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Why are Banks known for getting robbed more often than Bakeries? That's where the money is. The reason you've been hearing about Mac popularity with regards to

by WayneDB 15y ago

Why are Banks known for getting robbed more often than Bakeries? That's where the money is. The reason you've been hearing about Mac popularity with regards to viruses is because it's true, despite the fact that you'd like to think otherwise. The fact is that Mac market share is still only around ~15% in the US and much less than that worldwide. That is about triple the market share that they had ten years ago. Also - Ever heard of Pwn2Own? The Mac has fallen first every year.

Samuel_Michon 15y ago
"Why are Banks known for getting robbed more often than Bakeries?" Because of Hollywood movies? It isn't actually true. Of all robberies in the US, only 2.1% targets a bank. Shops (including bakeries) are targeted far more often, 14.3% of the time. Gas stations are robbed more often than banks, and convenience stores are even 2.5 times more likely to get robbed. [1] The number of bank robberies is on the rise, but that's not because "that's where the money is". It's because the number of bank branches has grown rapidly, banks have standardized floor plans, and banks have procedures to deal with robbers (= just give them the money). [2] To further break down some bank robbery myths: nearly 80 percent of bank robberies are committed by one person. 70 percent of bank robbers are unarmed offenders who do not use or even threaten violence. About 60 percent of bank robbers do not bother with disguises; only 7 percent of robbers in Florida did. And finally, more than 80 percent of arrested bank robbers have no prior convictions for bank crime. [1] http://www2.fbi.gov/ucr/05cius/offenses/violent_crime/robbery.html http://www2.fbi.gov/ucr/05cius/offenses/violent_crime/robber... [2] http://www.popcenter.org/problems/robbery_banks/2 http://www.popcenter.org/problems/robbery_banks/2
- WayneDB 15y ago
  It may not be true anymore, but that doesn't mean that Hollywood made everything up about that! Ever heard of Jesse James? The point is...thieves go where the money is. Okay, so fine you don't like my analogy. Let's fix it for you then: If you found a large oasis in the middle of a desert, would you pass it by in order to find a smaller one?
  - Samuel_Michon 15y ago
    "thieves go where the money is." I'm sure robbers do risk assessment. If a bakery has half the cash a bank has but no security and a better escape route, they will much rather rob a bakery. "If you found a large oasis in the middle of a desert, would you pass it by in order to find a smaller one?" Alright, let's use that analogy. Which is the large oasis, Mac or Windows? Windows has a larger installed base. However, most Windows computers have virus protection and Microsoft puts a lot of effort into improving security. Mac OS X has a smaller installed base, but practically no one bothers with virus protection and security doesn't seem to be Apple's number one priority. That's why I think Mac OS X is a lot more interesting to cyber criminals, it's an enormous oasis. And yet, there haven't been any attacks of scale -- if there had been, it would be front page news. Perhaps OS X is safer than you want to admit?
    - WayneDB 15y ago
      No, it's not safer than I'd like to admit just because you don't agree with my analogy. I am relying on empirical evidence, thank you very much. Are you one of those people who thinks that the Mac has fallen first at Pwn2Own because it's a "nicer" computer that all the hackers want? Because that's not the case at all. It's been shown a number of times that OS X can be rooted more easily than Windows. So, no I don't think it's "safer" because of anything technical either. Even if it were though, that wouldn't matter. Windows is safe, yet it can be hacked much like any OS. The only remaining possibility must be true: Hackers don't pay little attention to OS X because too few targets are using them to make it worth the effort. Windows is the larger oasis (quite obviously to the non-obstinate reader). This is because even with virus protection, you can't protect users from themselves and more users means more chances to try. If a malprogrammer can get you to run a binary, you're done. If OS X were the more popular OS and it were being run by almost every business in the world that utilize computers, then I have zero doubt that it would have the same problem as Windows in that regard. I don't think that it will ever be a problem though for Apple since I doubt OS X could ever reach the same market penetration within the highly hacker-targeted business and enterprise market. So, people can go on believing what they want I guess.

by WayneDB 15y ago

Samuel_Michon 15y ago

"Why are Banks known for getting robbed more often than Bakeries?" Because of Hollywood movies? It isn't actually true. Of all robberies in the US, only 2.1% targets a bank. Shops (including bakeries) are targeted far more often, 14.3% of the time. Gas stations are robbed more often than banks, and convenience stores are even 2.5 times more likely to get robbed. [1] The number of bank robberies is on the rise, but that's not because "that's where the money is". It's because the number of bank branches has grown rapidly, banks have standardized floor plans, and banks have procedures to deal with robbers (= just give them the money). [2] To further break down some bank robbery myths: nearly 80 percent of bank robberies are committed by one person. 70 percent of bank robbers are unarmed offenders who do not use or even threaten violence. About 60 percent of bank robbers do not bother with disguises; only 7 percent of robbers in Florida did. And finally, more than 80 percent of arrested bank robbers have no prior convictions for bank crime. [1] http://www2.fbi.gov/ucr/05cius/offenses/violent_crime/robbery.html http://www2.fbi.gov/ucr/05cius/offenses/violent_crime/robber... [2] http://www.popcenter.org/problems/robbery_banks/2 http://www.popcenter.org/problems/robbery_banks/2

WayneDB 15y ago
It may not be true anymore, but that doesn't mean that Hollywood made everything up about that! Ever heard of Jesse James? The point is...thieves go where the money is. Okay, so fine you don't like my analogy. Let's fix it for you then: If you found a large oasis in the middle of a desert, would you pass it by in order to find a smaller one?
- Samuel_Michon 15y ago
  "thieves go where the money is." I'm sure robbers do risk assessment. If a bakery has half the cash a bank has but no security and a better escape route, they will much rather rob a bakery. "If you found a large oasis in the middle of a desert, would you pass it by in order to find a smaller one?" Alright, let's use that analogy. Which is the large oasis, Mac or Windows? Windows has a larger installed base. However, most Windows computers have virus protection and Microsoft puts a lot of effort into improving security. Mac OS X has a smaller installed base, but practically no one bothers with virus protection and security doesn't seem to be Apple's number one priority. That's why I think Mac OS X is a lot more interesting to cyber criminals, it's an enormous oasis. And yet, there haven't been any attacks of scale -- if there had been, it would be front page news. Perhaps OS X is safer than you want to admit?
  - WayneDB 15y ago
    No, it's not safer than I'd like to admit just because you don't agree with my analogy. I am relying on empirical evidence, thank you very much. Are you one of those people who thinks that the Mac has fallen first at Pwn2Own because it's a "nicer" computer that all the hackers want? Because that's not the case at all. It's been shown a number of times that OS X can be rooted more easily than Windows. So, no I don't think it's "safer" because of anything technical either. Even if it were though, that wouldn't matter. Windows is safe, yet it can be hacked much like any OS. The only remaining possibility must be true: Hackers don't pay little attention to OS X because too few targets are using them to make it worth the effort. Windows is the larger oasis (quite obviously to the non-obstinate reader). This is because even with virus protection, you can't protect users from themselves and more users means more chances to try. If a malprogrammer can get you to run a binary, you're done. If OS X were the more popular OS and it were being run by almost every business in the world that utilize computers, then I have zero doubt that it would have the same problem as Windows in that regard. I don't think that it will ever be a problem though for Apple since I doubt OS X could ever reach the same market penetration within the highly hacker-targeted business and enterprise market. So, people can go on believing what they want I guess.