Reports indicate that someone has let loose a “Trojan horse” or worm for Mac OS X users. The program is hidden within a package that purportedly contains screenshots of Apple’s as-yet unannounced next major revision to Mac OS X. Whether it’s a Trojan horse or worm seems to vary depending on the source of the information. The code has also elicited a response from Apple, and a warning to its customers.
The package, called “latestpics.tgz,” first surfaced recently on a Mac rumors Web site. Independently verified by Ambrosia Software president Andrew Welch, he’s dubbed it the “Oompa-Loompa Trojan,” because the files in question check for the presence of an attribute called “oompa” — an apparent reference to the movie and book “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.”
1. If you open attachments from unverified sources, you get what you deserve.
2. The level of maturity of someone creating an “Oompa-Loompa Trojan” has to be suspect.
Much attention has focused on Mac OS superior resistance to these type of attacks- is there a real platform superiority in this area or has some grade-school geek that didn’t know the Mac secret handshake just breach the levy?
The most secure OS will still get infected if the user open an infected file and allows it to run. With many windows viruses you didn’t have to do anything, just visiting a website or using outhouse or outhouse express for your email exposed the user to a cornacopiea of badness. Thats the difference.
clockwork –
if you read the description of this “worm”, you’ll see that not only do you have to download a random file sent to you with no explanation, but once it is downloaded, you have to enter an administrator password for it to do anything. It will probably have very minimal impact.
Steve, I understand that OSX normally runs ‘safer’ than windows- I am not a ms apologist by any means. As the number of Mac users increase, I wonder if there will be more non-savy users willing to click through prompts and risk the consequences. Your f-in-law was lucky to have you to administer his pc- can you imajine when (and if) a Mac OS ends up in the hands of x- thousand(s) of f-in-laws( no offence)- will they similiarly demand unfettered control of their machines? Will they ignore Mac prompts as windows users so often do? My father routinely clicks through IE start page change warnings with the expected consequence. Is OSX strong enough to stand up to a large increase in users and a presumably large increase in the number malware attacks aimed specifically at the Mac? If Vista lives up to some of the hype and fixes the more egregious current windows flaws then I think we’ll have a real world exercise in examining malware migration.
I also can’t help recalling Apple’s claims of processor speed comparisons, prior to shipping an Intel system.
While this is notable, who one Earth would download a zipped image, open it and then type their admin password?
Good grief.
What difference does it make Mr. Dvorak….Apple will be switching to Windows soon….right? Mr. Dvorak? Right?…….hello?
Scott, do the numbers 4/1 mean anything to you?
Funny how this virus comes out right when I, and a number of my coworkers, are thinking of moving to the Mac platform. Anyone else see any parallel between this and the Intel chip move building brand momentum?
JD,
Inspired by your column about Mac making the switch to Windows and the recent posts on OSx86project.org:
A Poetic Future
There once was a fantastic OS
But they kept it locked away in a chest
Out of reach for the masses at large
One crusader named Maxxuss took charge
To hack and crack this great nut open wide
So the community at large would make stride
Toward a pleasant and euphoric user experience
With a GUI so pretty it made them delirious
The irony of the great leader’s lack
To see how the money keeps coming back
Was the frustration of all in the know
Who were itching to give it a go
But to the community pushing open-source
They knew it was an inevitable course
And thanks to the work of just a few great masters
It was only a matter of time, running faster
Before I was running the greatest OS
On my ugly but affordable HP Laptop, Oh yes!
To the dismay of the elite before us it seems
Who always had the OS of their dreams
They ended up with just a prettier case
For the same old OS used by nearly the entire human race
But even they overcame their disbelief and rage
When they realized the potential of being out of the cage
And at the end of day the two kings saw more
Of the riches and monopolies they adore
And its crazy the way this story ends
Because even Gates and Jobs finished friends
mtupper
2006.02.17
Yeah James, I thought about that also.
Actually, next tax refund I’m switching to OSX. I build my own systems, but since Vista will be partially hostile to that type of thing (from what I’ve read so far, but I hope in the end it will be hobbiest friendly, we’ll see), I’ll head back to Mac land. I like changing things up a bit every few years anyway. I’ll stay there until I get sick and fed up with that system then come back.
You know…the grass is always greener syndrome.
But hey, good times right?
Repeat after me :
Malware != Virus.
Malware != Worm.
Malware = Reliance_on_Stupid_User
Malware can never be stopped on any platform where the user knows the admin password.
This is no threat to OSX users, and only serves to highlight how good OSX’s security is. Because Im thinking… “and this is the best they can come up with?” lol!
> 2. The level of maturity of someone
> creating an “Oompa-Loompa Trojan” has to be suspect.
I suspect it says more about the maturity of the marks (the Mac users) than it does about the author.