Please Protect Your Macs

I know, I know, this can be a controversial topic, but hey, it’s an election year.

Apple fans aside, it is important to objectively look at the security of all devices on your network and with access to your ministry data. Whether BYOD or ministry issued, device security matters. The myth that Macs don’t need protected continues to live and the bad guys know it.

Data from 2023 indicates that Apple has an 8.6% share of the worldwide computer market, leaving Microsoft Windows with the majority of the rest. The myth that Macs don’t need protection is often hidden in the 8.6% market share of PCs.  If you’re a bad guy, do you attack 8.6% of the computers or 91.4% of them?  Market share does not equate to operating system security.

MBS recommends that all computers have security software. While Apple and Microsoft include built-in antivirus and malware protection, they often fall short of the enterprise security features most ministries require. I grant you; they are better than nothing, but do you want protection that is robust and strong, or simply better than nothing?

SentinelOne is the security suite that MBS recommends. Since MBS exclusively serves churches and ministries, we can provide SentinelOne for less than $3 per device per month. To stay agnostic, so you don’t think we only recommend products or services that benefit us financially, we don’t sell licenses directly, but through an authorized provider where we’ve negotiated ministry discounts.

MBS can help you set up your SentinelOne console, where you can remotely manage all machines across all platforms, from one place in the cloud – no on-premises servers required. Since you are buying the licenses directly, you don’t have to be an MBS client as your ministry owns the licenses, not MBS or any other third part provider.  Our provider also invoices you monthly, so you only pay for active clients, saving money over multiyear contract purchases.

SentinelOne in a 2023 article said, “Apple’s approach to security is, like many other things it does, different to other OS vendors. That’s neither a good thing nor a bad thing in itself; what matters is that admins are aware of how their OS is dealing with security events. A nice, quiet system doesn’t necessarily mean a safe and secure system.”  While this article is technical in nature, they are spot on. This is a great read for Mac admins. https://www.sentinelone.com/blog/mac-admins-why-apples-silent-approach-to-endpoint-security-should-be-a-wake-up-call/

MBS has deployed SentinelOne on all kinds of production machines, ProPresenter machines, about every type of machine we support and have seen no issues. Apple fans need not worry. Regardless of platform, SentinelOne is lightweight as it uses the latest in AI technology to evaluate threats as opposed to comparing them with databases of heuristics and definitions.

While MBS makes recommendations, we do not force our clients to use our recommendations. We respect who we work for. As such, we support many different security platforms. This allows us a unique vantage point when threats arise. As of this writing, none of the threats that we’ve seen get through other security software have made it through SentinelOne.

We encourage those managing Macs to protect them. Admitting they need protection is often the most significant hurdle. If you have a centrally managed product that is under support, great. If not, we’d be happy to help you consider SentinelOne.