Hackers hit Apple

[dogg57]

The same hackers that hit Facebook’s computers on Friday infected the computers of some Apple employees, the company acknowledged Tuesday.
The incident, the widest known cyberattack against Apple-made computers to date, occurred when the Apple employees browsed to a special website that had been infected with malware custom-written for the Macintosh platform, Reuters reported

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Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2013/02/19/hackers-hit-apple-computers-in-cyberassault/#ixzz2LOhOWh00​

 

[Teegate]

The problem was Java which Apple does not make.

 

[dogg57]

The attack on Apple is an unwelcome entry for the high-tech company into the ranks of the hacked, a source familiar with the incident told Reuters.
"This is the first really big attack on Macs," said the source, who declined to be identified because the person was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly. "Apple has more on its hands than the attack on itself."

​

 

[Boyd]

This should be of concern to Windows users as well, since the attack used Java which is cross-platform. I turned off Java a few weeks ago when concerns about Java security came up on the news. I don't think there are a lot of sites that use Java these days (javascript is common, but that is different). I have not had problems accessing any websites since I turned off Java, so I am going to leave it off. You might want to do the same thing, regardless of whether you have a Mac or a PC...

http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/technolog/homeland-security-still-says-no-java-1B8000547

The Department of Homeland Security says despite some fixes to Java, it continues to recommend users disable the program in their Web browsers, because it remains vulnerable to attacks that could result in identity theft and other cyber crimes.

The Computer Emergency Readiness Team, part of the DHS, first took the unusual step last week of issuing an alert, warning users to disable Java, saying the program could be manipulated by criminals to trick users into visiting malicious websites that could infect their computers with malware, or allow criminals to steal personal financial data on users' PCs.

 

[dogg57]

http://forums.njpinebarrens.com/threads/flaw-in-java.8957/

 

[Boyd]

Microsoft was also hit... http://www.cnbc.com/id/100486700

Microsoft said on Friday a small number of its computers, including some in its Mac software business unit, were infected with malware, but there was no evidence of customer data being affected and it is continuing its investigation.

The world's largest software company said the security intrusion was "similar" to recent ones reported by Apple and Facebook.

The incident, reported on one of the company's public blogs happened "recently", but Microsoft said it chose not to make any statement publicly while it gathered information about the attack.

"This type of cyberattack is no surprise to Microsoft and other companies that must grapple with determined and persistent adversaries," said Matt Thomlinson, general manager of Trustworthy Computing Security at Microsoft, in the company's blog post.

 

[dogg57]

Microsoft was also hit... http://www.cnbc.com/id/100486700

That happens all the time

 

[Boyd]

Well this hit Microsoft's own computers in their facilities, not just Windows computers in general. That might happen all the time, but they don't usually admit it.