Keeping bad applications out of the App Store is a monumental task — Apple says it denied 1.7 million apps submitted for approval in 2022. That’s out of 6.1 million, and it’s an increase from the previous year.
And Apple also blocked nearly 3.9 million stolen credit cards from being used to make fraudulent purchases on the App Store. Plus, the iPhone-maker blocked millions of fake reviews.
NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware is making headlines again after it was reported that a number of governments around the world have been using it to hack the smartphones of activists, politicians, journalists and other individuals.
A list of potential surveillance targets, which includes more than 50,000 phone numbers, was leaked and obtained by a number of news outlets over the weekend, reigniting concerns over government surveillance.
So, what exactly is Pegasus? And who might be a potential target of an attack? How can you tell if your iPhone already fell victim to the spyware? We rounded up everything you need to know about Pegasus.
Apple’s newest macOS update fixes a zero-day vulnerability that could give attackers the ability to take secret screenshots and more. The flaw takes advantage of privacy permissions granted to apps like Zoom.
It is recommended you update to macOS 11.4 as soon as possible if you haven’t already.
Applications that trick users into paying huge subscription fees raked in over $400 million from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, according to research done by Avast.
The so-called “fleeceware” takes advantage of a weakness in both app stores: deleting an application tied to a subscription doesn’t cancel the subscription.
Turns out you can’t trust everything you find on GitHub. Security researchers found an Xcode project that had been modified to install a back door into the user’s Mac.
Cybercriminals reportedly created more macOS malware in 2020 than from 2012 to 2019 combined. The days when Mac users could happily assume they weren’t in danger from hackers are long over.
But the situation remains far worse for Windows users. Researchers found 135 times as many Windows malware samples last year as ones targeting macOS.
Some of the first malware targeting both M-series and Intel Macs has affected thousands of computers. At this point, the malicious code — called “Silver Sparrow” — is not dangerous, and Apple may have pulled its teeth. But users of the latest macOS computers still might want to know if their device has it. And the same goes for owners of Intel-based Macs.
Here’s how to find out if your computer has been hit.
The first wave of malware written specifically for Apple Silicon Macs is starting to appear. And Apple’s already playing Whac-A-Mole to try and stop it.
The malware in question, called “Silver Sparrow,” is reportedly a malicious package that can exploit a vulnerability in the macOS Installer JavaScript API as a way to execute dodgy commands. While it remains unclear how big of a threat Silver Sparrow poses, Apple nonetheless took steps to stop its spread.
Security researcher Patrick Wardle has discovered what may be the first malware optimized for Apple Silicon Macs. The malware, details of which he published this week, involves a Safari adware extension called GoSearch22.
The adware delivers unwanted ads, collects browser data, and modifies browser settings. GoSearch22 is relatively low risk. However, it can result in users being redirected to certain websites or suffering an otherwise impaired browsing experience.
Apple promises it isn’t spying on Mac users to find out which applications they are using. The company was forced to make this clear after a server glitch caused users to realize that Gatekeeper in macOS sends a message to Apple whenever they open an application.
