BEWARE! Safari Vulnerability Discovered in OS X and Windows

**Cody Overcash** · 01-14-2009, 03:14 AM

Beware Safari and OmniWeb users - you are not safe while browsing the web. Brian Masternbrook has discovered a vulnerability in Safari that will allow malicious sites to hop into your computer and read whatever files they want on your hard drive.

This major security threat has been acknowledged by Apple and is known to effect Safari on both Leopard and Windows. At this time Apple has not commented on when a fix will be released. The threat also extends further for OS X users by simply slicking a link in their mail, IMs, etc.

Fortunately Masternbrook listed out some simple steps you can take to protect yourself.

For OS X users other browsers like FireFox or Camino are safe to use. You can however fix Safari.

Download and install the RCDefaultApp preference pane, following the included instructions.
Open System Preferences and choose the Default Applications option.
Select the "URLs" tab in the window that appears.
Choose the "feed" URL type from the column on the left, and choose a different application or the "disabled" option.
Repeat the previous step for the "feeds" and "feedsearch" URL types.

Windows users DO NOT USE SAFARI

**chazdrums** · 01-14-2009, 03:37 AM

Wow, scary stuff. Good to know when I get my Mac Book.

**dale1v** · 01-14-2009, 04:48 AM

/looks at one1 and smiles.

**sziklassy** · 01-14-2009, 05:21 AM

Does anyone even use Safari? LOL

**jrentzke** · 01-14-2009, 06:15 AM

Yeah, all the time, Mac & windozs - it's my favorite browser.

**Tommer** · 01-14-2009, 08:10 AM

seems that apple isn't that godlike afterall

**iGuy** · 01-14-2009, 08:53 AM

It's a "vulnerability" not a virus. Apple brought out 3, yes only 3, security measures last year. How does that compare with Billy's stuff?

**sziklassy** · 01-14-2009, 09:02 AM

Originally Posted by iGuy

It's a "vulnerability" not a virus. Apple brought out 3, yes only 3, security measures last year. How does that compare with Billy's stuff?

The difference is that people have a reason to crack and hack at Windows, they want to eff with large corporations using the OS. With OSX it's mostly private/home users that would be effected thus not worth the time of day to the hacker and virus developer. Apple tends to patch HUGE security flaws because, frankly, that is all that gets caught. Look how long the Safari exploit took...

Originally Posted by jrentzke

Yeah, all the time, Mac & windozs - it's my favorite browser.

You must be going by looks alone. Ah well, to each his own.

**iGuy** · 01-14-2009, 09:32 AM

Sorry, but a typical response from a Windows user. I'm sure any hacker worth their salt would love to be the 1st to create a virus for OSX. Imagine the glory and worldwide fame if it was you? Not happened yet though has it?

(One day it will happen, I don't deny that, but at the moment it hasn't).

**sziklassy** · 01-14-2009, 09:39 AM

Originally Posted by iGuy

Sorry, but a typical response from a Windows user. I'm sure any hacker worth their salt would love to be the 1st to create a virus for OSX. Imagine the glory and worldwide fame if it was you? Not happened yet though has it?

(One day it will happen, I don't deny that, but at the moment it hasn't).

It's been done, just read :P
Say what you will, bottom line is people don;t care enough to make anything that matters. And I use OSX too and am happy that I don;t have to pay for antivirus software

As far as claim to fame... Windows hires people who are able to take them down with code. With Apple's track record, they would probably send assassins

**iGuy** · 01-14-2009, 09:55 AM

Originally Posted by sziklassy

It's been done, just read :P

Please point me in the right direction then.

**StevenB** · 01-14-2009, 09:55 AM

Originally Posted by iGuy

Sorry, but a typical response from a Windows user. I'm sure any hacker worth their salt would love to be the 1st to create a virus for OSX. Imagine the glory and worldwide fame if it was you? Not happened yet though has it?

(One day it will happen, I don't deny that, but at the moment it hasn't).

Ummm:

Results 1 - 10 of about 4,940,000 for mac os x virus

Yeah it's been done. As the poster above you said no one wants to hack a Mac...no glory in it.

**iGuy** · 01-14-2009, 10:03 AM

I'll repeat.......

Originally Posted by iGuy

Please point me in the right direction then.

**sziklassy** · 01-14-2009, 10:41 AM

StevenB just did...
That being said, this is getting off topic, which was not my intent. Believe what you will, my purpose in life is not to get others to see things the way I do, at least not on a topic as silly as mac vs pc...

**iGuy** · 01-14-2009, 10:57 AM

I'm not going into the "Mac vs PC" either. If there have been viruses for OSX I'd just like to see the proof........

Still waiting.

**StevenB** · 01-14-2009, 11:34 AM

Originally Posted by iGuy

I'm not going into the "Mac vs PC" either. If there have been viruses for OSX I'd just like to see the proof........

Still waiting.

Here is one: louisgray.com: I Got a Mac OS X Trojan and Infected CenterNetworks. Oops.

and if there were no viruses for Mac then you wouldn't need this:

VirusScan for Mac | Virex | AntiVirus Protection for Mac Users | McAfee (Mcafee for Mac)

**sziklassy** · 01-14-2009, 11:45 AM

Originally Posted by iGuy

Sorry, but a typical response from a Windows user.

This doesn't seem like a Mac v. PC type attitude? Oh well, I don;t even know why I keep responding. I am done -_-

Originally Posted by StevenB

Here is one: louisgray.com: I Got a Mac OS X Trojan and Infected CenterNetworks. Oops.

and if there were no viruses for Mac then you wouldn't need this:

VirusScan for Mac | Virex | AntiVirus Protection for Mac Users | McAfee (Mcafee for Mac)

Thanks for linking but you really should have let him try out Google

**iGuy** · 01-14-2009, 11:46 AM

Steven....

The 1st one is a joke (read it)

The 2nd one is from a company trying to sell you stuff.

I await any concrete proof of an OSX virus (if I'm wrong I'll apologise).

**StevenB** · 01-14-2009, 12:13 PM

Originally Posted by iGuy

Steven....

The 1st one is a joke (read it)

The 2nd one is from a company trying to sell you stuff.

I await any concrete proof of an OSX virus (if I'm wrong I'll apologise).

*sigh* continue to read it please:

"Allen, looking at the pictures and then back at his site, thought I was joking. But I wasn't."

There is your proof. Wether it did anything beyond his computer or not it's still a virus/trojan. That's how they started back in the day on PC's, as pranks.

**iGuy** · 01-14-2009, 12:24 PM

*sigh* *sigh* *sigh* all you want. louisgray.com was a joke. We laughed muchly.

Still waiting for that concrete evidence though.

Your favorite Apple, iPhone, iPad, iOS, Jailbreak, and Cydia site.

Thread: BEWARE! Safari Vulnerability Discovered in OS X and Windows

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Beware Safari and OmniWeb users - you are not safe while browsing the web. Brian Masternbrook has discovered a vulnerability in Safari that will allow malicious sites to hop into

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