Surprisingly, some of the vulnerabilities found within Macs were reported by Microsoft such as Shrootless<\/a> and powerdir<\/a>. Apple doesn\u2019t usually disclose any issues they face to the public until they have patched it. Users can find a list of these in their release notes<\/a>.<\/p>\n Similarly, 2021 was rough on Windows<\/a> with the number of critical vulnerabilities being reported across the platform<\/a>. Microsoft\u2019s Security Response Center sets out a complete list of vulnerabilities<\/a>, together with release notes and the date it was last updated. In spite of this, Windows continues to be the preferred OS among users holding 32% of the marketshare worldwide<\/a>.<\/p>\n Security, in addition to affordability and productivity, is an important factor most enterprises take seriously. It\u2019s quite difficult to point out which platform is more secure, let’s take a look at some of the major features provided by each OS and try to understand how secure they really are.<\/p>\n Mac devices with Apple\u2019s T2 Security Chip comes with a security feature known as Startup Security Utility to ensure devices starts up with the right startup disk and operating system. It also has a Secure Boot which prevents unauthorized operating systems from running on the user\u2019s computer and secures the system from malware.<\/p>\n Other security features include:<\/p>\n \t\t \r\n \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n Firmware password protection<\/strong> \u2013 this prevents users from starting from a disk other than the selected startup disk. The firmware password can be set from the Startup Security Utility.<\/p>\n Configure Secure Boot Settings<\/strong> \u2013 this ensures the Mac starts up only from a trusted operating system. The various configurations include full security, medium security and no security.<\/p>\n Set allowed boot media<\/strong> \u2013 allows users to start their Mac from an external or removable media. For security reasons, Apple always recommends disallowing it, but permission can be granted by changing the settings within the Startup Security Utility.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t<\/p>\r\n \t\t\t \t\t\t\r\n \t\t<\/div>\r\n \t\t\n Some of the sources of Microsoft\u2019s protection for pre-boot, boot and post boot can be found in open source initiatives. These initiatives are placed under Secure Boot, a security standard provided by Microsoft to ensure the device starts booting up only with a software which has been authorized and trusted by the OEM. The systems are required to have the latest Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) and Trusted Platform Module (TPM) installed within the motherboard.<\/p>\n The boot process requires a cryptographic approval, and no new action can be initiated unless it has been verified. If anything tries to modify the booting process, alerts will be sent to one of the two chips, where an action to either stop the boot process will be initiated or a warning would be sent to the user.<\/p>\n The TPM chip consists of cryptographic features. BIOS chips have now replaced UEFI. These chips are integral in ensuring the protection of both the operating system and applications during and after the reboot.<\/p>\n macOS comes with in-built security services to prevent malware from running on the system. This includes Gatekeeper<\/a>, Notarisation<\/a> and XProtect.<\/p>\n Notarisation is a malware scanning service where developers who want to publish their applications outside of the AppStore are required to submit their applications, which would then be scanned for malware. If no malware is found, Apple will issue a notarisation ticket. Developers can attach this to their app so that the Gatekeeper can verify it and launch the application.<\/p>\n If a notarised app is found to be malicious later, Apple would issue a revocation ticket. macOS constantly checks for revocation tickets in order to update the Gatekeeper and prevent the launch of corrupted files.<\/p>\n XProtect is an in-built anti-virus technology found within macOS. It keeps a check on malware infections by the means of a signature based detection. These signatures are updated automatically to ensure the Mac stays protected from newer malware infections.<\/p>\n Windows has its own real time anti-virus tool known as Windows Defender<\/a>. It runs in the background and keeps a constant check on the system from malware infection and other malicious programs.<\/p>\n It was first released by Microsoft as Microsoft Security Essentials in Windows XP, Vista and 7. With the release of Windows 8, the software underwent a couple of revamps and renamed to Windows Defender.<\/p>\n Windows Security is a real time protection feature found in Windows 10 and 11. It scans the device for various security threats, malware and virus. Some of the features provided by Windows Security include virus and threat protection, account protection, firewall and network protection and device security.<\/p>\n macOS malware analysis: How can you stay safe online?<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\nmacOS vs Windows: a detailed look at its security<\/h2>\n
Bootup protection<\/h3>\n
macOS<\/h4>\n
Windows<\/h4>\n
Malware protection<\/h2>\n
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macOS<\/h3>\n
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