Security Issues on Mac

Hello Friends,
How can I know if there are any security issues on my Mac? I mean, are there any apps that may find problems hindering Mac's good performance?

That's avery broad question. Without knowing what apps you run, how you are connected to the internet, whether or not you download pirated stuff or whatever how can anyone give you a definitive answer?

Similar Messages

  • Other web browsers and security issues?

    Since even an Apple KB article recognizes the need for an additional browser and because of Safari's limitations and problems, I'm going to try switching to another browser (most likely OmniWeb and am looking at Firefox, Shira and Opera also though perhaps not as a primary browser) but I'm wondering about their ability to keep on top of any security issues for Mac? (and how do you keep up with security updates?)
    Though perhaps unfounded, at least with Safari, I feel that Apple has a vested interest in keeping on top of security issues (for Safari and Java) and I can readily find out about security updates via software updater.

    Most of the other Mac browsers have their adherents. They are all good browsers (I have 7 browsers installed to test various web sites and for change-of-pace usage). They all have their strengths and they all have their weaknesses. Only iCab and OmniWeb are still shareware, the rest are now or always have been free (Opera just recently stopped charging for its browser).
    I have settled on Firefox as my alternate browser and I use it maybe just a tad more than Safari, but I do switch back and forth between them. The Mozilla foundation is good at getting security updates out when needed. Firefox has a button on the toolbar to check for updates. One nice thing about Firefox is that you can install free extensions which enhance the features available. I have one to supplement tab features, one to control iTunes from Firefox's status bar, one to help me format messages in discussion forums, and one to block ads.
    I prefer OmniWeb for doing intensive research because of the way it handles tabs in its sidebar, showing me which ones I've looked at and which ones I haven't, and giving me great flexibility in rearranging tabs, which are viewable as thumbnails or text names (I have had up to a hundred or so tabs open in OmniWeb.
    Shiira is good and its fast. I have not checked for updates for a while, but the last time I updated there was still a problem with Shiira kicking you out of logged-in sites when you moved from page to page with in web site. This may have been fixed by now - they were aware of the problem back then.
    Camino is a native OS X cousin of Firefox and is also fast, but is not updated as often.
    I would stay away from Mozilla or Netscape unless you need all the additional modules they have and which take up hard disk space. Firefox and Camino represent the browser module of Mozilla/Netscape. Mozilla and Netscape have modules for email, irc chat, newsgroups, and for creating and editing web pages. Netscape is a branded and slightly customized version of Mozilla and is not updated as often.
    Opera is a nice browser and some use it as their main browser, but I have not seen anything that really stands out for me, but that does not mean it is not worth a look.
    I would stay away from abandonware Internet Explorer.
    As for checking for updates, several of them, as with many Mac programs, now have a menu item that allows you to check for updates. Most of them also announce their updates on both VersionTracker and MacUpdate.
    Happy Exploring.

  • Do I need additional security on my Macs above what comes out of the box?

    I keep hearing conflicting reports on security issues for Macs. May I ask if I need extra security measures? And if so, which do you advise? I keep getting quarantine reports when I mail my college's network claiming my mail contains spam, I don't believe it does. Do any other students who use Macs to access NOVELL or any college network have this problem. I cannot E-mail documents to my school's account because they quarantine it.

    Macs typically don't need any additional security except perhaps a hardware router to intercept ping attacks. If they quarantine your e-mail it probably is because some spammer got ahold of your e-mail and is spoofing your e-mail when they are sending spam. This is a real problem. To avoid getting on the spammer lists:
    1. Never publish your e-mail address in its entirety with the @ symbol anywhere except when e-mailing friends and relatives. Posting to bulletin boards be sure your real address is not in the clear.
    2. Never subscribe to online purchases mailing lists unless they have a secure server and a good privacy policy.
    3. If your friends send you a mass e-mail with your address and everyone else's address visible in the header, ask them to use BCC in their mass e-mails. You never know if your address could get pilfered by another machine's virus and sent off to a spammer. Even Mac OS X has built-in BCC support and if you need to know how to enable it, we'd be glad to help you.
    On the security side of things, don't use P2P software. If you want to get downloaded software, get it from reliable sites such as Macupdate, Versiontracker, Download.com that use web browser downloads. Macs typically are quite secure, though occasionally there have been exploits found, which no one has really been able to take advantage of because of the overall security. P2P software though can be a real weak point on any machine. You also don't know if the software you get on P2P is beta or actual release version and using it, you waste the bandwidth of the server you are going through which can add to possible quarantine policies.

  • Possible Mac Mail Security Issue

    A couple of times each week, I'm receiving returned e-mail messages that describe mail that I did not actually send.  The "undeliverable" addresses in the Mailer-Daemon notifications are unfamiliar and involve a different overseas address for each notification. 
    Every aspect of the computer runs fine.  in four years of being a devout Mac convert, I have not seen this type of problem until the past few weeks.  So from my standpoint, the false notifications are just a minor annoyance.  I've been deleting them.  But, I wonder if there could there be a security issue or some other problem?
    Thanks very much,
    Charley

    I am experiencing the same thing and it has just started in the last few weeks also. I get the mailer-daemon messages telling me I have had my emails rejected to people that I don't even know nor do I have anything to do with the message being rejected.
    I am concerned that my computer has somehow been compromised but do not know whether or not this is the case.
    The issue is how do we try to stop this - I read elsewhere that the email password needs to be changed but I am not sure if this is actually going to do anything at all.
    Anyone have a suggestion to stop this?
    Thanks

  • At a hotel, can see 3 other Macs in Finder - Security Issue??

    I'm at a hotel that has wi-fi and am connected to the internets. In Finder, I can see 3 other Macs under Shared. Why are these appearing?? File and Printer Sharing were checked in System Preference (they are for home use). I unchecked File Sharing but could still see the other computers. One of them displayed as connected (VPN).
    What are the security issues here? Is it normal to "see" other Macs this way? Does this mean someone was snooping around my files? How can I prevent this? Please advise and thanks.
    Message was edited by: xtrailer

    If you don't want to share anything with others while in Public spaces then uncheck File Sharing options.
    It sounds like they are allowing others to share/see their Mac's but that's no worry for you

  • Spoof dialog Boxes security issue

    Hi all
    Any one out there aware of this security issue with Safari
    "Secunia Research has discovered a vulnerability in various browser's, which can be exploited by malicious web sites to spoof dialog boxes.
    The problem is that JavaScript dialog boxes do not display or include their origin, which allows a new window to open e.g. a prompt dialog box, which appears to be from a trusted site."
    I found the above by accident as i was looking up something else.
    If you go to Secunia site and try the test you may find that you are also vulnerable.
    http://secunia.com/multiple_browser'sdialog_origin_vulnerabilitytest/
    The only way i found to stop the spoof dialog box was to turn off enable plug-ins in preferences. However i don't have any plug-ins in my Safari plug-in folder.
    I'am running safari 1.3(v312) however it would appear that it also effects version 2.2 of Safari too. Also i have installed the latest update but to no effect. Other browser effect are:-
    _ Internet Explorer for Mac
    - Internet Explorer
    - Opera
    - iCab
    - Mozilla / FireFox / Camino
    My question is, is this vulnerability true, or just a setup
    Any comments welcome.
    ~Tim

    Hi,
    The issue is resolved, but I don't know what caused this error.
    I uninstalled the java components and BO then I deleted the BO folder under program files, then I deleted all BO entries in the registry.
    Finally I reinstalled everything except the service pack and that finally worked. I don't know the cause of this error.
    Regards,
    Marcela

  • Ip phone and pc VLAN security issue - ISE 1.0

    Hello there.
    We are about to implement IP phones to our current network and during testing I have found 2 issues.
    1- ip phone connects to a protected port using ISE mab authentication for the data network.
    The voice VLAN is set up static on the port. The pc VLAN is given by ISE profiling.
    Then the issue is that once the pc connects to the VLAN it belongs to from the ip phone it leaves open that vlan on that port which means that if I connect another pc it will get the original VLAN the port had open up the connection with. This is a big security issue as computers that should not be allowed on specific VLAN can access them this way.
    2- once the connection is up and running on the port for both the phone and the pc, there is re-authentication Happening every minute to ISE. The Authentication logs are getting so many messages for just one port. So once we convert from 2 ip phones to 500, that is definitely going to generate a lot of unnecessary traffic.
    Let me know your thoughts...thanks
    Port config info....below
    interface GigabitEthernet0/2
    description Extra port by Camilos Desk
    switchport mode access
    switchport voice vlan 220
    srr-queue bandwidth share 1 30 35 5
    priority-queue out
    authentication event fail action next-method
    authentication event server alive action reinitialize
    authentication host-mode multi-auth
    authentication open
    authentication order mab dot1x
    authentication port-control auto
    authentication periodic
    authentication timer reauthenticate server
    mab
    mls qos trust cos
    snmp trap mac-notification change added
    auto qos trust
    spanning-tree portfast
    end

    On # 1
    You have the make sure that
    "authentication host-mode multi-domain" command is under each port
    This will allow one voice vlan and only one PC vlan at any given time. If you disconnect a PC and connect onother PC mac address to it, the phone will reinitialize to accept or reject the new mac based on its profile.
    On #2
    I have not found a solution. But what I have found after deployment is that it has happend only on 2 VOIP phones, out of 70 that we have as of now. So it might to be related to ISE.
    On the other hand we are not using Cisco phones but mitel. So this might be a whole issueon itself.
    Hope this helps.

  • Conflict with Kaspersky Internet Security 2014 for MAC

    I installed Kaspersky Internet Security 2014 for MAC.
    Its Web anti-virus function does not work well. After enable for a while, it blocks all internet connection.
    I tried many ways, included
    - putting Safari, Itune, ...into KIS's Trust Zone application
    - set Pravacy for KIS control OS X
    but it seems no effect.
    Is there someone getting the same issue with me?
    Any solution?
    Thanks.

    Despite repeated attempts I was unable to install Kaspersky's latest software on a new copy of Mavericks shortly after its release.
    Its installer failed:
    Kaspersky's product may have been updated in the last couple of weeks, but given that developers have had many months to prepare for Mavericks, it calls their competence into question. It's your Mac, install what you want, but the number of problems reported on this site that are directly attributable to using such junk exceed those caused by actual malware by orders of magnitude.
    Protect yourself by observing these few basic principles, not by delegating that responsibility to Kaspersky or anything like it:
    Never install any product that claims to "speed up", "clean up", "optimize", or "accelerate" your Mac. Without exception, they will do the opposite.
    Never install pirated or "cracked" software, software obtained from dubious websites, or other questionable sources. Illegally obtained software is almost certain to contain malware.
    Don’t supply your password in response to a popup window requesting it, unless you know what it is and the reason your credentials are required.
    Don’t open email attachments from email addresses that you do not recognize, or click links contained in an email:
    Most of these are scams that direct you to fraudulent sites that attempt to convince you to disclose personal information.
    Such "phishing" attempts are the 21st century equivalent of a social exploit that has existed since the dawn of civilization. Don’t fall for it.
    Apple will never ask you to reveal personal information in an email. If you receive an unexpected email from Apple saying your account will be closed unless you take immediate action, just ignore it. If your iTunes or App Store account becomes disabled for valid reasons, you will know when you try to buy something or log in to this support site, and are unable to.
    Don’t install browser extensions unless you understand their purpose. Go to the Safari menu > Preferences > Extensions. If you see any extensions that you do not recognize or understand, simply click the Uninstall button and they will be gone.
    Don’t install Java unless you are certain that you need it:
    Java, a non-Apple product, is a potential vector for malware. If you are required to use Java, be mindful of that possibility.
    Disable Java in Safari > Preferences > Security.
    Despite its name JavaScript is unrelated to Java. No malware can infect your Mac through JavaScript. It’s OK to leave it enabled.
    Block browser popups: Safari menu > Preferences > Security > and check "Block popup windows":
    Popup windows are useful and required for some websites, but popups have devolved to become a common means to deliver targeted advertising that you probably do not want.
    Popups themselves cannot infect your Mac, but many contain resource-hungry code that will slow down Internet browsing.
    If you ever see a popup indicating it detected registry errors, that your Mac is infected with some ick, or that you won some prize, it is 100% fraudulent. Ignore it.
    Ignore hyperventilating popular media outlets that thrive by promoting fear and discord with entertainment products arrogantly presented as "news". Learn what real threats actually exist and how to arm yourself against them:
    The most serious threat to your data security is phishing. To date, most of these attempts have been pathetic and are easily recognized, but that is likely to change in the future as criminals become more clever.
    OS X viruses do not exist, but intentionally malicious or poorly written code, created by either nefarious or inept individuals, is nothing new.
    Never install something without first knowing what it is, what it does, how it works, and how to get rid of it when you don’t want it any more.
    If you elect to use "anti-virus" software, familiarize yourself with its limitations and potential to cause adverse effects, and apply the principle immediately preceding this one.
    Most such utilities will only slow down and destabilize your Mac while they look for viruses that do not exist, conveying no benefit whatsoever - other than to make you "feel good" about security, when you should actually be exercising sound judgment, derived from accurate knowledge, based on verifiable facts.
    Do install updates from Apple as they become available. No one knows more about Macs and how to protect them than the company that builds them.
    Summary: Use common sense and caution when you use your Mac, just like you would in any social context. There is no product, utility, or magic talisman that can protect you from all the evils of mankind.

  • Severe Security Issue with Sharing Permissions and Windows

    I recently discovered a severe Security issue with the windows sharing an permission settings:
    I have two users, an admin user and a parental controlled user. On my mac mini, i have a external harddrive connected. On the harddrive, i have three folders, Itunes, Iphoto (Package) and a Temp Folder. I want to share the Harddrive RW for the admin, but only R for the parental user. But the Temp folder should be accessible for RW for the parental as well.
    1. I set the Drive checkbox "ignore ownership" off.
    2. I set the permissions of the drive to admin RW, parental R and Everyone to "no access"
    3. I apply to enclosed Items
    4. I set the permission of the Temp folder to admin RW, parental RW and Everyone to "no access"
    5. I apply to enclosed Items
    6. I go to "File Sharing" in the Preferences and activate SMB sharing for both users
    7. I delete all previous shares
    8. I add the Disk and use the proposed permissions which are admin RW, parental R, Everyone "no access"
    9. I add the Temp folder and use the proposed permissions which are admin RW, parental RW, Everyone "no access" - Funny, there is a new Group called "Temp" created which has custom access on both sharepoints
    10. I connect to the mac over a Windows machine (NTLM auth set appropriatly). Now I try to create a folder on the root of the Disk share, I get a denied message.
    BUT WHEN I GO INTO A SUBFOLDER (eg. ITUNES or IPHOTO), WHICH HAS ALSO JUST "R" PERMISSION FOR THE PARENTAL USER, I AM ABLE TO RW, DELETE AND DO EVERYTHING!!!
    TO RECAPITULATE: THE SHARING PERMISSIONS ARE "R", AND THE FILE PERMISSIONS IN THE RESPECTIVE FOLDERS FOR THE RESPECTIVE USER ARE ALSO JUST "R". BUT THE USER CAN DO EVERYTHING IN THE SUBFOLDERS!!!

    I recently discovered a severe Security issue with the windows sharing an permission settings:
    I have two users, an admin user and a parental controlled user. On my mac mini, i have a external harddrive connected. On the harddrive, i have three folders, Itunes, Iphoto (Package) and a Temp Folder. I want to share the Harddrive RW for the admin, but only R for the parental user. But the Temp folder should be accessible for RW for the parental as well.
    1. I set the Drive checkbox "ignore ownership" off.
    2. I set the permissions of the drive to admin RW, parental R and Everyone to "no access"
    3. I apply to enclosed Items
    4. I set the permission of the Temp folder to admin RW, parental RW and Everyone to "no access"
    5. I apply to enclosed Items
    6. I go to "File Sharing" in the Preferences and activate SMB sharing for both users
    7. I delete all previous shares
    8. I add the Disk and use the proposed permissions which are admin RW, parental R, Everyone "no access"
    9. I add the Temp folder and use the proposed permissions which are admin RW, parental RW, Everyone "no access" - Funny, there is a new Group called "Temp" created which has custom access on both sharepoints
    10. I connect to the mac over a Windows machine (NTLM auth set appropriatly). Now I try to create a folder on the root of the Disk share, I get a denied message.
    BUT WHEN I GO INTO A SUBFOLDER (eg. ITUNES or IPHOTO), WHICH HAS ALSO JUST "R" PERMISSION FOR THE PARENTAL USER, I AM ABLE TO RW, DELETE AND DO EVERYTHING!!!
    TO RECAPITULATE: THE SHARING PERMISSIONS ARE "R", AND THE FILE PERMISSIONS IN THE RESPECTIVE FOLDERS FOR THE RESPECTIVE USER ARE ALSO JUST "R". BUT THE USER CAN DO EVERYTHING IN THE SUBFOLDERS!!!

  • Any security issues with My MSN or outlook bookmarks

    any security issues with My Msn and Outlook as bookmarks

    Your question is not quite clear, and no Mac can iOS, but anything and everything made by or for Microsoft carries a security risk.
    Which is why most sensible people run Apple OS X.

  • Safari unexpectedly quit with warning of Security Issue

    Safari unexpectedly quit with warning of Security Issue.
    A window appeared that said,
    "Safari Alert
    Suspicious Activity Might have been detected
    Major Security Issue
    To Fix it please call Support for Apple 1-800656-8559 (Toll Free) Immediately
    Browser can't connect to the Server"
    I did not believe this message and went to Apple support using Firefox and found the answer by stedman1, under a previous submission by mjbaur.
    I just want to complement stedman1 and make sure he gets some points.

    SCAM
    NEVER follow instructions
    use another browser
    The Safe Mac » Adware Removal Guide
    download and run AdwareMedic
    be safe when visiting SOME websites - in cahoots OR have been hacked
    ÇÇÇ

  • Security issues faced by users of unsupported OS versions?

    Since Tiger users will relatively soon be in the same situation, I'm wondering what kinds of security issues 10.3.9 users have been faced with now that Panther has for some time not been supported by Apple (including no more security updates). I posted the following in the Tiger Forum, but I'd really appreciate hearing what your experience has been. (BD Aqua in Tiger thought issues simply to do with getting around the Internet would be more the problem than safety).
    I realize I will, sooner or later, have to buy a new Mac and install a more current version, but I would like to postpone this as long as possible. Thanks.
    http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2033860&tstart=0
    Now that S Leo has been officially announced for release in September, a question I've been meaning to ask for a while. What do we Tiger stalwarts have to look forward to in terms of security issues once there are no more security updates, and when, presumably, there are no more new browser versions or updates for soon to be archaic PPC and Tiger? (PPC, I realize, is a separate issue). Will we be, to put it simply, screwed and will it become impossible to safely navigate the internet? I realize the browser issues will probably arrive somewhat later than the OS security issues, since there will continue to be secure third party browsers, at least for a while.
    Since we will, relatively soon, be in a similar position, I'm wondering how the folks still running 10.3.9 are >managing with this? (Might post this over there, too.)

    Most security updates fix holes in the system that can be exploited by hackers. However, hackers are mostly interested in gaining access to systems that have something of value. An individual's system has virtually nothing of value worth a hacker's time and effort. It's far easier for them to get what they want via Internet phishing exploits, but such exploits cannot be fixed by security releases. They require effort on the part of the user to be careful about sites they visit and clicking on links they know nothing about thus providing information about themselves such as social security and/or banking numbers. No amount of security patches will help you with this.
    Most security patches recently issued relate to holes in Safari with a couple for the system. These are obscure holes that require hackers to have intimate knowledge of the software to exploit them. None of these exploits have been known to be used in the field. Rather they have been demonstrated as a way of exposing their existence so they can be fixed.

  • What is the best security software for mac?

    I had Norton years ago but found it slowed things down unacceptably at the time and so have never revisited it since. However, as internet infection becomes more prevalent on Macs I am considering some kind of protection.
    1. What is the general feeling for the most optimal security software for Mac kit?
    2. Are there any side effects that one should be aware of which might affect the Mac or software operations?
    Thanks and regards

    1. This is a comment on what you should—and should not—do to protect yourself from malicious software ("malware") that circulates on the Internet and gets onto a computer as an unintended consequence of the user's actions. It does not apply to software, such as keystroke loggers, that may be installed deliberately by an intruder who has hands-on access to the computer, or who has been able to log in to it remotely. That threat is in a different category, and there's no easy way to defend against it.
    If you find this comment too long or too technical, read only sections 5, 6, and 10.
    OS X now implements three layers of built-in protection specifically against malware, not counting runtime protections such as execute disable, sandboxing, system library randomization, and address space layout randomization that may also guard against other kinds of exploits.
    2. All versions of OS X since 10.6.7 have been able to detect known Mac malware in downloaded files, and to block insecure web plugins. This feature is transparent to the user. Internally Apple calls it "XProtect."
    The malware recognition database used by XProtect is automatically updated; however, you shouldn't rely on it, because the attackers are always at least a day ahead of the defenders.
    The following caveats apply to XProtect:
    ☞ It can be bypassed by some third-party networking software, such as BitTorrent clients and Java applets.
    ☞ It only applies to software downloaded from the network. Software installed from a CD or other media is not checked.
    As new versions of OS X are released, it's not clear whether Apple will indefinitely continue to maintain the XProtect database of older versions such as 10.6. The security of obsolete system versions may eventually be degraded. Security updates to the code of obsolete systems will stop being released at some point, and that may leave them open to other kinds of attack besides malware.
    3. Starting with OS X 10.7.5, there has been a second layer of built-in malware protection, designated "Gatekeeper" by Apple. By default, applications and Installer packages downloaded from the network will only run if they're digitally signed by a developer with a certificate issued by Apple. Software certified in this way hasn't necessarily been tested by Apple, but you can be reasonably sure that it hasn't been modified by anyone other than the developer. His identity is known to Apple, so he could be held legally responsible if he distributed malware. That may not mean much if the developer lives in a country with a weak legal system (see below.)
    Gatekeeper doesn't depend on a database of known malware. It has, however, the same limitations as XProtect, and in addition the following:
    ☞ It can easily be disabled or overridden by the user.
    ☞ A malware attacker could get control of a code-signing certificate under false pretenses, or could simply ignore the consequences of distributing codesigned malware.
    ☞ An App Store developer could find a way to bypass Apple's oversight, or the oversight could fail due to human error.
    Apple has so far failed to revoke the codesigning certificates of some known abusers, thereby diluting the value of Gatekeeper and the Developer ID program. These failures don't involve App Store products, however.
    For the reasons given, App Store products, and—to a lesser extent—other applications recognized by Gatekeeper as signed, are safer than others, but they can't be considered absolutely safe. "Sandboxed" applications may prompt for access to private data, such as your contacts, or for access to the network. Think before granting that access. Sandbox security is based on user input. Never click through any request for authorization without thinking.
    4. Starting with OS X 10.8.3, a third layer of protection has been added: a "Malware Removal Tool" (MRT). MRT runs automatically in the background when you update the OS. It checks for, and removes, malware that may have evaded the other protections via a Java exploit (see below.) MRT also runs when you install or update the Apple-supplied Java runtime (but not the Oracle runtime.) Like XProtect, MRT is effective against known threats, but not against unknown ones. It notifies you if it finds malware, but otherwise there's no user interface to MRT.
    5. The built-in security features of OS X reduce the risk of malware attack, but they are not, and never will be, complete protection. Malware is a problem of human behavior, and a technological fix is not going to solve it. Trusting software to protect you will only make you more vulnerable.
    The best defense is always going to be your own intelligence. With the possible exception of Java exploits, all known malware circulating on the Internet that affects a fully-updated installation of OS X 10.6 or later takes the form of so-called "Trojan horses," which can only have an effect if the victim is duped into running them. The threat therefore amounts to a battle of wits between you and the scam artists. If you're smarter than they think you are, you'll win. That means, in practice, that you always stay within a safe harbor of computing practices. How do you know when you're leaving the safe harbor? Below are some warning signs of danger.
    Software from an untrustworthy source
    ☞ Software of any kind is distributed via BitTorrent, or Usenet, or on a website that also distributes pirated music or movies.
    ☞ Software with a corporate brand, such as Adobe Flash Player, doesn't come directly from the developer’s website. Do not trust an alert from any website to update Flash, or your browser, or any other software.
    ☞ Rogue websites such as Softonic and CNET Download distribute free applications that have been packaged in a superfluous "installer."
    ☞ The software is advertised by means of spam or intrusive web ads. Any ad, on any site, that includes a direct link to a download should be ignored.
    Software that is plainly illegal or does something illegal
    ☞ High-priced commercial software such as Photoshop is "cracked" or "free."
    ☞ An application helps you to infringe copyright, for instance by circumventing the copy protection on commercial software, or saving streamed media for reuse without permission.
    Conditional or unsolicited offers from strangers
    ☞ A telephone caller or a web page tells you that you have a “virus” and offers to help you remove it. (Some reputable websites did legitimately warn visitors who were infected with the "DNSChanger" malware. That exception to this rule no longer applies.)
    ☞ A web site offers free content such as video or music, but to use it you must install a “codec,” “plug-in,” "player," "downloader," "extractor," or “certificate” that comes from that same site, or an unknown one.
    ☞ You win a prize in a contest you never entered.
    ☞ Someone on a message board such as this one is eager to help you, but only if you download an application of his choosing.
    ☞ A "FREE WI-FI !!!" network advertises itself in a public place such as an airport, but is not provided by the management.
    ☞ Anything online that you would expect to pay for is "free."
    Unexpected events
    ☞ A file is downloaded automatically when you visit a web page, with no other action on your part. Delete any such file without opening it.
    ☞ You open what you think is a document and get an alert that it's "an application downloaded from the Internet." Click Cancel and delete the file. Even if you don't get the alert, you should still delete any file that isn't what you expected it to be.
    ☞ An application does something you don't expect, such as asking for permission to access your contacts, your location, or the Internet for no obvious reason.
    ☞ Software is attached to email that you didn't request, even if it comes (or seems to come) from someone you trust.
    I don't say that leaving the safe harbor just once will necessarily result in disaster, but making a habit of it will weaken your defenses against malware attack. Any of the above scenarios should, at the very least, make you uncomfortable.
    6. Java on the Web (not to be confused with JavaScript, to which it's not related, despite the similarity of the names) is a weak point in the security of any system. Java is, among other things, a platform for running complex applications in a web page, on the client. That was always a bad idea, and Java's developers have proven themselves incapable of implementing it without also creating a portal for malware to enter. Past Java exploits are the closest thing there has ever been to a Windows-style virus affecting OS X. Merely loading a page with malicious Java content could be harmful.
    Fortunately, client-side Java on the Web is obsolete and mostly extinct. Only a few outmoded sites still use it. Try to hasten the process of extinction by avoiding those sites, if you have a choice. Forget about playing games or other non-essential uses of Java.
    Java is not included in OS X 10.7 and later. Discrete Java installers are distributed by Apple and by Oracle (the developer of Java.) Don't use either one unless you need it. Most people don't. If Java is installed, disable it—not JavaScript—in your browsers.
    Regardless of version, experience has shown that Java on the Web can't be trusted. If you must use a Java applet for a task on a specific site, enable Java only for that site in Safari. Never enable Java for a public website that carries third-party advertising. Use it only on well-known, login-protected, secure websites without ads. In Safari 6 or later, you'll see a lock icon in the address bar with the abbreviation "https" when visiting a secure site.
    Stay within the safe harbor, and you’ll be as safe from malware as you can practically be. The rest of this comment concerns what you should not do to protect yourself.
    7. Never install any commercial "anti-virus" (AV) or "Internet security" products for the Mac, as they are all worse than useless. If you need to be able to detect Windows malware in your files, use one of the free security apps in the Mac App Store—nothing else.
    Why shouldn't you use commercial AV products?
    ☞ To recognize malware, the software depends on a database of known threats, which is always at least a day out of date. This technique is a proven failure, as a major AV software vendor has admitted. Most attacks are "zero-day"—that is, previously unknown. Recognition-based AV does not defend against such attacks, and the enterprise IT industry is coming to the realization that traditional AV software is worthless.
    ☞ Its design is predicated on the nonexistent threat that malware may be injected at any time, anywhere in the file system. Malware is downloaded from the network; it doesn't materialize from nowhere. In order to meet that nonexistent threat, commercial AV software modifies or duplicates low-level functions of the operating system, which is a waste of resources and a common cause of instability, bugs, and poor performance.
    ☞ By modifying the operating system, the software may also create weaknesses that could be exploited by malware attackers.
    ☞ Most importantly, a false sense of security is dangerous.
    8. An AV product from the App Store, such as "ClamXav," has the same drawback as the commercial suites of being always out of date, but it does not inject low-level code into the operating system. That doesn't mean it's entirely harmless. It may report email messages that have "phishing" links in the body, or Windows malware in attachments, as infected files, and offer to delete or move them. Doing so will corrupt the Mail database. The messages should be deleted from within the Mail application.
    An AV app is not needed, and cannot be relied upon, for protection against OS X malware. It's useful, if at all, only for detecting Windows malware, and even for that use it's not really effective, because new Windows malware is emerging much faster than OS X malware.
    Windows malware can't harm you directly (unless, of course, you use Windows.) Just don't pass it on to anyone else. A malicious attachment in email is usually easy to recognize by the name alone. An actual example:
    London Terror Moovie.avi [124 spaces] Checked By Norton Antivirus.exe
    You don't need software to tell you that's a Windows trojan. Software may be able to tell you which trojan it is, but who cares? In practice, there's no reason to use recognition software unless an organizational policy requires it. Windows malware is so widespread that you should assume it's in every email attachment until proven otherwise. Nevertheless, ClamXav or a similar product from the App Store may serve a purpose if it satisfies an ill-informed network administrator who says you must run some kind of AV application. It's free and it won't handicap the system.
    The ClamXav developer won't try to "upsell" you to a paid version of the product. Other developers may do that. Don't be upsold. For one thing, you should not pay to protect Windows users from the consequences of their choice of computing platform. For another, a paid upgrade from a free app will probably have all the disadvantages mentioned in section 7.
    9. It seems to be a common belief that the built-in Application Firewall acts as a barrier to infection, or prevents malware from functioning. It does neither. It blocks inbound connections to certain network services you're running, such as file sharing. It's disabled by default and you should leave it that way if you're behind a router on a private home or office network. Activate it only when you're on an untrusted network, for instance a public Wi-Fi hotspot, where you don't want to provide services. Disable any services you don't use in the Sharing preference pane. All are disabled by default.
    10. As a Mac user, you don't have to live in fear that your computer may be infected every time you install software, read email, or visit a web page. But neither can you assume that you will always be safe from exploitation, no matter what you do. Navigating the Internet is like walking the streets of a big city. It's as safe or as dangerous as you choose to make it. The greatest harm done by security software is precisely its selling point: it makes people feel safe. They may then feel safe enough to take risks from which the software doesn't protect them. Nothing can lessen the need for safe computing practices.

  • /bin/sh replaced by busybox /etc replaced - security issues ?

    I have a mac pro (10.5.5) that keeps crashing - it's done it three times - each time the symptom is the same. It can't run /bin/sh during the boot - I started digging into the forensics and found that /etc has been replaced by a dir with four files (localtime memberd.conf mtab udev) instead of the usual link to /private/etc.
    Stranger still /bin/sh has been replaces with a symlink to a linux executable /bin/busybox
    I suspecting some sort of security issue but can't for the life of me figure out what. Google shows up nothing, scans with VirusBarrier X5 show nothing (since uninstalled because at one point I suspected it).
    I'm stumped.

    I've just had the same thing happen to me.
    I rebooted my Mac Pro after running a Permissions Repair and it hung on the blue screen.
    When I boot from a clone of my primary drive, the primary drive has the same /etc you see, and /bin/sh is a link to /bin/busybox.
    I can't figure this one out either.
    The only software I have installed recently is MacPGP and GPGMail, and of course the 10.5.6 Apple update from the full Combo image.
    No idea at what point this happened, but it certainly *****.
    Yesterday I re-installed 10.5.0 and then updated with Combo 10.5.6 to the latest to recover from a Drive Genius failure (stupid thing destroyed my primary), so I've got a very fresh install.
    Cannot imaging what has happened.
    Other strange issues just before I rebooted (and why I rebooted), were that iTerm could not install due to permissions errors, and the machine failed to boot in single user mode, probably due to the /bin/sh switch.

  • Mozilla releases Firefox 39, patches 22 security issues

    Mozilla released Firefox 39, a new version that, in addition to patching 22 security issues, now checks downloads for malware on OSX and Linux.According to Myce, Mozilla marked 13 of the 22 security patches as critical, which means "an attacker can fully take over the computer of a user with a vulnerable Firefox version." Mozilla also patched the security vulnerabilityLogjam, which lets an attacker see ormodify a user's data by weakening the TLS encryption.Other patches and new features in Firefox 39 include:A patch for Mac users solved the problem where crash reports would sometimes contain personal information, such as a user's keystrokes. Problems with "the built-in PDF reader of Firefox has also been resolved," according to Myce. In a bid to offer better security protection against malware and adware, Mozilla addedGoogle's Safe...
    This topic first appeared in the Spiceworks Community

    If you can't switch to a proper security suite and you absolutely need all the browser integration bells and whistles, then you can downgrade to the ESR version of Firefox. It's a special version intented for organizations. It gets security patches regularly, but it only changes major versions once per year.
    * http://www.mozilla.org/firefox/organizations/all.html
    New major versions of Firefox have been released every 6 weeks since [http://www.mozilla.org/firefox/4.0/releasenotes/ March 22nd, 2011].
    * https://blog.mozilla.org/futurereleases/2011/07/19/every-six-weeks/
    Every new major version contains security fixes. By sticking with an old version like 20.0.1, you're putting your system at risk.
    * https://www.mozilla.org/security/known-vulnerabilities/firefox.html
    Chrome's release model is similar.
    * http://www.chromium.org/developers/calendar
    * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Chrome#Release_history
    Opera will be updated every 2 weeks.
    * http://my.opera.com/desktopteam/blog/2013/07/02/opera-15
    Internet Explorer for Windows XP is 2 major versions behind and will never be updated. In theory, it's supported with security patches for as long as Windows XP is supported, but not so much in practice.
    * http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2361485,00.asp
    Safari for Windows has been abandoned.
    * [http://www.maximumpc.com/article/news/safari_windows_abandoned_apple_leaving_users_vulnerable_no_warning http://www.maximumpc.com/article/news/safari_windows_abandoned_…]

Maybe you are looking for