DIGITAL LIFE

MacStealer: latest threat detected for Mac!

As much as Apple rightly prides itself on the security of its operating systems, it is inevitable that, from time to time, cybercriminals will insist on taking advantage of a vulnerability to attack. According to a report shared by security researchers at Uptycs,** New malware targeting Macs called MacStealer has been identified.**

MacStealer is designed to extract iCloud passwords especially those related to our financial data like passwords, cookies and credit card data from Firefox, Google Chrome and Microsoft Brave browsers. The report specifies that it can extract several different file types, including .txt, .doc, .jpg and .zip, and it can extract the Mac password manager database, KeyChain.

MacStealer tries to get hold of financial data...Uptycs discovered the existence of MacStealer through its search on the “dark web”. The creator of this malware promotes its skills and makes it available to criminals for $100 per build. Unlike other macOS malware, it is still unknown how the “weed.dmg” file is distributed, but opening this DMG file is enough to infect a Mac.

The researchers explained that the malware collects the data, compresses it into a single zip file, sends the file and deletes it from the Mac. So far Apple has not commented on this:

It's unclear whether MacStealer was registered in the CVE.report database, which tracks vulnerabilities and exposures, and Apple has not commented on the malware. Apple released updates for macOS Big Sur, Monterey and Ventura on Monday, but based on security notes, those updates don't appear to include patches for MacStealer.

Despite posing a considerable risk, MacStealer is easily detectable by Gatekeeper, which will block it on most Macs running macOS Catalina or later with Intel or Apple M-series chips that are targets for this virus.

while it's being distributed by an app called Weed, with a marijuana icon it probably won't seem like a safe thing for many users. But when it doesn't, it serves its purpose by running the app manually and then you have to enter Mac password to grant access to System Settings for it to work.

Undoubtedly, and although there are many warnings to get rid of this malware, its existence reminds us once again of the importance of downloading applications from the Mac App Store or from trusted developer sites.

Gabriela Martínez, iPadizate