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List:       isn
Subject:    [ISN] Infected Mac Computers Worth 43 Cents in Cyber-underworld
From:       InfoSec News <alerts () infosecnews ! org>
Date:       2009-09-28 5:11:20
Message-ID: Pine.LNX.4.61.0909280009240.20013 () conundrum ! infosecnews ! org
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http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Security/Infected-Mac-Computers-Worth-43-Cents-in-Cyber-Underworld-653035/

By Brian Prince
eWEEK.com
2009-09-25

In a talk about the threats posed by Russian malware affiliate networks, 
a Sophos security researcher reveals an operation offering people 43 
cents per Apple Mac they infected. Affiliate networks can generate 
serious profits pushing scareware online.

New research from Sophos underscores a growing interest in the Mac among 
cyber-criminals.

In a presentation at Virus Bulletin's VB Conference, in Geneva, Sophos 
Labs researcher Dmitry Samosseiko revealed a malware affiliate network 
offering 43 cents per infected Mac computer. The offer was the work of a 
larger network of Russian spammers, malware authors and businesspeople 
pushing everything from phony watches to medications --lan liance he 
called the "Partnerka."

This goes to show that Apple Macs, which are targeted far less than 
Microsoft Windows PCs, are not without security threats.

"Mac users are not immune to the scareware threat," Samosseiko wrote in 
a paper released at the conference. "In fact, there are 
'codec-partnerka' dedicated to the sale and promotion of fake Mac 
software. One of the recent examples is Mac-codec.com... he site is no 
longer available, but just a few months ago it was offering $0.43 for 
each install and offered various promo materials in the form of MacOS 
'video players.'"

[...]


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