trojan

Macs have long had a reputation as machines that rarely catch malicious bugs like trojans and spyware. Windows computers were always the sickly cousins, in need of having an antivirus doctor on hand at all times to ward against illness.

Mac's ironclad image may need to be revised. Russian antivirus company Dr. Web has come out with a report saying 600,000 Macs around the globe are infected with the Flashback Trojan. The report says more than half of those Macs are located in the United States.… Read more

Apple still appears to be fighting the Flashback malware that was recently found to have infected more than a half-million Mac computers.

A second Java update has been released for Mac users, according to Mac security blog Intego.

No details are available as to why this latest update was released. Intego speculates that perhaps there was a small glitch in the first update. This latest update also seems geared just for the Lion version of Mac OS X, while the initial patch was designed for both Snow Leopard and Lion.

Some confusion also exists over the name, Intego noted. The … Read more

While OS X was relatively void of malware for the first 10 years of use, recently malware scares have cropped up that have affected a significant number of Mac systems.

One of the first was the MacDefender fake antivirus scam, which had people issuing credit card information out of fear their systems were infected. This scam morphed quite rapidly as it tried to avoid detection and continue coercing people to offer personal information. Another scam was the DNSChanger malware that affected millions of PC systems worldwide, and which ultimately directed affected systems to malicious Web sites, and like the MacDefender … Read more

Apple's Mac platform has long been promoted as safer than the competition, but as Mac sales and market share grow, it's become a bigger target.

Nowhere is that clearer than with the Flashback Trojan, a gnarly piece of malware designed to steal personal information by masquerading as very mainstream browser plug-ins. Yesterday Russian antivirus company Dr. Web said that an estimated 600,000 Macs are now infected as a result of users unknowingly installing the software.

So here's a quick FAQ on the Flashback Trojan, including information on what it is, how to tell if you have … Read more

The Flashback Trojan horse is a fairly recent malware package developed for OS X that attempts to steal personal information by injecting code into Web browsers and other applications on an OS X system. When these programs are then launched, the malicious code attempts to contact remote servers and upload screenshots and other personal information to them.

This malware was initially found in September 2011 while being distributed as a fake Flash Player installer (hence its "Flashback" name). In in the past few months it has evolved to exploiting Java vulnerabilities to  target Mac systems.

While the … Read more

Recently new Trojan variants for OS X were found that take advantage of old and patched vulnerabilities to install and execute information-stealing code on affected systems. One of the newest ones uses Office documents as an installation vector and may be called OS X/Lamadai.A or OSX/Olyx depending on the malware scanner being used.

When this malware was found, security company AlienVault issued an initial analysis of the threat, describing it as a Command and Control (C&C) based Trojan that originates from China and is being used to target non-government organizations based in Tibet.

In light … Read more

Some malware groups have recently been found to be taking advantage of an old, patched vulnerability in Microsoft Office for OS X in an attempt to spread command-and-control malware to OS X systems.

The vulnerability used in the attack is outlined in a Microsoft security bulletin in June 2009, which applied to all versions of Office 2004 version 11.5.4 or earlier, Office 2008 version 12.1.8 or earlier, and OpenXML Converter 1.0.2 or earlier.

The vulnerability was patched soon after it was found, and currently all supported Office programs are well beyond these versions. However, … Read more

One recent malware program for OS X that has caused concern has been the Flashback Trojan, which in its latest variants has taken advantage of Java security holes to embed code in programs or user accounts that will launch the malware when Web browsers are used. Once run, the malware tries taking screenshots and otherwise collect information to upload to remote servers.

Apparently the Java exploit used in this malware is catching on, and other malware have been developing that uses the same route of attack. Recently Intego reported on a new Trojan horse called Tibet.A (in its first … Read more

Why are gay men worth more to advertisers on Facebook? We'll begin today's show with a story on PC Pro that clarifies how social networks sell your information as part of a package demographic that advertisers can use to target specific markets.

We'll also highlight the similarities between Android phones and condoms, notably the criteria they share for nomenclature that includes seven characteristics -- "distinctive," "short," "appropriate," "easy to spell and pronounce," "likable," "extendable," and "protectable."

Other stories of the day include a high school senior getting expelled for dropping several F-words in a Twitter post supposedly crafted on campus, HBO Go hitting Xbox Live tomorrow, another chapter in the "Ninja Turtles" saga, and The Weinstein Company refusing the MPAA's R Rating for the movie "Bully."… Read more