Phishing scam hits Mac users - stay safe online

We received word this morning of what could be a brand new phishing attack that’s in circulation at present - an email which purports to relate to a recent Apple retail transaction and asks for details of any recent orders. The email (image above) also carries a stuffed file. This contains an ‘exe’ file which will only launch on a Windows machine, as with all such phishing trips, be advised not to click on any attachments from sources you don’t know/trust.

The email reads: “We recorded a payment request from ‘Apple Inc.’ to enable the charge of $7,548.45 on your account.” It then goes on to advise readers to click on the attachment in the email in the event they want the transaction stopped.

The reader who forwarded this to us wrote: “I thought you might be interested in this. It looks like your usual phishing scam, but is targeted at Apple users, which makes me think the attached file might actually be harmful to a Mac (if opened). Not seen this before, it has come at a time where I do have an open order with Apple for my new iMac. I did tweet something about waiting for my iMac this morning, I wonder if I was targeted because of that?”

While Macs seem pretty secure against malware attacks on a system basis, Macs and iPhones can suffer from various kinds of associated hacks - anything from Key logging to phishing and more. Most of these are related to the way we use our Macs, and authors of such tricks benefit from the actions of uneducated users.

While Mac users tend to stand slightly aloof from those on Windows systems due to the innate security of the OS itself, when it comes to fooling users into allowing inappropriate things to happen, Mac people are equally as prone as their Windows siblings, a new report states.

A survey of 1,003 people commissioned by security firm ESET found that most cybercrime losses are caused by phishing attacks, and users are equally at risk to these attempts, whatever the OS.

"Phishing attacks are just as effective on Macs, Linux, Windows, Solaris and any operating system since they rely on tricking the user and not on malicious software or any software vulnerabilities," Randy Abrams, director of technical education at ESET, said. "The Mac offers no immunity to phishing attacks and so we see a virtually equal percentage of victim representation across the board."

Trojan attacks are less effective. In these a user is tricked into activating an application which commits some form of mayhem on their system: however, the majority of these are Windows based, or require Internet Explorer, or both, so Macs are generally safe.

There is some good news for Mac users: "Of note, we did find a lower rate of cybercrime victims among people who use both a Mac and a PC," Abrams said. "This is probably due to a higher level of computer and internet knowledge,” Abrams adds.

Another security problem came to light yesterday, when experts compromised email names and passwords from an iPhone over WiFi. This led researchers to warn users not to access password-protected services (such as online bank accounts) using unprotected public WiFi networks.

Smartphones are vulnerable to the same Web-based and e-mail attacks that have long hammered PCs. One in five smartphone owners has already encountered what's known as a phishing scam, where hackers pose as a bank or some other trusted institution in an attempt to collect personal user information, according to a survey of 1,016 U.S.smartphone users conducted by virus-scan vendor Trend Micro in May.

If you want to develop a better understanding of how Mac security works, or generally put into effect various systems to prevent you or your family being hacked, phished or otherwise hit by consumer-focused online scams, these three books may be of help.

Maximum Mac OS X Security

The Mac Hacker's Handbook

The Internet: The Missing Manual