Java Worm Targets Mac OS X
Macs have long been known for how resistant they are against viruses. I myself switched from a very susceptible HP to a Mac and it was incredible. However there is a new trojan horse virus that is now sweeping through Apple computers. This trojan horse is affecting Macs, especially those running the new version of OS X. This virus is disguised as a video and is transferred through social networking sites such as Facebook, and Myspace. When the infected link is clicked, the trojan runs first, as a java applet which downloads other files to the computer. The trojan runs immediately and invisibly and modifies the system to bypass the need for passwords allowing access to all files on the system.
Although this is a terrible thing for computer users the creation of this virus does have some good sides. It creates the opportunity to make money by creating an advanced security system for the Mac. It will also make the users of Mac products think twice about what they click on and where they go. It will increase the how much spam email is deleted as well as how many computer trojan defense systems are purchased by users and corporations.
These results aside, this new trojan is obviously going to have mostly negative results. The amount of people that go on Facebook and other similar websites everyday is an mind boggling. As stated in the article, once a computer is infected, the virus sends itself to other computers through spam emails and social networking websites. There will be a sharp increase in the amount of identity thefts, and credit card fraud if a solution is not found to counter act this virus. There is a lot of personal information on a computer that can get accessed and used with bad intentions if it falls into the wrong hands. The fact that the virus runs invisibly in the background while the computer is downloading Java is almost genius. The user will think that the computer is just downloading something that i did not have while in reality this virus is changing the system so that a hacker some where can bypass all of you computers passwords and gain all of your information. Not only will it access you computer, but you online passwords will be bypasses as well. This means that if you have an account with Bank of America online banking, or Charles Schwab and online stock trading, all of that information could be accessed as well.
In my opinion, it was only a matter of time before a virus was created that could hack Apple computers. I think that the hackers new exactly what they were doing when they created it because they targeted one of the most heavily visited on the entire internet, with the most amount of users. I think that by the law of numbers, an extraordinary amount of people are going to click on this link and ultimately get an infected computer.
http://www.informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2010/10/java_worm_targe.html
1 comment:
This blog is describing something that will, and already has, affected users of apple computers. I know that when I was looking to buy a computer to bring to school I wanted to get an apple. Along with the software and all of the other benefits I saw, one of the biggest ones was the fact that apple computers did not get viruses. Especially being at school where I knew I would need my computer every single day for homework and everything else, I wanted to be sure that I took any precaution necessary. Well, now apparently that does not matter as much anymore because apple computers can now get viruses through this new Trojan horse.
This is something that will definitely affect college students especially because it is being run through sites like facebook. I have actually had personal experience with this. A few weeks ago my roommate received a post on his wall from a friend of his, someone we all know. The post had a link attached to it which said it would bring him to a video, and the comment below said something like watch what you are doing in this video. When he clicked on it the video did not come up, but rather the screen went blank. He knew something was wrong so he closed down the Internet and shut off his computer. Luckily he did not give it enough time to do anything to him. However, when he clicked on the link it sent the same thing to every single one of his friends on facebook. It sent it with the same comment and every thing, the only difference was that the sender was now him instead of the other kid. He immediately made it his status for people not to click on the link and told us and anyone else he could to delete it.
A few weeks later I received a notification via email that someone I have not talked to in a while had posted something on my wall. When I went to facebook to see what the post was, it was the same thing my roommate had received. Having the knowledge of what it was I deleted it and then sent my friend a message telling him what I had gotten so he could let other people know not to click on it.
Nobody that I personally know has been affected by this. The fact is however that this is something that could really mess things up for apple users, and everyone. Putting it on facebook is a very clever way to get people to download it because there are so many people on facebook. People just have to make sure to be extra careful of what they click on and who they are receiving messages from, because if they are not careful the results could be terrible. I have told everyone I know to watch out for this, so hopefully word of mouth will help contain some damage.
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