A Very Talented Worm Mac OS
Mac OS X Virus/Trojan Summary Thursday February 16, 2006 8:42 pm PST by Arnold Kim The announcement of the release of a Mac OS X trojan/virus/worm yesterday has drawn a lot of attention, confusion. Classic Mac OS 1987-12 United States: nVIR has been known to 'hybridize' with different variants of nVIR on the same machine. Oompa Leap Mac OSX Worm 2006.02.10 First worm for Mac OSX. It propagates through iChat, an instant message client for Macintosh operating systems. Whether Oompa is a worm has been controversial. Some believe it is a.
Throughout time, Windows has been known as the most virus-prone of all operating systems. Vulnerabilities in the Microsoft Windows Explorer web browser and the Windows system itself exposes this platform to a wide range of threats from viruses and worms to spyware. For this reason, more users have turned to other systems for an infection-free computing environment.
Up until recently, Windows was thought to be the only system capable of contracting viruses and other malware. However, Linux has also been infected and Apple's Mac OS X is the latest victim of the infamous malicious code.
The Virus Discovery
On February 16, 2006, SophosLabs announced the detection of the very first virus written for the Mac OS X platform. OSXLeap-A, often referred to as OSX/Oompa-A, is an infection that spreads via the Macintosh iChat instant messaging system. It operates by forwarding itself as a 'LATESTPICS.TGZ' file to the contacts on the buddy list of an infected user. When the archived file is opened, its contents are disguised with a graphic icon in JPEG format, which attempts to trick the recipient into believing it is a harmless file. The virus uses the 'OOMPA' text as a marker in the forks of the infected program which prevents it from compromising the same files.
Is it a Virus or Trojan?
Following word of the infection, several members of the Macintosh community stated that Leap was actually a Trojan horse and not a virus. Their reason being was that the infection required user intervention, which is receiving the file in iChat, choosing to manually open it and executing the payload. However, this is not how a Trojan functions. A Trojan is a seemingly useful program purposely designed to damage a computer or install other malicious applications. Additionally, a Trojan does not self replicate and includes no mechanisms that enables it to spread itself. In most cases, it is deliberately incorporated onto a website, accidently distributed by another user or sent via spam email. Aside from that, the malicious code of Trojan contains nothing that will allow it to be automatically distributed to other victims.
OSXLeap-A is specifically designed to use the iChat messaging system to propagate itself to other users. It also requires action by the user in order to be executed and further spread the infection, therefore it is aptly termed as a computer virus.
Staying Smart
While several Macintosh computer users once had the belief that their system was incapable of harboring viruses, Leap proves that the threat of malware on this platform is real. Security experts suggest that the Mac users can no longer live worry free, as caution must now be practiced at all times, just as if you were running a Windows operating system.
Experts also advise all Mac OS X computer users to practice safe computing by cautiously surfing the web and keeping their anti-virus software updated with the latest virus definitions.
Anti-Virus Solutions for the Mac OS X
- Norton Internet Security for Macintosh
- McAfee Virus Scan for Mac
- Sophos Anti-virus
- Intego Virus Barrier https://slotnmnmachinegoldenroosterfree-betjax.peatix.com.
- ClamXav
At first blush, the past two weeks have not been good for the image of Apple's Mac OS X: Public descriptions of two worms and a trivial exploit for a serious software issue in the operating system appeared on the internet.
However, the three programs are hardly a threat to systems running Mac OS X, according to security professionals.
One worm, known as OSX.Leap.A and assigned CME-4 by the Common Malware Enumeration Project, requires too much user interaction, hobbling its attempts to spread. A second worm, dubbed InqTana, and its two variants are actually proof-of-concept programs that were not discovered on the internet but were instead sent to anti-virus vendors and Apple by a researcher to prove that worms can spread through Bluetooth. And while the release of code for a vulnerability that could be exploited through Safari and Mail is a bit more serious, no incidents of websites exploiting the flaw have yet been reported.
'I don't think what we've seen is serious at all from the end-user perspective,' said Mikael Albrecht, product manager with anti-virus firm F-Secure. He added that the issues the programs use to attempt to spread could result in more serious attacks, however. 'From the security perspective, the vulnerabilities are quite severe.'
The largely ineffectual attacks add fuel to the fiery debate over the security of Apple's operating system. Many Mac users believe they are better protected than the average Windows user against malicious attacks. Most security professionals argue that, as flaw finders scrutinise the increasingly popular operating system, more vulnerabilities will be found, and Mac users will have to deal with many of the threats that worry Windows users.
In the latest security issue for Mac OS X, a vulnerability in how the operating system uses meta data to associate file types with programs could be exploited to allow a Mac to be compromised through web browsing or via an email message, according to flaw finder Michael Lehn, a graduate student and researcher in the University of Ulm's Department of Numerical Analysis. The researcher recently discovered the vulnerability and reported it to Apple.
Because of the severity of the flaw, and the possibility that someone else had found it - Apple lists the flaw as a duplicate in its bug database - Lehn opted to release details of the vulnerability and proof-of-concept code, a move he said helps Mac users. Jaksta media recorder 1 5 0 download free. However, the move violates generally accepted responsible disclosure guidelines.
A Very Talented Worm Mac Os X
'Because of the first worm, too many people were suddenly starting to think about and investigate the possibility of writing a Mac OS X worm,' Lehn said. 'Publishing the exploit as fast as possible is the best for all Apple users. I think at the end of the week, every Apple user will know about it.'
Without advanced notification, Apple is currently scrambling to release a patch for the issue, which has not yet been encountered by users on the internet.
'Apple takes security very seriously,' an Apple spokesperson told SecurityFocus. 'We're working on a fix so that this doesn't become something that could affect customers.'
A Very Talented Worm Mac Os 7
The company added that Mac users should only accept files from the software developers and websites that they know and trust.