Leeky
Posts: 3,357 +116
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F-Secure has come to the aid of Apple Mac owners infected with the Flashback malware, announcing a free removal script for OS X. At its peak on April 6, an <a href="https://www.techspot.com/news/48070-more-than-600000-macs-infected-with-flashback-trojan-downloader.html">estimated 600,000 systems</a> running OS X were said to be infected.</p>
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Apple itself has said it is already working on a tool to remove the malware, but given the company's <a href="https://www.techspot.com/news/48056-apple-finally-releases-java-patches-for-flashback-malware.html">slow turnaround</a> of the critical updates issued by Oracle in February it would appear security firms were unwilling to wait.</p>
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The <a href="https://www.techspot.com/downloads/5352-fsecure-flashback-removal-tool-for-mac.html">new tool by F-Secure</a> will detect and repair the damage done by all of the common types of Flashback malware. It is offered as a free stand-alone Apple script application and not part of their antivirus scanner. Using it will reverse the damage and then extract it as a zip, enabling you to either send it or delete it, though I'm sure F-Secure would appreciate it being sent to them so they can calculate if any substantial changes to the code have been made.</p>
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While Apple has been slow to respond, resulting in a variable grilling from the security industry, the Apple user community has been working hard alongside security firms Dr. Web and F-Secure to analyze and counter the problem. One member, etresoft, has even <a href="https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-3271">written a script</a> to help those struggling with the Flashback malware.</p>
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Even if you have manually removed the files created by the Trojan, you are highly advised to still run the F-Secure script to ensure all traces of Flashback have been removed. Despite Apple releasing a patch covering the critical exploits in Java, only OS X 10.6 and 10.7 were covered by the update and earlier releases of OS X remain vulnerable to the Trojan downloader.</p>
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Those that would like to perform additional checks to further lockdown their Mac computer can read the <a href="https://www.securelist.com/en/blog/208193448/10_Simple_Tips_for_Boosting_The_Security_Of_Your_Mac">SecureList blog post</a> by Kaspersky's security expert, Costin Raiu. It outlines ten additional steps you can perform to make your Mac more secure against online attacks, including Flashback's Trojan.</p><p><a rel='canonical' href='https://www.techspot.com/news/48155-f-secure-provides-free-flashback-removal-tool-for-mac-users.html' target='_blank'>Permalink to story.</a></p><p class='permalink'><a rel='canonical' href='https://www.techspot.com/news/48155-f-secure-provides-free-flashback-removal-tool-for-mac-users.html'>https://www.techspot.com/news/48155-f-secure-provides-free-flashback-removal-tool-for-mac-users.html</a></p>
