Flashback: Malware made for Me and You

The Mac Flashback malware was made for me and you: Mac users. The malware was a huge threat that affected more Macs than any other virus in history. When it all went down in April, Intego did a good job describing in detail what Flashback is capable of doing and why hackers infected computers with it. As Mac users take heed of the warning that Macs are now vulnerable to malware, it's clear that Flashback has raised the visibility of the Mac malware situation.

Even though more people now understand that Macs are not immune to malware, overall security knowledge among Mac users still lags. It's understandable, specific details about the Flashback malware are not easy to wrap your head around. That is until Intego broke it down into its simplest terms. Here's an infographic showing how the Flashback Trojan horse infected Macs.



Source:Intego

Could this be a Mac Virus or a Trojan?

Malware: OSX/flashback.A

You're sitting there minding your own business, just browsing the Web on your new MacBook Pro. Mac antivirus? Nah, you were told you don't need it. So you're at your desk or office, or wherever, and you know you've never downloaded any Adobe software. Yet, you get an "Adobe Flash Player Install Manager" out of nowhere and it says "Update Adobe Flash Player" at the top. It might even look similar to the image on the right (credit: Intego). 

As a Mac user, you're not alone. Many Mac users have found themselves in this unfamiliar, Windows-esque role unsure why an Adobe Flash Player install manager randomly popped up on their MacBook Pro.

I know, I know, you might be thinking: Do I need Antivirus for Mac?

Intego was the first to discover the Mac malware in September 2011, which they're calling the Flashback Trojan horse. Intego's Anti-Virus for Mac identifies the malware as OSX/flashback.A. Since first spotting this malware, a number of new variants surfaced in the wild; a variant discovered in October 2011 reportedly damaged some system files.

Well, so, aside from all that bad news, I've got some bad news for you. As it turns out, Intego, again, those anti-malware, Mac virus hunting, anti-phishing, Apple security experts did it again! They discovered a new variant of the Flashback Trojan horse, but this one is able to install itself on a Mac with much more limited user intervention. There is no more installer, and no request for a password. 

Dude what the flip! Antivirus for Mac, really?

It's going to be a long year. 

The Mac Security Blog further analyzed the newest variant of the Mac Flashback Trojan horse. You might consider checking out the report to mitigate any risk of having this malware installed on your Mac with no intervention on your part.