• Bluetooth Worm for Mac Surfaces

    Bluetooth Worm for Mac Surfaces

    Techtree News Staff, Feb 20, 2006 1222 hrs IST

    Sophos has issued protection against a worm for Mac OS X that spreads via a Bluetooth vulnerability.

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Security company Sophos, has issued protection against a second worm for Mac OS X. The worm, called OSX/Inqtana-A spreads between Apple Macintosh computers via a Bluetooth vulnerability. The new worm has appeared within days of the discovery of the first ever real virus for Mac OS X. The Inqtana worm exploits a vulnerability (known as CAN-2005-1333), to spread itself to other vulnerable Mac OS X computers. However, Apple released a patch against the vulnerability in mid 2005, meaning the worm is highly unlikely to spread successfully. Users of Mac OS X are advised to keep their software updated against the latest security vulnerabilities in Apple's code. Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant, Sophos, said, "It's disturbing to see a second worm for Mac OS X so soon after the first, but it should be remembered that this is only two, compared to well over 100,000 viruses for Microsoft operating systems. The good news is that Inqtana is not going to spread successfully in the wild, but this announcement will still be a shock to those in the Mac community who thought hackers were not interested in their operating system." A report issued by Sophos revealed that 79 percent of people believed that Apple Macintoshes would be targeted more in future, following the discovery of the first Mac OS X worm. "This means two real viruses have emerged for the Mac OS X platform in less than a week. The question on everyone's lips is - when will we see the next one, and will it have a more malicious payload? Apple Mac users need to be just as careful about protecting their computers with anti-virus software, firewalls and security patches as their friends and colleagues using Windows," said Cluley. Related News: First Mac OS X Worm Discovered

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Discussion Board
David
,Indian Harbour Beach, on Feb 21, 2006 07:25 PM
zAk, you do know that a MAC is different than an Mac don't you? Just checking since you work with them all day.
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Lance
,State College, PA, on Feb 21, 2006 01:22 PM
Sounds a bit sensationalist to me. The bug was fixed long ago..end of story. If this were a new bug that wasn't fixed, I would be a bit more concerned. Sounds to me like some anti-virus software companies want to sell more software (they are tired of not being able to tap the Mac market). I know I'm not too worried about it, and no I "don't need to be just as careful about protecting [my] computers as ... collegues using Windows." That's a pretty big stretch! Come on folks, let's try to be responsible in our journalism.
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Ryan Kaldari
,Nashville, on Feb 21, 2006 06:18 AM
"The new worm has appeared within days of the discovery of the first ever real virus for Mac OS X." Uh, that was a tojan horse, not a virus. What sensationalist reporting!
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Spots
,Mackay, on Feb 21, 2006 08:15 AM
>>"Uh, that was a tojan horse, not a virus. What sensationalist reporting!" No, the first was declared a "Virus", NOT a trojan, by security specialists because of its self-propagating ability, even though it requires user-interaction.
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thirsty
,DC, on Feb 20, 2006 10:50 PM
yes. more in the future = >0. That's a tough prediction to make. What are the other 21 thinking? This was patched. How is this news? Why don't we start reporting on OS 9 viruses too?
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zAk
,belleville, on Feb 20, 2006 10:31 PM
Hey ed, do u have proof of this fact: "nearly every Mac user upgrades and updates their software regularly (Mac users trust Apple unlike M$ users) so its pretty much a non starter." Cause i got proof against it LOL. I work with MACs all day, and in my eye, id say its about 50/50 for people that update REGULARLY. Like prolly 40% of teh custs i speak with are running 10.3.9 or lower and atleast another 10% (possibly 20%) are running an out of date version of tiger. So in the end, MAYBE 50% of the MACs i work with (i work for HP, with users running AiO units on macs) are up to date. The same people that didnt apply the dcom or lsass patch, are the same people that didnt upgrade to tiger, or from 10.4.2 to 10.4.5. And alot more windows users are upgrading to MAC these days, giving u more retarded mac users than in the past. Its cause of these retards that coders are going to start tring more and more for mac users.
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Ed Crelin
,Wallingford, on Feb 20, 2006 08:54 PM
You agree with the characterization that a hole that was patched a year ago and is closed in current shipping software to be a current "vulnerability"? Cheap thrill. Unlike PC users nearly every Mac user upgrades and updates their software regularly (Mac users trust Apple unlike M$ users) so its pretty much a non starter. No details on the mechanics of it, is it a real virus that can infect and propagate without user assistance? The first worm is a Trojan and NOT a virus as it cannot exist without clear mistaken assistance from the user. Many of the Windows exploits are Trojans too unfairly lumped in with the real viruses. Don't assist Sophos by copying their thinly veiled sofware advertisement verbatum with the errant over the top characterizations, it diminishes your credibility.
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