KRACK patches for OSX 10.7.5

[SoCalChevy]

Hi,
I tried to protect myself against the KRACK WPA2 vulnerability, but the only patches I could find were for the latest versions of Firefox and Safari. My computer does not support those. How can I protect myself without completely upgrading my operating system?

Thanks!

 

[honestone]

First of all, the KRACK virus has nothing to do with which browser you use. (By the way, which one are you using? I use Google Chrome about 98% of the time, and Opera the other 2%, and I am not having issues).

Secondly, the Mac OS needs to be "patched" by Apple to resolve this. I actually made a post about this KRACK virus last week here, and here is the link:

https://www.mac-help.com/threads/krack-virus.223909/

There are a couple of informative links there. Note that Apple has only (so far) patched one or two beta versions of "prior" OS versions. Heck, they still don't have a patch available for High Sierra (although that OS is still wrought with issues), and not even Sierra.

I have followed the advice in the two links there, and I am having no issues. That is about the best one can do now.

One thing, though, is that you are 6 operating systems behind, and as time goes on, less and less software will support OS 10.7.5. The following information will be useful:

1. What exact Mac model do you have?

2. Are you making backups to an external device? That is so, so critical! If you are (hopefully) making backups, what software are you using for that task?

3. Have you ever done any disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs, from a software perspective? You can actually do a lot of disk cleanup on your own, and there are some excellent programs available (both free and commercial) that can help you with those tasks.

4. How much free space is on your internal drive?

5. What third party (ie, non-Apple) apps are you using? And have you kept them updated?

 

[SoCalChevy]

My computer is a macbook pro from about 2012.
I occasionally back some things up to an external hard drive
I think I have done disc repairs in the past, though not recently. And it was through Disk Utility.
My main browser is Firefox.
I don't know how much of my memory is free.

However, I have no desire to update my OS. All I want to know is if there is something I can download to my computer as it is.
And if there isn't, I think that is not too thoughtful on the part of software companies because not everyone has the newest, latest thing. Some of us actually prefer to keep what we know.

 

[honestone]

Unfortunately, more and more software companies are getting away from supporting older versions of the Mac OS. And it is not going to improve.

Only "occasionally" backing up is asking for trouble. So many folks come here with issues, and they lack backups. That does not lend itself to a viable solution to the issue.

Same goes with little to no disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs. I always equate maintaining Macs to maintaining automobiles. To keep a car running in as good as possible, it is necessary to have regular maintenance performed on the car (some things one can do on their own). Same with Macs. I also equate Apple and Toyota as excellent companies. Both of them make reliable, just about trouble-free products. But, proper maintenance is still a neccessity.

As the links I pointed to indicated, there is no simple "download one thing" for "fixing" the KRACK virus. It is best to just follow what the links indicate. That's especially true to the "https" business for sites.

 

[SoCalChevy]

Yeah, I'll probably have to get a new computer in a few years anyway.But for now it works perfectly well for what I do. And I really don't like upgrading to the latest of anything unless I see a clear benefit to doing so.
Anyway, thanks for the links and sorry for complaining about potentially having to upgrade! I did download a compatible version of HTTPS Everywhere for Firefox, and generally use my laptop at home anyway. And I have realized that I should be better about backing things up!

 

[honestone]

You don't necessarily need a new computer. As it is, it is not that old. But it would be wise to "upgrade" to a newer version of the Mac OS. It does not necessarily need to be High Sierra (when it gets stabilized). In fact, a nice step up would be for you to upgrade to OS 10.10.x, Yosemite. It is definitely stable, and still supported more than OS 10.7.

I assume that when you read the links I supplied, you should have seen what I originally stated, that Apple needs to "patch"/fix the Mac OS. But, until that happens, there were plenty of excellent suggestions to follow.

Yes, you need to make a concerted effort to make backups on a frequent basis. And the same goes for disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs.

 

[SoCalChevy]

Yes, thanks!

 

[honestone]

You're welcome. Before I forget, if you do upgrade to a newer OS, you need to make sure about the third party apps you use, and compatibility with the newer OS. This site can help you with that:

https://roaringapps.com/apps