Ever debate security on Windows versus macOS with a devout Apple fan? I have. And a recent blog post just made arguing with them more annoying.
Back in mid-August, security software maker Surfshark released its look at its threat detection numbers from January through July 2026. At first glance, the numbers sound grim for PCs: Out of 391,000 malware detections, 92 percent were on Windows machines, which represented two-thirds of the active user base. Only eight percent were on macOS, the remaining third of active users.
But Windows isn’t quite a nightmare hellscape. (At least, not for this reason.)
What the numbers say
A closer look at the data shows malware hit PCs harder, yes. That’s not a revelation—we’ve known bad actors spend much more time developing malware for Windows. PCs dominate the market. A recent estimate from StatCounter put Windows desktop market share at 71 percent. In real numbers, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella revealed earlier this year that monthly active Windows PCs had surpassed 1.6 billion devices.
Meanwhile, Apple’s desktop market share in that same StatCounter estimate shows as a little over seven percent for macOS alone. (It rises to almost 20 percent when macOS and OS X are combined.) Windows users are just a bigger target. No one should be surprised the amount of Windows trojans and riskware all but pop off Surfshark’s chart, with viruses, suspected viruses, and other hazards trailing not far behind.
Surfshark Antivirus’s threat detection stats for January through July 2026.
What the numbers don’t say
In its write-up, Surfshark doesn’t give much detail beyond its raw data, percentages calculated, rankings of threats per operating system, and brief background on the threat types. As a result, we know little about their subscriber base. Someone who pays for antivirus software for Windows could engage in riskier online activity than their macOS counterpart, for example.
Surprisingly, Surfshark also doesn’t make any direct references to the differences between its 2025 and 2026 data. You could argue macOS is facing increasing risk, as in 2025, Windows users faced seven times more malware. As macOS’s market share rises, so do the amount and type of threats. (We just saw a ClickFix attack on macOS, where users were tricked into opening the Terminal app and running commands that installed infostealer malware.)
You can actually see a hint of this in Surfshark’s data. Proportionately, Surfshark macOS users often fell prey to a dangerous kind of attack: phishing. Phishing may sound harmless, but these days, you can lose significant cash (or accounts) to such campaigns. And sending out sophisticated, personalized phishing messages doesn’t require the same effort and investment as developing malware specific to macOS.
The real deal for Windows vs macOS risk
PCWorld
I think of using Windows vs macOS as a similar to living in a big city versus a small one. Windows is an urban environment, where the number of problems scale with the larger and more concentrated population. But with the right local government and some street smarts, you can comfortably reside there without much headache.
For your PC, that translates to keeping Windows up-to-date, having a solid antivirus program running at all times, paying attention to what apps and browser extensions you install, removing any unused programs or browser add-ons you’re no longer using, and sticking to well-known, legitimate websites as you browse.
For its part, macOS has the regulated, quieter vibe of a suburb, where the experience is carefully manicured. Crime isn’t talked about much, but leave your door unlocked and you may still get robbed. Likewise, security through obscurity is not a foolproof strategy. macOS has skated by so far on its lower popularity, but that continues to change each year. And for attacks where operating system doesn’t matter, Apple users don’t appear to be much safer.
In other words, risk is the sum of your circumstances. Being a Windows user isn’t the sole part of the calculus. Maintain good cybersecurity habits, and your personal exposure goes down by a lot.
