Toplikar: Freedom! New Mac laptop battles Kansas University's antivirus program / LJWorld.com

Business

By Dave Toplikar

August 25, 2005

"Dad! My new computer really sucks!"

Julie's voice over the phone sounded on edge. I tried to calm her down.

"No, it's not," I said. "It's one of the best computers on the market. What's wrong?"

Her explanation: All she gets is a blue screen on her new iBook G4 laptop. With classes starting the next day.

And thus began my experience with Kansas University's Sophos anti-virus program.

Protecting the masses

Like most major universities and businesses, KU requires computers that are accessing its network to be protected from what's known as "malware," such as computer viruses, spyware or worms.

"We have 17,000 computers attached to this network and nearly 32,000 users on the Lawrence and Edwards campuses," said Allison Rose Lopez, public relations and marketing manager for KU Information Services.

Lopez said her department's job was to keep all of those computers running and working.

Before accessing the system, you go through a series of steps that eventually installs the Sophos Anti-Virus program, which is used by many corporations and educational institutions.

"We also need users to be partners with us and smart at decision-making. That means they don't give their passwords out, they don't share them with friends," Lopez said. "They patch their systems when operating-system patches are released. They use anti-virus. It's a different kind of common sense."

A house divided

Like other students in KU's residence halls, my daughter had signed on to KU's network, downloading Sophos.

It had worked for a while.

But something happened. Her computer had locked up. And not even iTunes would launch.

Later that evening, Julie brought her computer to my house for me to check out.

I guessed something had happened when she installed Sophos, whose shield-like icon was positioned atop the screen.

I tried restarting it several times. But no programs would launch.

My wife, a certified Microsoft engineer, had wanted my daughters to get Windows computers. But she had graciously given in to my preference for Macs.

So when my wife walked in and saw me struggling, I wasn't surprised by her response: "This wouldn't have happened if she got a Dell."

I groaned, hunkered down and kept trying. Eventually, I raised the white flag and contacted the Apple help desk.

Hurricane insurance

The Apple technician agreed with me that Sophos was probably the problem.

Ironically, the program designed to keep the computer free and clear of bugs was itself paralyzing my daughter's computer.

"Why would you even need to install virus protection on a Mac?" the Apple technician said.

Allison Rose Lopez, public relations and marketing manager for KU Information Services.

I had heard that line of thinking before: Macs are invulnerable to viruses and spyware that infect Windows computers.

Also, the malevolent hackers who write such viruses and spyware don't bother with Macs because they're a small fraction of the entire computer market.

For that reason many Mac users think it's overkill - like buying hurricane insurance in Kansas - to put virus protection software on the new OS 10.4.

But KU's computer security people know better: The best practice is not to be complacent and to continually be on guard. They say it's just a matter of time before somebody creates malware for the Mac.

I told the Apple tech guy that Sophos was a required download to get on KU's computer network.

He tried to talk me through doing an uninstall, but nothing would work.

"You need to call KU's IT people and tell them to get that thing off of there," he said.

New skill set

The next morning, I talked to a very helpful woman at the KU Computer Center.

She explained that they had discovered there was a compatibility problem with Sophos and the new OS 10.4 Tiger operating system.

While the OS 10.2 and 10.3 versions work with Sophos, Sophos hadn't developed a program yet for 10.4, which was installed on my daughter's new computer.

But the technician was surprised.

She said KU's instructions for joining the network stated that you shouldn't download Sophos if you have the new 10.4 operating system.

I sighed. I realized Julie probably had no idea what kind of operating system she had.

"This is a new skill set that college students need to learn, especially if they had been depending on their parents to be their technical support," Lopez told me later.

Nano battle

The technician at the computer center invited me to bring Julie's computer down to KU's Computer Center to get some help.

When I arrived, another helpful technician sat down at the laptop's keyboard to investigate.

After a few minutes, he explained what had happened - Sophos was battling for control of the computer with "Spotlight," a new search system in OS 10.4. And neither side was giving ground.

"It's resulting in an endless loop," he said.

Karl Gehring/Journal-World Illustration

As I watched him work, my mind started wandering. I wondered what was going on deep inside the computer's hard drive.

I envisioned thousands of medieval nano-warriors in hand-to-hand combat, like a battle scene in the film "Braveheart."

Apple's Spotlight defenders were slashing with gleaming broadswords, trying to fend off the clutches of the powerful Sophos invaders that had entrenched the hard drive's sectors and data blocks.

Flaming arrows soared through the sky. Trebuches were hurling micro-mortar.

I could almost hear the war cries of the kilt-clad Macintosh troops, led by a Mel Gibson nano-Scotsman screaming "They may take our lives, but they'll never take our freeware!"

"OK!" the technician blurted out, startling me back from my daydream. He had made a breakthrough.

About 20 minutes later, he finally reached his objective - getting the Sophos uninstall program to launch.

A learning process

With Sophos uninstalled, I asked the KU tech guy if there was anything else I needed to do.

He said that Sophos eventually would update its software for the 10.4 operating system and that KU would make it available to students, staff and faculty. (Lopez later told me it's supposed to be out sometime in September.)

Until then, we could rely on Apple's own security software.

"Just run 'Software Update' and it will give you any new security updates," he said.

As I left, I realized it was time to start teaching Julie more about her own computer and how to defend it.

I was ready to give her a little tutorial when she came by to pick up her laptop.

"OK, Julie, even though you had a problem, you still have one of the coolest computers in the world," I began.

Ignoring my daughter's ringing cell phone, I continued: "But next time you see something like, 'Don't download if you have 10.4,' that means you."

Julie couldn't ignore her phone. She picked it up, listened, then turned to me.

"Dad, I'm sorry. Can we do this later? I've got to go." She picked up her laptop as she walked out, talking on the cell phone.

"Just remember," I called out the door, "you have 10-point-4."

"What?"

"10-point-4!"

I laughed. Despite all the trouble, I was still thankful I'd gotten her a Mac.

Discussion

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25 August 2005
at 9:18 a.m.

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bigdogks (Anonymous) says…

KU Tech people should know better. The Macintosh OS X is virtually immune to the viruses and malware that has plagued Windows (partly because it is a small enough market share not to be been attractive to virus writers, partly because it is intrinsically less susceptable). Experienced Mac users advise against using ANY anti-virus software or anti-spam software, because it just isn't a Mac problem. The point is: the tech specialists at KU, some of whom I KNOW to be experienced Mac users, should have known that, or—at very least—already have tested the compatibility of Sophos with OS X. We can't expect normal users to know these things. That's why we HAVE technical services. I do understand this student's frustration.
25 August 2005
at 10:23 a.m.

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kuhusker (Anonymous) says…

Putting anti-virus software on a Mac is like bringing a winter coat on a trip to the Sahara “just in case!”
25 August 2005
at 10:57 a.m.

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christie (Anonymous) says…

Our new office manager decided we were going to dump all Windows machines and she insisted everyone use MAC's. What a nightmare. 3 of the 6 machines had to be sent back and replaced. Nothing ran correctly, and now we have to buy a new Windows Machine so we can run our Accounting Software on it. I hate the macs. The stupid little mouse is giving me hand cramps.
25 August 2005
at 11:15 a.m.

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grubesteak (Anonymous) says…

Christie if you office manager is so dedicated to the Mac (good for her), and the little mouse is giving you hand cramps (understably so), just get a two-button mouse. Any two-button mouse that has a USB connector will work.

My wife hated the Mac at first when I insisted she switch when we got married. After she got past the learning curve, she now loves it.

Give it some time. If you're having problems, e-mail me through my profile and I'll see if I can help - for free.
25 August 2005
at 12:47 p.m.

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DGL (Anonymous) says…

BTW, what's up with that illustration by Karl Gehring? Do we really need a visual representation of an anti-virus program? Very high-school-journalism-like.
25 August 2005
at 12:57 p.m.

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rivers66 (Anonymous) says…

Is anybody trying to listen to the clips by the KU publicity maven? She's dead wrong, as the article and most of your posters know, but she sounds so sure of her facts! Makes you distrust anything she says, doesn't it?

Allison Rose Lopez, your credibility is slipping. Become more informed. The issue is Linux v. Microsoft. Linux, incorporated into the Mac operating system, is much more secure than Microsoft products. I know. My husband worked for Microsoft in Redmond, and is an avid Mac developer.
25 August 2005
at 1 p.m.

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davidryan (David Ryan) says…

FYI: OS X is based on BSD, not linux.

http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/…

25 August 2005
at 1 p.m.

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bunnyhoover (Anonymous) says…

If you want to know why KU chose Sophos, call and ask. I know someone there, and a great deal of research and testing went into the decision. Another AV application checks KU email, so they obviously are picking appropriate tools for different jobs.

I think a point of the story is that you shouldn't send your college student out in the world with a new, fast and cool computer without educating them about how to care for and protect it. Would you send them out with a new car and not tell them to change the oil regularly, and what the appropriate type of gas is to use, or remind them to lock their doors so nothing is stolen?

A computer is like any other big toy — proper maintenance is required if you want it to work correctly. Any IT rag can give you the basic steps, along with Dell's website, Microsoft's website, and numerous others out there. You know the drill if you worked at KU — Install anti-virus and keep it up to date, install update patches whether it's a PC or a MAC, use good passwords, harden your operating system. Educate your kids and give them the skills and tools they need to take care of their computers and not fall victim to any number of tech nasties out there, or a crashed computer.
25 August 2005
at 10:31 p.m.

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Bunny_Hotcakes (Anonymous) says…

I'm just glad I'm not Dave's daughter. I'd hate to have my dad making me sound like a complete dingbat in the paper. I, too, am baffled as to why he didn't sit down wtih her and show her the ins and outs of the machine.

Mac OS X makes it pretty easy to turn on services (FTP, SSH, etc) without too much digging. It's all in the Control Panel—take a look. Once that's done, if the user has a crappy password, (and I guarantee you 99.999% of them will) a Mac OS X box is just as easy to hack as any other box with a crappy password. Which is to say pretty damn easy. Computers, regardless of the OS, are only as secure as the people sitting in front of them. Using a Mac doesn't make you safer or special, although it probably makes your pocketbook a little lighter.
26 August 2005
at 7:02 a.m.

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grubesteak (Anonymous) says…

Bunny_Hotcakes, I think “sounding like a dingbat” could also come from calling System Preferences the Control Panel, which you just did.
26 August 2005
at 8:14 a.m.

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Bunny_Hotcakes (Anonymous) says…

D'oh. Take my geek license away. I've had my head buried in too many Windows systems this month.
26 August 2005
at 10:03 a.m.

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jln646v (Anonymous) says…

Im usually as guilty as Bunny_Hotcakes. I am still in the os 9 mentality of the way the opperating system worked.