Mac Zombie? Count me among the unsurprised

Posted: April 19, 2009 by datechguy in tech
Tags: ,

I really shouldn’t be smiling but I’ve been waiting for something like this:

Malware hunters at Symantec have discovered a direct link between a malicious file embedded in pirated copies of Apple’s iWork 09 software and what appears to be the first Mac OS X botnet launching denial-of-service attacks.

Writing in the current issue of Virus Bulletin (subscription required), researchers Mario Ballano Barcena and Alfredo Pesoli found two malware variants — OSX.Iservice and OSX.Iservice.B — using different techniques to obtain the user’s password and take control of the infected Mac machine.

Quite a few of the commentators are actually full of glee rather than my knowing smile but one commentator makes the same point that PC users should know as well:

While it’s notable to discover a zombie Mac infection, keep in mind that this wasn’t an OS exlpoit. It was an install virus like the ones you used to see back in 1990. People who download and install pirate software should expect their computers to be compromised by a virus.

The commentator is exactly right. Risky behavior is the root of a lot of trouble that people have with PC’s and those who go to a Mac and think they will be safe forever will have another think coming.

Via Glenn.

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