In contrast to that, Unices and Windows NT have far superior protection systems. This prevents most virus infections, but not all. Such systems practically cease when the user runs everything as root or administrator. Another misconception is that Linux is especially protected from infections because programs come as source code, not as binaries. The doors of Unix systems are opened wide enough to give viruses access to the system.
Third misconception is that Unices are safe because the platforms are so different from each other.
But today this is not a big deal. Remember that this was one of techniques used by Morris' Internet Worm. And having standardized ELF binaries and libraries will not make the job tougher for virus writers. The whole story began with code that did not spread, but ate memory. It was natural, at least on Unices, to start using resources that are common between platforms.