It was only a matter of time. To date, Apple Macintosh products have not really been the target of hackers. That’s primarily because hackers like to hit government agencies and businesses, and Macs don’t typically sit on the desks of business executives and workaday employees. Now that the Macs have become more prevalent in business settings – though still far less popular than PCs in that context – hackers have targeted the company that makes them.
Apple, of course, is synonymous with the many consumer electronics products that people simply love these days, including iPhones, iPods and iPads. But, again, those simply aren’t preferred targets of hackers. The same hackers that hit Facebook recently have also hit Apple. The company announced on Tuesday that Macs had undergone the largest known cyber attack ever for the computing platform at the corporate level. The computers of Apple workers themselves were infected when they visited a website designed for software developers that had been infected. The malware had specifically been designed to attack Macs (yes…this was a very big Mac attack).
One person familiar with the attack noted that it was the same malware that had hit other companies and defense contractors. "This is a new campaign. It's not like the other ones you read about where everyone can tell it's China," noted one observer. Another added, "This is the first really big attack on Macs. Apple has more on its hands than the attack on itself." So, it appears that Apple is now reaping a bit of the unwanted reward for becoming a popular computing platform at the business level. How this unfolds is anyone’s guess, but it seems likely that Mac attacks will increase in the future.
Apple, of course, is synonymous with the many consumer electronics products that people simply love these days, including iPhones, iPods and iPads. But, again, those simply aren’t preferred targets of hackers. The same hackers that hit Facebook recently have also hit Apple. The company announced on Tuesday that Macs had undergone the largest known cyber attack ever for the computing platform at the corporate level. The computers of Apple workers themselves were infected when they visited a website designed for software developers that had been infected. The malware had specifically been designed to attack Macs (yes…this was a very big Mac attack).
One person familiar with the attack noted that it was the same malware that had hit other companies and defense contractors. "This is a new campaign. It's not like the other ones you read about where everyone can tell it's China," noted one observer. Another added, "This is the first really big attack on Macs. Apple has more on its hands than the attack on itself." So, it appears that Apple is now reaping a bit of the unwanted reward for becoming a popular computing platform at the business level. How this unfolds is anyone’s guess, but it seems likely that Mac attacks will increase in the future.