One of the key benefits of owning a Mac has always been the relative immunity from viruses but that benefit is now in doubt following a reported jump in Mac malware infections. Apple discussion forums have seen a marked rise in posts about malware threats while an AppleCare support representative has reported an explosion in malware-related support calls. One security expert has gone as far as saying that Apple devices were now easier to infect than Windows machines. A new "scareware" program called Mac Defender - and various other names including Mac Protector - infects users via a web pop-up or bogus Google Images result that convinces victims their machines are infected by a virus and that they must install anti-virus software to fix it. In many browsers the pop up will download the malicious fake anti-virus program on to the users' machine automatically.