Beware fake Snow Leopard sites
People eager to get a copy of the latest version of the Mac operating system, Snow Leopard, should be wary of sites offering free copies because they are likely to get some nasty malware instead, according to antivirus company Trend Micro.
Trend Micro said in a blog posting on Wednesday that it had discovered several fake Snow Leopard download sites that serve up a DNS (domain name system) changer Trojan dubbed OSX_JAHLAV.K instead.
The Trojan alters the DNS configuration and includes two additional IP addresses in its DSN server, the blog states. Users can then be redirected to phishing sites, some of which are reportedly hosting rogue antivirus software called FAKEAV, Trend Micro said.
Snow Leopard is due to be released to the public on Friday. (See CNET review.) Mac users should get Snow Leopard directly from Apple, Trend Micro said.
Elinor Mills covers Internet security and privacy. She joined CNET News in 2005 after working as a foreign correspondent for Reuters in Portugal and writing for The Industry Standard, the IDG News Service, and the Associated Press. E-mail Elinor. 
Double epic win.
So you are saying the malware is worth the cost? Not following your logic...
But you're still getting a good deal when upgrading from Tiger. Apple isn't offering $30 to Leopard customers because they want to compete with Windows 7. They're selling it for $30 because no one with Leopard will pay $130 for Snow Leopard when it has very few new, visible features. When upgrading from Tiger, you're getting Snow Leopard, including what was in Leopard, and iWork '09 and iLife '09. So anyone who downloads that is still cheap and deserves the malware.
Don't worry you don't have to pay $160. Just use the $30 one, just go in disk utility and erase the disk and then install. The New York Times person said you can do this easily.
$29? You can download it via bittorrent for free and without viruses or malware. Or you can always burn a copy you borrowed from Steve. Or you can just use Windows 7. It seems that the point of this article of pointless. Everyone knows that you can't just upgrade to the latest MAC OS without incurring any costs. Some choose monetary cost over the costs it takes to redo you computer after it has been infected by various rogue software. If Cnet wants us to avoid these phoney sites, then why doesn't it host a copy of the file on their servers? Seems to me if you are going to warn your audience about something bad it's your responsbility to provide an alternative way to procure the software."
@lumpoco--How about actually paying for it instead of going the torrent route? Easy as that.
Now for all the Mac fanboys claiming their Macs are immune to malware.
FFS, by this standard Windows must be completely vulnerable.
I would say that Macs are far less prone to be bothered by viruses - and PCs would be too if their operators would only learn to watch out for scams like this...
I think it's just desserts that crooks get scammed.
It's why I don't understand all these hackintosh folks who not only live by iDeneb, but don't even want to talk about the very real and relatively simple process of creating retail OS X install hackintoshes. They'd rather just steal the software and then patch it...
I've seen the "P0wn 2 Own" contests that are conducted every year to convince uninformed users that Mac are just as vulnerable as PCs when it comes to security. Of course, those contests are always conducted under the most contrived circumstances that defy logic.
When the day comes that a massive viral infection successfully attacks the millions of Macs out there then you have a case for stating that Macs are insecure. But. It Ain't. Happen. Yet. And after 9 years of OS X on the shelves, I think there has been plenty of time for the hackers to pull their dirty tricks. Still... nothing. I'm going with the platform that is beneath the notice of the hacker boys - because I want to get things done.
Yep, looks like the Mac is finally coming into it's own.
Now for all the Mac fanboys claiming their Macs are immune to malware."
And I guess it's time for people like you to start the flame wars once again. Thanks for trying to side track the discussion. Good bye.
And no, that won't mean there's a problem with Windows 7 either.
Simply put, want a safe computing experience? Get your software from a trustworthy source, keep it patched, and use common sense.
I didn't say "buy" the software, because there is a lot of trustworthy Linux and GPL software out there that is absolutely fine (and great if you're on a budget - or possibly even if you're not).
I guess we will be seeing more of this. As Apple marketshare increases, so will the virus's that are written for it.
Know where your software comes from, or run the risk of being scammed.
It is SO cute when Apple Mac users try to get technical and explain what my "problem" is. Even the "technician" guy was cute. If you knew what you are talking about, you wouldn't have been conned into buying an obsolete crApple product for x times the market rate.
I guys bring a smile to my face :)
You aren't fooling anyone so I don't understand why you even bother.
"All the time in the world."
Then another Apple "tech" even adds that it could be a bad hardware component. Yet this contradicts the others claiming Apple doesnt make bad hardware.
I do understand the reason for the PPC systems being left out of the update. Even Windows 3.1 wouldnt install on a Quad-Core 3Ghz PC. There just comes a time when the hardware & software advances.
ps. dont be a degenerate; the LEAST you can do is pay for your OS, right?
Mind you, just because people are offering tainted versions of Mac OS X doesn't mean anyone is actually using them (oh I'm sure someone will, but I mean "more than a few"?)
Hopefully people are smarter than that.
But Ben342's real problems are these: he assumes his experience extends to everyone else on earth (the old "I am the world" mistake), and he automatically trusted his friend's upgrade. He should check the RAM using Rember or Memtest, and check the hard drive for bad blocks, and then do an Archive and Install of OS 10.5 to clear out the garbage that's probably causing the problems he's seeing, then install Snow Leopard, and then come back and tell us what happened. I think he'd be pleasantly surprised.
http://blogs.eweek.com/applewatch/content/security/what_market_share_will_attract_malware.html
This article explains exactly why Macs ARE more secure due to not allowing access to the registry, administrator controls, etc. Note the comparison to Vista marketshare--Vista is riddled with malware.
If I run a program, and the OS then tells me that the program is doing something that needs escalated privileges and I type my password - what more is there to do?
Do I now want to allow a program to be able to make changes to my system? That would disallow a whole raft of useful software. The OS gave me the "heads up" that the program was potentially harmful when it asked for the password, that was the moment for me to THINK.
No OS that is useful in the generally accepted sense can stop you from bringing in that wooden horse. This isn't a technical failing, this is social engineering - YOU are the weak link in the chain: "welcome to your responsibilities".
- by Jamasama August 31, 2009 2:41 AM PDT
- Well, to be fair we were never going to expect Mac users to be smart enough to read comments on the torrent they're downloading, to see if it's virused or rigged. I mean come on, what else do you expect from users who switch operating systems because they're not smart enough to install AV software or get past an error message?
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- by 01Phyxius September 16, 2009 4:46 PM PDT
- This.
- Like this
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