Linux has a whole different model/theory of security than Windows does.
Windows started out life as a single-user OS, running on single-user machines. This was fine as long as the machine was not connected to a network. Linux, however, started out as a multi-user OS for multi-user machines. The whole theory of separating processes and users into their own space on the machine is built-in and a core part of the OS. This means that any process started on a Linux computer is confined to the space of the user account it is running as.
Windows doesn't have that separation as an innate part of the OS. It was built in afterwards and is still not as good as *nix-based systems.
...hackers don't waste their time w/ Linux because of the small population of users?
Linux runs on more systems, with higher amounts of responsibility, than Windows does. Getting into a Linux-based system would be a huge win for crackers.
/lost of n00b on this thread.
you can still pick up malware with Linux , it will not affect you , but you can pass the malware to a windows user LOL
Without getting to technical the UNIX operating system is more inherently stable and less susceptible to attack because every application runs in its own memory space which limits the damage that can be done to the OS. Having said that if you can get the root password the system is wide open. Getting the root password would require human intelligence/bribery.
Another overlooked source of UNIX success is that UNIX system programming requires a hight caliber of developer/admin than is normally required for windows due to UNIX's sophistication.
What is Active X....?