Hi Common Tator,
Looks like we are in the same field of work.
I wrote a program in 1994, before the internet was widely in use, to allow two customers of mine, who were both interested in the same piece of IC layout data, to open two viewers at different sites and share graphics data across the net. One could markup data, the other could view the markups realtime. This was long before the common data sharing programs and remote X windows tools we have now on Unix / Linux. That tool eventually sold 6,000 + copies into the different IC layout design and manufacturing plants around the world. As the net became faster, that tool came into its own. I added encryption and lots of bells and whistles. It could be configured to work through firewalls, access common file systems if any (intranet style), and work across different hardware architectures. It was in use on files of 600+ GB of data at the end, far too large for normal data transport tools. It was ported to AIX, HP-UX, Solaris, and Red Hat Linux. IC design and layout data will always remain on the hairy edge of what hardware and software can support, as it is data at the hairy edge of design complexity for hardware.
My question was really a much more simple one than a question of internet access code for Mac vs. Windows, rather, it was a curiosity of how one would get malicious code onto a Mac. Since retiring, I am getting current on Mac programming, especially Cocoa, since I have been doing Motif / X windows stuff since it was new from MIT. In watching the discussions on Free Republic, I have generally had good confidence in the Mac being resistant to malicious code, but this seems to infer a Mac vulnerability. If one were to get onto a computer, and know a port and the services to reach another computer, one could easily establish a connection and reach system services, trojan horse style. I suppose the article takes it as a given that such a connection exists. Then, it is reasonable to assume the rest of the zombie behavior could be established.
Thanks for the insight into the Windows internet access code. I am always impressed how the early Unix developers had considerable foresight.
No, It is just more anti-Mac FUD. They want you to infer a Mac vulnerability from their off hand implication! They provide no evidence for Mac involvement beyond their say-so. There are no credible reports of any malware invading Macs to date. That does not mean that one might not appear... or that someone is using their Mac to do evil deeds.