Reality check time for Apple

“So you wanna join the big boys, Apple? Well, you better know what you’re getting yourself into.”

I’d imagine that’s, more or less, what security researchers were thinking when they got their hands on the Safari for Windows beta earlier this week. They promptly discovered a number of vulnerabilities that were pretty darn severe for only putting in a few hours of research time. Apple pushed out an update a few days later.

Apple loves to preach security (think those PC vs. Mac commercials) but the fact is, it’s never faced the scrutiny and interest it faces when it walks into the world of Windows.

For it to succeed, Apple needs to solve its own identity crisis. If Mac OS X and Safari want to become enterprise grade platforms and browsers, Apple better be ready for the vulnerabilities to start rolling in. Because you better believe there’s nothing more hackers embrace than a fresh challenge.

That means Apple needs to be willing to help folks manage and patch their systems. Dare I say they take a lesson from Microsoft? That’s right, the company everybody loves to hate might be able to help their supposed “hipper” neighbors to the south.

security