And you thought that Macs and Apple products were immune to virus and malware threats? Think again! At the beginning of May, Intego, a developer for internet security and privacy software for Macs, identified a pretty scary piece of malware, dubbed the “MAC Defender” (also now has names like “MacSecurity” and “MacProtector” and “MacDefender”). What is malware? It’s essentially a malicious piece of software that can do all types of damage to your computer and trick you into doing things you don’t want it to do.
What really concerns me here is that Macs are prevalent in schools and homes and used by children…and they frequently can get scared, panic and do things that adults hopefully won’t do. The problem is, this malware is crafted in a way to even deceive adults into thinking their Mac is infected. Read on to learn more about this and some steps you can take to prevent from being scammed.
As Intego outlined in a press release on May 3rd, MacDefender preys on people’s lack of knowledge of security on their computer, tricking them into installing a fake Anti-Virus program. The program itself, is malware. Not only does it pretend to find viruses on your Macintosh, it also pops open porn sites when your browser is open to simulate the fact that your computer is “infected.” Only after you “register” and pay for the program do the pop-ups stop and the fake scans stop as well. The end user is left thinking that their computer is now clean and running fine. The problem is, your credit card is now with some 3rd Party site – unsecured and in the hands of someone who is not looking out for your best interest.
How It Works
{ 0 comments }
