MAC Attack!

Internet Users By Country

For a while I have been warning my oldest son Michael (who is a Mac-user) that Apple computers would be facing computer virus attacks. And while he has not yet been affected, this seems to now be a problem:

Experts: Malicious program targets Macs

By John D. Sutter

(CNN) — Mac computers are known for their near-immunity to malicious computer programs that plague PCs.

But that may be changing somewhat, according to computer security researchers. It seems that as sleek Mac computers become more popular, they’re also more sought-after targets for the authors of harmful programs.

“The bad guys generally go toward the biggest target, what will get them the biggest bang for their buck,” said Kevin Haley, a director of security response at Symantec.

Until recently, the big target always was Microsoft Windows, and Apple computers were protected by “relative obscurity,” he said.

But blogs are buzzing this week about what two Symantec researchers have called the first harmful computer program to strike specifically at Mac.

This Trojan horse program, dubbed the “iBotnet,” has infected only a few thousand Mac machines, but it represents a step in the evolution of malicious computer software, Haley said.

The iBotnet is a sign that harmful programs are moving toward Mac, said Paul Henry, a forensics and security analyst at Lumension Security in Arizona.

“We all knew it was going to happen,” he said. “It was just a matter of time, and, personally, I think we’re going to see a lot more of it.”…

Mac users at large, however, should not be alarmed by the incident, experts said. The program infects only computers whose users downloaded pirated versions of the Mac software iWork.

The harmful software is a Trojan horse, meaning it tries to sneak into the computer with some sort of permission from the user. Computer worms travel differently. They wiggle their way into computers and replicate without the owner’s approval or knowledge.

The Mac program is called a botnet because infected computers become part of a network that is controlled by the program’s author…

In a statement, Apple said it is working to prevent security problems.

“Apple takes security very seriously and has a great track record of addressing potential vulnerabilities before they can affect users,” the statement says. http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/04/22/first.mac.botnet/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

The Apostle Paul, while not familiar with computers, was inspired to write:

1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God (2 Tim 3:1-4).

Now even Mac-users also live in perilous computer times. I believe that more attacks toward Macs will continue and some will be quite serious.