Buying a Mac device to stay safe from cybersecurity threats is not a tactic that will work well in 2024, new research claims.
A new report from Malwarebytes claims that threats against Apple Mac devices are on the rise, hinting that users need to be vigilant as they navigate the treacherous waters of the Internet, regardless of which device they are using.
“The days of “my Mac is secure” and “Macs don't get malware” are definitely over. There are many signs that criminals are taking note of the growing popularity of the platform by allowing attacks targeting Windows and Mac users at the same time,” Malwarebytes wrote.
MacStealer and AMOS on the rise
According to the company's 2024 State of Malware report, MacStealer is a relatively new information stealer targeting Mac users that is rapidly gaining popularity.
MacStealer is a data-stealing malware capable of capturing cookies, passwords, and credit card data from Firefox, Google Chrome, and Brave browsers. You can filter different types of files, including .txt, .doc, .jpg, and .zip. Additionally, MacStealer can also extract the KeyChain database. Some researchers suggest that the malware developers are also working on having the tool capture information stored in the Safari browser and also in the Notes app.
In the report, Malwarebytes also warned of a campaign it detected in September 2023 spreading Atomic Stealer (also known as AMOS) to Mac users through malvertising. Like MacStealer, AMOS can steal passwords from browsers and Apple's KeyChain. AMOS can also capture different files and even steal people's cryptocurrencies.
Additionally, malware accounted for 11% of all Mac threat detections last year. Aside from that, potentially unwanted programs and ads were by far the largest category, accounting for 30% of all threat detections. Other notable mentions include Adware.OperatorMac (13%), OSX.Genieo (11%), and OSX.Vsearch (11%).
Through 9to5Mac
