trojan

Detecting and removing the Flashback malware in OS X

Recently a new variant of the Imuler/Revir Trojan malware for OS X was found being distributed disguised as erotic images that, if installed on a Mac system, would attempt to steal personal information then upload them to remote servers. The malware's initial variants included offensive political material, but in its recent iteration has been distributed disguised among a collection of cover girl images in an obvious attempt to trick people into opening the application.

While these attempts are relatively easy to avoid, security company F-Secure has been monitoring a more serious threat from the Flashback malware for OS … Read more

Imuler/Revir Trojan for OS X resurfaces

Last fall, a new Trojan malware scam called Revir and Imuler was uncovered, attempting to coerce Mac users into installing the malware on their systems, and then sending personal information to remote servers.

The scam initially used a Trojan dropper program called OS X/Revir.A that when run would download PDFs containing offensive political rhetoric in foreign languages, and then install a backdoor agent called OS X/Imuler.A. This in turn would try to connect to remote servers and send information about your system to the servers.

The malware did not work very well and appeared to be … Read more

Protect your registry with MJ Registry Watch

Mark Jacob's MJ Registry Watcher is a very simple yet effective tool for automatically monitoring your Windows Registry for changes (especially unauthorized changes) and alerting you to the change, and even preventing it from happening. It polls your registry and files every few seconds, looking for changes to your startup files, registry keys and values, and other places that Trojans and rootkits target. RegWatcher also hooks the registry, which means it intercepts commands and blocks those that pose a threat, simultaneously issuing an audible alert.

RegWatcher is portable freeware that needs no installation. The download includes a lot of … Read more

New Flashback Trojan variant found for OS X

This year has been relatively silent with regard to malware in OS X, but today security and antivirus firm Intego reported that the criminals behind the Flashback Trojan have been hard at work releasing new variants to their malware package. The seventh variant of Flashback has been identified, which shows it is using new and unique techniques for infecting Macs.

Flashback is a Trojan horse attack that, according to Intego, now uses numerous methods for infecting Mac systems. First it will try to take advantage of Java security holes to install itself, but if you do not have Java installed (… Read more

F-Secure outlines the 2011 Mac malware scene

Over the past year we have regularly covered new malware threats that have emerged for OS X, which included attacks like MacDefender, BlackHole RAT, Flashback, and Revir, among a number of others.

While our coverage of these threats may make them appear significant, when looking at the overall Mac malware scene in review it's apparent that despite the increase in Mac malware prevalence, the threats for the Mac platform are still quite minimal. Additionally, data suggests Mac malware trends may not follow market share as many suspect it does.

Recently security company F-Secure released an analysis of the Mac … Read more

New Flashback malware variant follows XProtect update

When the MacDefender fake antivirus malware was making its rounds early last year, there was a daily cat-and-mouse game between the criminals developing the software and various malware detection companies, plus Apple with its XProtect routine that establishes its "Safe Downloads" list.

While MacDefender has been properly addressed and is no longer an issue, the latest cat-and-mouse game appears to be revolving around the recent Flashback malware that was found for OS X. Flashback is a Trojan horse that is distributed as a fake version of Adobe's Flash player program. When installed it will insert a payload … Read more

Apple iOS is safer than Android, McAfee says

In the fight against malware, Apple's iOS outshines Android as a safer environment, but no mobile device is free from risk, says a new report from McAfee (PDF).

Apple has so far done a good job of securing its devices, according to the report, noting that there have been no known cases of malware affecting iPhones, at least those that haven't been jailbroken. One reason iOS is more secure is because Apple restricts the way users can download apps.

iOS device owners can only download apps through Apple's App Store or through Mobile Device Management, which gives … Read more

Apple issues late XProtect update for Flashback Trojan

As with many modern operating systems, OS X is relatively difficult to infect with self-propagating malware attacks like viruses or worms, so malware developers have resorted to social engineering and trickery, with Trojan horse programs being the main mode of attack on home computer systems.

A Trojan horse is a piece of maliciously crafted software that is disguised as a legitimate software package, but which when installed by an unsuspecting user will corrupt files, break down system security measures, or send personal information to external servers among other malicious activity.

Malware generally is distributed via underground Web sites, though in … Read more

Android's a malware magnet, says McAfee

Malware targeted toward Android devices continues to surge, says a new report from McAfee, pushing 2011 to become the busiest year in history for both mobile and general malware.

The amount of malware infecting Android devices during the third quarter grew almost 37 percent from the second quarter, according to McAfee's Third-Quarter Threats Report (PDF). Android's growing demand among consumers has made it an increasingly ripe and inviting target for cybercriminals.

How inviting? Almost all new mobile malware over the third quarter was aimed squarely at Android. Legacy software being what it is, though, among all mobile platforms, … Read more

DevilRobber Trojan now disguised as PixelMator

One of the latest trojan horse malware attempts on OS X is a bitcoin mining and data stealing bot called "DevilRobber" that uses the system's parallel processing capabilities of systems (the GPU and CPU) to run Bitcoin mining operations to rapidly generate Bitcoins (an experimental digital currency).

All malware is expected to be altered, refined, and otherwise updated, and recently security firm F-Secure has reported it found another variant of the DevilRobber Trojan roaming around pirated software networks.

The original DevilRobber was being distributed in pirated versions of the popular program Graphic Converter, and in similar form … Read more