Watch Out Mac Users! New Malware that leaves Mac Users Vulnerable

Apple warns its Mac OS X users about 2 new vulnerabilities in the platform  that can be used for attacks. By the way, at least one of which is  already in the wild. The first is called Rootpipe and affects various  versions of Mac OS X, including the latest one, and allows a hacker to  gain “root” control of a machine without a password. In theory, this  flaw could allow an intruder to install malware to steal sensitive data, including credit cards details. The second flaw was dubbed Wirelurker  and targets iOS devices that haven’t been jailbroken and are connected  to Mac. It could be used to extract basic personal information from the  device.

Rootpipe was discovered by the Swedish  hacker working for the local security company. The flaw is regarded as  privilege escalation vulnerability. As you know, any modern OS employs  multiple tiers of security to make sure a typical user cannot  accidentally damage the machine, so the highest level of access (“root”)  is normally cordoned off from all but the most essential software. So,  Rootpipe allows a hacker to ignore that requirement and access the root  without a password. Now the simplest way to protect your Mac is to stop  using an administrative account every day, instead switching to a normal user account.

As for Wirelurker, it is already present in the wild, propagating on  some pirated Chinese software. When the Internet user runs that  software, they also install Wirelurker, which waits until the user  connects a mobile device to their Mac. Once this happens, the malware  scrapes personal information and tries to install malicious copies of  apps.

According to security experts, the malware is quite innocuous, but the  techniques it uses (abusing Apple’s iDevice management systems) may open the door to much more damaging programs.