Macs are increasingly becoming a target for malware having previously been regarded as safe havens compared to PCs, according to a new report.
The worrying findings show there has been an increase of 230 per cent in Mac malware in the twelve months from July 2016, with further increases anticipated for 2018.
The report observed there is also now a ‘tidal wave’ of scam software on the Mac Apple store – which is now higher than it’s ever been.
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The report observed there was now a ‘tidal wave’ of scam software on the Mac Apple store – which is now higher than it’s ever been (stock image)
Both Mac and Android are extremely vulnerable to malicious applications, with many still making it past app store review processes.
However, the tactics that attackers use to infiltrate each platform with malware greatly differ, according to the report by Santa Clara-based malware protection company Malwarebytes.
More malware families have appeared this year than in any other previous year in Mac history, the report found.
The new Proton Remote Access Trojan (RAT) has plagued Mac users in recent months.
This variant of Proton was focused on exfiltration password data from a variety of sources, including the mac-OS keychain, 1Password vaults, and browser auto-fill data.
Threats that are typically considered more ‘sophisticated’ and dangerous, such as Ransomware, are still rare among Mac devices.
Most notably, the rate of ‘screen locker’ ransomware on Android devices is reaching new heights.
Data suggests Android ransomware increased 138 per cent in the first three months of this year.
The three most common ransomware families were Jisut, SLocker and Koler – which account for almost 95 per cent of all attacks.
Jisut and SLocker are typically distributed to Andoid mobile users masked as fake software updates or they are bundled with infected applications.
Experts predict a rise in Hidden Advertising and Clicker type malware in 2018.
The tactics that attackers use to infiltrate each platform with malware greatly differ, according to the report by Santa Clara-based malware protection company Malwarebytes (stock image)
‘Windows devices are no longer the sole victims of damaging malware attacks, as strategic attacks on android devices are rapidly on the rise,’ said Armando Orozco, Senior Mobile Malware Intelligence Analyst, Malwarebytes.
‘All Android users need to remain alert and proactively guard their identity and data on the go, just as they do on their computers at home.’
Last month it was revealed a FruitFly malware that had infected hundreds of Macs remained undetected for years.
FruitFly malware uses the Mac’s camera to spy on users and log what is happening on screen.
According to security firm Synack, there are around 400 computers known to be infected with FruitFly and likely to be many more.
Although they are not sure when the bug first came around, researchers have found it works on the Mac Yosemite operating system – which was released back in October 2014.
[“Source-dailymail”]