43 Cent Big Mac Attack is Back

[Michael Essany]

Image via Techrant


Computerworld is reporting that a group of Russian malware writers and their antics prove that Macs are becoming increasingly larger attack targets. According to information the publication learned this week, the aforementioned Russian spammers reportedly pay hackers 43 cents for every Mac they infected with "bogus video software."

In a presentation Thursday at the Virus Bulletin 2009 security conference in Geneva, Switzerland, Sophos researcher Dmitry Samosseiko discussed his investigation of the Russian "Partnerka," a tangled collection of Web affiliates who rake in hundreds of thousands of dollars from spam and malware, most of the former related to phony drug sites, and much of the latter targeting Windows users with fake security software, or "scareware."

In a long and detailed presentation, one shred of evidence after another was offered to validate the many tactics employed by both the "Partnerka" and their associates - "codec-partnerka" - to sell and distribute "fake Mac software."

One example, which has since gone offline, was Mac-codec.com, said Samosseiko. "Just a few months ago it was offering [43 cents] for each install and offered various promo materials in the form of Mac OS 'video players,'" he said.

For years, many reasons, excuses, and technologies have been presented as to why Macs will be "eternally shielded" from the hackers and spammers who have destroyed innumerable PCs. But wherever there is money to be made, there will be progress made. And, unfortunately, the business of Mac attacks is growing highly profitable for those capable of widespread machine infection.

"The growing evidence of financially-motivated criminals looking at Apple Macs as well as Windows as a market for their activities, is not good news -- especially as so many Mac users currently have no anti-malware protection in place at all," said Graham Cluley, a senior technology consultant at U.K-based Sophos, in a blog entry Thursday.

So what does this mean for the future? More than likely, we will see a greater effort on the part of Apple and security software makers to step up traditional safeguards. Even though threats to the Mac are not an every day occurrence, they do take place. And usually, those that make an impact are substantial.

Last year, as you may recall, Mac security vendor Intego alarmed the Mac community with a waning about an active Trojan horse that "exploited a vulnerability in Apple's Mac OS X." Earlier this year, another Trojan was found through pirated copies of Apple's iWork '09 application suite.

Mac OS X's security has been roundly criticized by vulnerability researchers, but even the most critical have acknowledged that the Mac's low market share -- it accounted for just 5% of all operating systems running machines that connected to the Internet last month -- is probably enough protection from cyber criminals for the moment.

[iN2K]

Only .43 cents? How cheap.

[Charlymanson]

Only .43 cents? How cheap.

agreed lol

[ifonemaniac]

omg thats exactly how i sit in my chair too!!

[jedinight]

i love lamp!!and meh on 43 cents,i bet there best hackers are in line for that!

[Boker]

lolz at the guy in the chair. .43c that can get me a half of a beer.

[haibane]

lolz at the guy in the chair. .43c that can get me a half of a beer.

You drink pbr I assume?

[e10100]

Well this isn't good for Mac users. Does this mean anti-virus for Mac?

[KartRacer]

$.43 per? That can add up real damn quick.

[MetallicaFan1991]

I have Norton on my MBP anyway, just in case

[Melech518]

iAntiVirus = free protection

[Luppin]

The low price just motivates them to infect as many Macs as possible, say goodbye to not being able to aimlessly click away on the internet without having to fear malware.

[TheOnlyest]

Geee... and those stupidazz "i'm a Mac" commercials would have me believe that Mac's cant get virus's, malware, etc! Hmmmmmmm...

Just another load of BS from crApple I guess....

[thetoothfairy]

I love my Mac's... and that is what I loved so much is you didn't have to worried about crap like this..... $.43 is a lot to those dudes they hired to do this... I figured in time Mac's would have to have as much protection and windows do...

But I sure hope not... its so nice to cruse around and do what you want without dealing with all that crap that windows users do.... I like my freedom! I hope Apple stays on top of this!

[sziklassy]

I figured in time Mac's would have to have as much protection and windows do... !

More... unless Apple makes changes. OSX currently the least secure OS out there..

[ianhutch1]

Wow what a surprise, an Anti-Virus company spreading scare stories about Mac Viruses.

Surprised they didnt advertise their product directly after it

[tudtran]

That's sound like a good deal. I would start with my parent mac, then my brother, then my friends. This could add up :-)

[iN2K]

I have an anti virus but its always off. I scan my laptop once a month and haven't had a virus in years.

[Teoyaomqui]

Geee... and those stupidazz "i'm a Mac" commercials would have me believe that Mac's cant get virus's, malware, etc! Hmmmmmmm...

Just another load of BS from crApple I guess....

LMAO and that is their selling point in the stupid Mac commercials.

"Macs don't get Virus."

LMAO

[y0ungSir]

OSX (Snow Leopard) is MORE vulnerable than Windows 7 or Vista. Some hacker even warned Apple, but they did not take heed. The only reason Apple computers aren't spammed as much as Windows is because Apple has 10% of the market share, at the most. So for every one Mac a hacker infects there are ten PCs he or she missed.