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# The Platform Wars
- URL: https://www.philsimon.com/the-platform-wars/
- Published: 2012-05-10T10:12:12.000Z
- Updated: 2025-07-17T19:31:13.000Z
- Description: They aren't just about the Gang of Four.
- Author: Phil Simon
- Tags: Platforms, Strategy, Apple, Frenemies, Google, The Age of the Platform

Turns out that the recent Mac malware attack didn't just affect Mac users. (*Is anything isolated these days?*) Some hackers were effectively [robbing Google of advertising dollars by redirecting clicks from infected Mac OS X machines and stealing the ad revenue](https://www.zdnet.com/blog/security/mac-botnet-generated-10000-a-day-for-flashback-gang/11727?tag=mantle%5Fskin%3Bcontent&ref=philsimon.com). 

## Simon Says

Google will survive but the premise here is interesting. Less-than-scrupulous folks can exploit the space between platforms. Apple and Google may be frenemies (depending on the day of the week), but hacker-types are finding ways to game the system.

You can try to prevent this, but don't think for a minute that you can eliminate these types of issues. The fleas come with the dog.