{"id":19429,"date":"2022-06-24T09:44:03","date_gmt":"2022-06-24T04:14:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hexnode.com\/blogs\/?p=19429"},"modified":"2022-11-17T15:59:10","modified_gmt":"2022-11-17T10:29:10","slug":"how-to-ensure-privacy-and-security-in-business-mac","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hexnode.com\/blogs\/how-to-ensure-privacy-and-security-in-business-mac\/","title":{"rendered":"How to ensure privacy and security in business Macs"},"content":{"rendered":"

Windows has long dominated the enterprise landscape. The systems were easily affordable and it provided business users with an arsenal of tools they needed to work efficiently individually and as a team. However, recent stats suggest otherwise. Various Apple devices, Macs in particular are quickly foraging their way into the workplace. According to a recent IDC report<\/a>, Apple shipped 7.2 million Macs during the first quarter of 2022, contributing to 8.1% of the market share.<\/p>\n

\"\u201cMac\"<\/a><\/center>
Mac shipment statistics<\/em><\/center> <\/p>\n

Thanks to the amount of time users spend online, the internet has now become a minefield of personally identifiable data. The need to conserve user privacy has been around for quite some time with the passing of the data protection act in 1998<\/a> and HIPAA in 1996<\/a>. This paved the way for the birth of several other compliance regulations and it was soon expected of OS vendors to start implementing features within their particular software to safeguard the privacy of users by enabling various settings to make the systems more secure and protected.<\/p>\n

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\n \"A\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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\n Featured resource \n <\/h5>\n

\n A Complete Guide to Mac Device Management \n <\/h4>\n

\n What are your pain points when it comes to managing Macs within your organization? How does UEM help in ensuring the privacy and security of users stay intact? Read this whitepaper to know how. \n <\/p>\n \n Download whitepaper \n \n \n \n \n <\/g>\n <\/svg>\n\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n

What you need to know about enhancing security and privacy in Mac<\/h2>\n

Apple has over the years improved its security and privacy features in Mac devices with each iterations of the macOS software<\/a>. Though the software has always carried the reputation of being impenetrable to various malware and ransomware threats, recent attacks where Macs were an easy target tell a different story. Some of the most notable Mac malware include Silver Sparrow<\/a>, XLoader<\/a>, XCSSET<\/a> and Log4Shell<\/a>. Mac continues to improve its in-built security features to identify and ward of these malware threats.<\/p>\n

Apple implements a three-tiered defense approach to prevent the launching of any malware and remediating the malware if it is detected within the system. The first layer aims at stopping the malware from launching. This is done by the App Store, Gatekeeper and Notarization. If a malware is somehow able to penetrate to the systems, it will be blocked immediately.<\/p>\n

The second layer blocks the malware from running on the systems. Tools like Gatekeeper<\/a>, Notarization<\/a> and XProtect<\/a> are used to identify and block the spotted malware. This layer stops the malware from impacting the systems even further. XProtect rectifies malware that has successfully managed to execute. It is a built-in antivirus feature that uses signature-based detection to remove the malware. Apple updates this regularly to quickly spot new infections. When a known malware is detected, the software will be blocked, and the user will be notified and provided with the option to delete the software.
\n \t\t

\r\n \t\t\t
Evolution of privacy and security in macOS<\/div>\r\n \t\t\t
\r\n \t\t\t\t
\r\n \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Software Version<\/td>\n\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Features Introduced<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger)<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/td>\n\n
    \n
  • Download Validation<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard)<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n\n
    \n
  • File <\/span>Quarantine<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Developers could digitally sign their code<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard)<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n\n
    \n
  • XProtect<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
OS X 10.7 (Lion)<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n\n
    \n
  • FileVault<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  • App Sandbox<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Removal of the \u201cRosetta\u201d feature\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
OS X 10.8 (Mountain Lion)<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n\n
    \n
  • Gatekeeper<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Added a new option within System Preference where users could only allow applications downloaded from Mac App Store and identified developers<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Location Services \u2013 allow secure apps to accurately track user\u2019s location<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Allow users to know apps requesting their location within the last 24 hours. <\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Disable Location Services on a per app basis<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
OS X 10.9 (Mavericks)<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n\n
    \n
  • iCloud Keychain<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Mandatory code signing for <\/span>kexts<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
OS X 10.10 (Yosemite)<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n\n
    \n
  • Introduced Mail Drop<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Introduced Swift Programming<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
OS X 10.11 (El Capitan)<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n\n
    \n
  • Introduction of System Integrity Protection<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • App Transport Security<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
OS X 10.12 (Sierra)<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n\n
    \n
  • Introduction of HTML 5<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Universal Clipboard \u2013 useful in ensuring data security<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Apple File System<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
OS X 10.13 (High Sierra)<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n\n
    \n
  • Intelligent Tracking Prevention in Safari web browser<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • User approved kernel extensions<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Firmware validation<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
OS X 10.14 (Mojave)<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n\n
    \n
  • Minimizes website\u2019s fingerprinting and tracking capabilities<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Introduced more features to secure passwords \u2013 create and autofill strong passwords, flag the use of same passwords across multiple websites<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Prevent Mac applications from using microphone and camera without user\u2019s permission<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
OS X 10.15 (Catalina)<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n\n
    \n
  • Sign In with Apple<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Activation Lock<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Banned the use of tracking technology in applications categorized under the Kids category<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Mac applications will require permission to access files located within the user\u2019s Documents or Desktops folder, iCloud Drive and external volume<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Users will be prompted when apps track keystrokes or take screenshots or record the screen<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Creation of a private, read-only volume to prevent malicious apps from altering any of the existing files<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
OS X 11 (Big Sur)<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n\n
    \n
  • Access the Privacy Report within Safari to get a look at the number of trackers blocked within the last one month<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Permits Safari to monitor passwords to minimize the occurrence of any data breaches<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Users can get a more detailed overview of apps collecting and processing their data<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Uses a cryptographically signed system volume to prevent any malicious tampering<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
OS X 12 (Monterey)<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n\n
    \n
  • Introduced recording indicator for apps that can access <\/span>microphones<\/span><\/li>\n
  • Custom domains are introduced in iCloud+ email<\/li>\n
  • Introduced Accounts Recovery Contacts<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • The Intelligent Tracking Prevention feature prevents hackers from using IP addresses to profile users<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Safari automatically upgrades connections to HTTPS<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • iCloud Passwords has a built-in authenticator to create codes for two factor authentication<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Introduction of Hide My Email to ensure data privacy by routing specific emails to Apple\u2019s proxy servers<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Introduction of Mail Privacy Protection to restrict senders from collecting data<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Safari comes with the capability to convert insecure HTTP web addresses to secure HTTPS<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
OS X 13 (Ventura) – Upcoming: Fall of 2022<\/span><\/span><\/td>\n\n