Computer security exploits

Thanks to several rigorous security measures Apple integrates into its computers, Macs are generally considered among the safest systems. However, there’s always an opportunity for malware and malicious threat actors to gain access to your Mac. Relying on the built-in security features protecting your system may be well and good, but it can be useful to manually check whether a virus or malware has infiltrated your system without being detected. Here’s how to check your Mac for viruses and malware. Performance…

As hackers come up with new ways to attack, not even trustworthy names can be taken at face value. This time, a ransom-as-a-service (RaaS) attack is being used to impersonate a cybersecurity vendor called Sophos. The RaaS, referred to as SophosEncrypt, can take hold of your files — or even your whole PC — and requires payment to have them decrypted. Initially reported by MalwareHunterTeam on Twitter, the ransomware has now been acknowledged by Sophos. The initial thought was that this may have been a red team…

It’s a long-held belief that Macs are less at risk of malware and viruses than Windows PCs, but how true is that? Well, a new report has shed some light on the situation — and the results might surprise you. According to threat research firm Elastic Security Labs, roughly 39% of all malware infections happen on Windows PCs. In good news for Apple fans, only 6% of breaches occurred on macOS, making Mac systems far less vulnerable than their Windows counterparts. Sora Shimazaki / Pexels Yet Linux infections topped both…

A self-professed novice has reportedly created a powerful data-mining malware using just ChatGPT prompts, all within a span of a few hours. Aaron Mulgrew, a Forcepoint security researcher, recently shared how he created zero-day malware exclusively on OpenAI’s generative chatbot. While OpenAI has protections against anyone attempting to ask ChatGPT to write malicious code, Mulgrew found a loophole by prompting the chatbot to create separate lines of the malicious code, function by function. After compiling…

The IRS-authorized tax preparation software service eFile.com recently suffered a JavaScript malware attack in the middle of tax season, according to BleepingComputer. The nefarious JavaScript file has been identified as popper.js and has been observed by eFile.com users as well as by security researchers. The malware is believed to have surfaced on the service around mid-March and has interacted with “almost every page of eFile.com, at least up until April 1st,” the publication added. Encountering this…

A security researcher was recently able to change the top results in Microsoft’s Bing search engine and access any user’s private files, potentially putting millions of users at risk — and all it took was logging into an unsecured web page. The exploit was discovered by researcher Hillai Ben-Sasson at their team at Wiz, a cloud security firm. According to Ben-Sasson, it would not only allow an attacker to change Bing search results, but would also grant them access to millions of users’ private files and data.…

Despite their reputation for security, Macs can still get viruses, and that’s just been proven by a malicious new Mac malware that can steal your credit card info and send it back to the attacker, ready to be exploited. It’s a reminder to be careful when opening apps from unknown sources. The malware, dubbed MacStealer, was discovered by Uptycs, a threat research firm. It hoovers up a wide array of your personal data, including the iCloud Keychain password database, credit card data, cryptocurrency wallet…

Ferrari has been targeted by a hacker who is threatening to release data linked to its customers unless the automaker hands over a ransom payment. Ferrari said it’s refusing to pay up. In a statement posted online on Monday, the company said it had been “recently contacted by a threat actor” who is demanding payment to prevent the release of customer details that include names, addresses, email addresses, and telephone numbers. Customers’ payment details, bank account numbers, and details of Ferrari cars owned or…