Am I in Danger of Getting a Virus or Spyware If I Do This??

[MacNewbie]

are macs susceptible to any kind of virus or spyware if i were to bring in the element of using a program like Parallels (recreates windows environment to run windows oriented files like .exes) or a Windows VPS?

which would be the 100% safest option in protecting myself if i were to run a custom .EXE file from my MAC....

running it thru a windows vps?
or running it thru a virtual pc program like Parallels?

would i still need to install any kind of spyware, virus software if i were to run it in parallels?

 

[dtravis7]

Windows itself can get all the virus's it does on a PC. So install Antivirus on the Windows side. IT will in no way affect OSX.

 

[vansmith]

Anything that happens in a virtual machine stays in a virtual machine unless, of course, the malware spreads over a network connection. In that case, it would be no different than any other machine on the network. If a piece of malware does not spread, you can take comfort in knowing that virtual machines are wholly separate from the host operating system (OS X). In other words, if your Windows VM was infected, it wouldn't affect OS X (again, see the note above for exceptions). However, most malware doesn't affect OS X anyway since it is commonly designed as software targeted at Windows.

 

[MacNewbie]

Anything that happens in a virtual machine stays in a virtual machine unless, of course, the malware spreads over a network connection. In that case, it would be no different than any other machine on the network. If a piece of malware does not spread, you can take comfort in knowing that virtual machines are wholly separate from the host operating system (OS X). In other words, if your Windows VM was infected, it wouldn't affect OS X (again, see the note above for exceptions). However, most malware doesn't affect OS X anyway since it is commonly designed as software targeted at Windows.

thanks.

how do i prevent this "the malware spreads over a network connection. " from happening?

as it stands it looks like i have 3 modes of protection

-anti virus/spyware software
-little snitch
-sandboxie

do i need to use all 3 of these? or..? im a bit confused on when and how i would use these 3 options

regarding little snitch...
i was reading on this forum on how to use little snitch with parallels:
[INFO] Parallels Desktop - How to block it from calling home [ Codez4Mac ]
but i havent a clue what they are talking about - replacing host files.... this = that? i mean what do i even do with that info. Is it too late to use little snitch if i already have parallels up and running? for some reason it seems like these instructions are for people who have not yet installed parallels

 

[vansmith]

Any malware that spreads/replicates can still move across the network. Perhaps it's best not to get bogged down in the details - install a good AV program in Windows and be a sensible internet user. Don't browse shady sites and don't open content that you don't recognize.

 

[hugtheslug]

Erm, that link given by the OP is to block a pirated version of Parallels from checking it's validity, maybe not appropriate in this case?

Cheers

Hugh

 

[harryb2448]

When in Windows download Microsoft Security Essentials. It is freeware and a great program. There are no Mac OS X viruses and most senIor users do not run antivirus software on the Mac side. If this worries you download ClamXAV which is also freeware.

One important thing go into Safari Preferences and ensure 'Open "safe" files after downloading' is UNCHECKED.

 

[cwa107]

are macs susceptible to any kind of virus or spyware if i were to bring in the element of using a program like Parallels (recreates windows environment to run windows oriented files like .exes) or a Windows VPS?

Well, let's clear up one thing - Macs are not impervious to Malware (which is actually a category of software, that comprises viruses, spyware, trojans, etc). A lot of people confuse the term "virus" with "malware". While it's true that there are no self-replicating viruses for the Mac (yet), there are a few trojans and adware that can be just as much of a pain in the rear.

Windows is still Windows, even when it's running on a Mac. So, you'll definitely want some kind of anti-virus installed on Windows. For most people, Microsoft's own Security Essentials works well.

which would be the 100% safest option in protecting myself if i were to run a custom .EXE file from my MAC....

There is no 100% safest way to do anything on a computer that involves third party software. There are general "common sense" guidelines, which have been covered elsewhere in this thread, but few things in life are 100%

running it thru a windows vps?
or running it thru a virtual pc program like Parallels?

I don't know what you mean by "vps". Parallels, VMWare Fusion, Virtualbox, etc simply allow you to run a "guest" OS inside of a host. If you're really worried about some kind of malware writing to your Mac's partition, then you can disable the sharing of host folders, but honestly, the chances of a Windows malady actually doing something destructive in that fashion are slim to none.

Boot Camp may afford you a little more protection since Windows can't write to the Mac's partition without the help of 3rd party software.

would i still need to install any kind of spyware, virus software if i were to run it in parallels?

Any way you run Windows, you'll need an anti-virus product of some sort. There's just far too many Windows-specific malware in the wild.