if it all works the same or if I am better protecting my network by using my phone instead of the laptop

IMO - HOW you surf means more than WHAT you surf with when talking about viruses.

That aside, Macintosh OS is 'safer' than Windows and my understanding there are even fewer viruses that attack iPhones. But, I personally hate surfing the web on a iPhone/iTouch. I use my iPad or MacBook Pro 99% of the time and have never had ANY virus protection on either and I've surfed with the Mac OS for many years.

due to the sandboxing and less 3rd party plug ints like adobe flash, oracle java or microsoft silverlight of applications from the system in the iPhone/iPad operating system it is safer at general browsing than most normal browsing on a pc or laptop.

One technique some people do on computers if they think it is worth the effort is run a linux live cd, where it will run like a clean install of the operating system every time it is started or run a cold storage program. However that has it's issues as well.

How about opening an email attachment with a virus?

How about opening an email attachment with a virus?

All depends. Most are designed to take advantage of weaknesses in the Windows OS, but some do exist to exploit the Mac OS too. I find many types of email attachments I receive cannot be handled by my iPad or cell phone.

Also, I don't open email attachments unless I know where they are coming from and was expecting it. I don't open those email attachments that are forwarded and re-forwarded or worded suspiciously.

I hear ya...Reason I ask is we picked up that damn Security Shield spam spyware or whatever the heck it is...Sounds like it was planted by a virus so I was wondering where I might have picked it up since we normally use our iPhones

I do download music from a couple of sites using the laptop so those are my main suspects right now

Another reason I'm an avid fan of Apple's Time Machine feature. I've never had a virus, but I have had 'issues' and even a HD crash. The Time Machine back-up (from an external HD) has saved me a few times.

My son's laptop suffered from those 'spyware adware' viruses before. We ended up just reformatting his drive with the original DVD. Another reason everyone in the family gets their own computer and that way their surfing doesn't effect my computer, and vice versa.

Actually phones aren't as safe as people thinks since you are broadcasting your signal. It isn't that hard to capture your signal. Same with wifi. As for OSX vs Windows in general it is safer but that is changing because Apple went with BSD as part of their kernel with OSX. What this really did was allow Linux to run much smoother because drivers written for OSX are the same as Linux. Another thing that has changed the world is Mark Shuttleworth because he is the driving force behind Ubuntu. Linux was mainly in the geek community because you did have to compile or make drivers work with your system. Now that Linux is so mainstream the tools that were used by hackers to create viruses and the like are now pretty easy to run. Add to that that once you root your OSX you can run most linux programs on your Apple.

Also since the younger generation now is so Apple friendly the sales of apple products is going through the roof. This will fuel the fire for the people actually hacking or cracking.

But actually hackers don't hack computers anymore they hack people. It is much easier to run a fishing scheme than it is to actually hack someone's computer on a sticky IP.

Heck I tether my phone to my laptop and then run a hotspot pull into Starbucks parking lot and call my hotspot "Starbucks free WIFI" and have people logging into all day long. All the while I am looking all around their pc or phone.

How many people with Iphones or smartphones switch over to wifi to save mins? I would be more worried about that than an actual virus.

Or just download Backtrack and install that OS on your laptop and within mins you will have all the tools you need to hack. Then google how to use backtrack and you will be surprised at how easy it is to hack things.

I hear ya...Reason I ask is we picked up that damn Security Shield spam spyware or whatever the heck it is...Sounds like it was planted by a virus so I was wondering where I might have picked it up since we normally use our iPhones

I do download music from a couple of sites using the laptop so those are my main suspects right now

That actually isn't a virus it redirects your browser's proxy settings to their site. Now if you don't change those settings and get rid of the malware you will eventually have to reload your system.

And all that comes down to the theme "if someone wants into your computer they can get it." The same as no matter how safe you think your home is, if someone wants in they will get in.

The best defense is how you use your smart device or computer. If I connected to your impostor free wifi hotspot I seriously doubt I'd care. I don't do banking via free and/or unprotected wifi and certainly don't keep anything on my device that is top secret. As for my emails - they are pretty boring and there is no infidelity or child porn addiction to expose so I don't worry about it too much other than to be smart when online. Couple that with my very frequent Time Machine backups and other than an annoyance I don't think being a victim of a hacking is foremost in my mind.

And all that comes down to the theme "if someone wants into your computer they can get it." The same as no matter how safe you think your home is, if someone wants in they will get in.

The best defense is how you use your smart device or computer. If I connected to your impostor free wifi hotspot I seriously doubt I'd care. I don't do banking via free and/or unprotected wifi and certainly don't keep anything on my device that is top secret. As for my emails - they are pretty boring and there is no infidelity or child porn addiction to expose so I don't worry about it too much other than to be smart when online. Couple that with my very frequent Time Machine backups and other than an annoyance I don't think being a victim of a hacking is foremost in my mind.


I agree with you 100% I was pointing out that most people just don't "think" when using their equipment. The old saying is true the only way to keep someone from getting in your system is unplug it and lock it in a safe a put a guard in front of it.

On my windows boxes I have all of my stuff saved on a server in my house and I have a ghost image of it so I can reload the entire system in 20 mins. Most of the time when I am surfing the we and reading emails I use a linux box mainly because it is faster.

Now I did give my 74 year old mother an iMac because I didn't want to have to come over and fix her pc all the time and her friends all have XP systems and I didn't want them messing her system up.

I do like choices!

That actually isn't a virus it redirects your browser's proxy settings to their site. Now if you don't change those settings and get rid of the malware you will eventually have to reload your system.

Had to follow a youtube video but I think I got it after renaming the program, rebooting and deleting it...Good to know it doesn't do anything harmful just tries to scare you into buying their $80 virus removal software

A good no-install spyware sweep and fix is available from McAfee that is real good at eliminating those fake security programs. Those seemingly innocuous programs can also wait a few days (or even weeks) and activate trojans like sality. They aren't always innocuous. The program to run is a very small portable from McAfee called "Stinger"...
http://us.mcafee.com/virusInfo/default.asp?id=stinger

Had to follow a youtube video but I think I got it after renaming the program, rebooting and deleting it...Good to know it doesn't do anything harmful just tries to scare you into buying their $80 virus removal software

The version my son got wouldn't let him do anything - we couldn't delete, couldn't rename, nothing. Only moderate success booting from safemode. Decided to save ourselves some headaches and reformatted. He did make himself some thumb drive that allows him to fix most virus's, bugs, etc. that he gets since he gets them frequently as he likes to download all kinds of music and games. His is a Windows laptop though. However, running the free AVAST antivirus software has helped him a lot.

The version my son got wouldn't let him do anything - we couldn't delete, couldn't rename, nothing. Only moderate success booting from safemode. Decided to save ourselves some headaches and reformatted. He did make himself some thumb drive that allows him to fix most virus's, bugs, etc. that he gets since he gets them frequently as he likes to download all kinds of music and games. His is a Windows laptop though. However, running the free AVAST antivirus software has helped him a lot.

That's just what I was talking about in the post right above yours. He probably had one of the sality trojans which shuts down the Windows Task Manager (ctrl-alt-del), the Security Center, major antivirus programs, etc. It can also go on a file renaming binge, ruin executables, and is one of the few that can jump partitions (infecting even files on an external drive) that renders imaging and instant restore programs moot. It's a mean polymorphic infector. Fortunately, almost all variants can be shot down with the use of Stinger (in my post above yours).