Apple, Mac, iOS4, iPad, iPhone and (in)security...

Kate Bevan: For too long Mac users have been complacent about malware – it's time they woke up to the threat from trojans like Flashback...

 

===> Mac users should 'become responsible members of the wider computing community.' <===

 

Read more...

Repéré par des chercheurs de chez Kasperky, le malware SabPub exploite une fois encore une faille de sécurité Java dans Mac OS X via des documents Word piégés.

Découvert par Kaspersky, ce nouveau malware qui cible les Mac exploite une faille de sécurité Java.

 

Le répit aura été de courte durée. À peine Apple avait-il publié une mise à jour de Java contenant un logiciel de suppression du malware Flashback qu’un nouveau fléau était découvert. Baptisé SabPub, il a été découvert par l’éditeur Kaspersky qui en a repéré deux variantes.

 

Comme Flashback, SabPub passe par une faille de sécurité de Java au moyen d’un document Word piégé. Le Mac infecté va ensuite se connecter à un site web depuis lequel sont envoyées des commandes. Un pirate peut notamment obtenir des captures d’écran du Mac de la victime.

 

Cependant, le mode de diffusion de ce malware via des documents Word piégés rend sa propagation moins puissante que celle de Flashback qui a touché 600 000 machines de par le monde.

 

The Flashback malware is still on the decline, but the security firm says its latest estimate of infected machines is higher than expected. 

 

In a blog post today, software maker and security firm Symantec lowered its estimate of machines that still have the malware to 140,000, which is down considerably from estimates of more than 600,000 less than two weeks ago. Even so, the firm said it was expecting a lower tally.

 

Read more...

A week after the Flashback Trojan began running rampant on Macintosh computers, the malware appears to be in remission.

A second variant of the Mac OS X Trojan referred to as Backdoor.OSX.SabPub.a or SX/Sabpab-A is exploiting a Microsoft Word security hole, not the usua...

A new version of the Mac OS X Sabpab Trojan horse has come to light, and rather than relying upon a Java vulnerability - it appears to be exploiting malformed Word documents instead.

Selon l’éditeur de sécurité Kaspersky, il ne reste plus que 30 000 Mac infectés par le malware Flashback à la date du 19 avril, contre 600 000 une dizaine de jours plus tôt.

The Flashback malware threat for OS X is on a steep decline, but still underscores that Mac systems are not immune to threats. Read this blog post by Topher Kessler on MacFixIt.

A new Trojan known as “Sabpab” could hurt Mac users who run Java and Microsoft Word. Security researchers are warning users to make sure their computers

 

===> have the latest software updates from both Apple and Microsoft, <=== and to use anti-virus software.

 

In some cases, manual removal of Sabpab may be needed.

 

Word about Sabpab comes on the heels of another nasty piece of malware, Flashback, that infected up to as many as 600,000 Macs, security experts said, by exploiting a vulnerability in Java software.

 

Apple last week issued a software-base removal tool for that malware, which can be used by criminals to steal personal information, including passwords.

 

Read more...

 

Given the attention that the Flashback Mac malware has received since the discovery of the 600K strong botnet of computers infected with it and the number of tools that various security firms and Apple issued for its removal, it's somewhat disheartening to hear that===> the botnet still counts around 140,000 zombies. <===

 

Read more...

 

Die Sicherheitsexperten von Kaspersky Lab haben einen neuen Mac-Trojaner entdeckt. Die Schadsoftware heisst SabPub und verbreitet sich über Word-Dokumente.

This new minimum-threat malware development for OS X copies Flashback and suggests criminals jump on opportunistic bubbles. 

 

Recently the Flashback malware attacks on OS X gained headlines, not because of the presence of the Trojan, which had been around for some months prior to the increase in attention, but rather because it gained the possibility of installation in a drive-by-download attack that did not require any interaction from the user in order to install.

This development was made possible because of a vulnerability in Java that allowed for a maliciously crafted applet to break the Java sandbox and write files to the disk. Apple has since patched this issue and it, along with other companies, have released Flashback Trojan removal tools to combat the malware; however, in its prime, the malware did reach more than 600,000 Mac users.

 

Read more...

Attackers behind the Flashback and SabPub malware likely reverse-engineered a Java vulnerability patched for Windows almost two
months ago by Oracle.

 

Apple, which normally refuses to comment on any vulnerabilities in its products until after it's released a fix, broke with tradition by last week confirming that it was coding an OS X upgrade to nuke Flashback.

 

===> According to various security firms, approximately 600,000 Macs had been infected by Flashback, which makes it the largest malware infection to ever hit OS X users. <===

 

In addition, Kaspersky managed to tie the botnet to six malicious Microsoft Word documents that it's seen in the wild, two of which drop the SabPub vulnerability, and four of which drop the MaControl bot, which appears to be an earlier effort by the same virus writers. One key difference, however, is that MaControl didn't target the Java vulnerability exploited by Flashback and SabPub.

 

===> Another is that SabPub managed to remain active for about six weeks before anyone detected it. <===

 

Read more...