there is nothing inherent in either modern platform (Windows 8 vs Mavericks) platform that makes them significantly more secure or insecure. I have owned dozens of Windows computers and never had a problem with viruses and malware. At the same time I have a Macbook Air and I don't have issues with it either. In the end it comes down to hardware and OS preference on how they do things. I actually really like Mac hardware but I have a really hard time with how OS X does window and multi-monitor management. For that reason alone I stick with Windows. If you are comparing XP or Vista to the modern OS X it is a completely pointless comparison.