HUA HIN, Thailand - Thousands of Mac users
were brought back down to earth with a bump this
week when they discovered that, contrary to their
beliefs, Apple computers can and do fall prey to
malware and cyber-scams.
Fake security
software called Mac Defender has been downloaded
and installed on thousands of Macs following an
extensive search-engine manipulation effort by its
creators. Fake links for popular terms in spurious
search engine results, spam e-mails, and messages
on Facebook and Twitter have all been employed to
spread the software.
The program, which
also goes under the name of Mac Protector or Mac
Security, looks genuine enough but has actually
been written to behave like malware by stealing
personal and financial
information and prompting
users to pay to fix problems which don't actually
exist.
The scam also redirects users to
fake websites offering solutions at a price to
problems found on their Mac by the Mac Defender or
one of its variants. The creators easily bypassed
the security protocols of OSX as the default
setting in the Safari browser allows the bogus
software to be downloaded and queued for
installation.
Apple has reacted by stating
it would release an update to OSX to remove the
fake security software and has issued advice on
how to manually uninstall it. However, its action
and admittance of imperfection with its system
have come too late, over three weeks after the
initial appearance of the software in the wild.
Since the announcement, the creators of
the malware have had time to release a new version
called Mac Guard that is likely to spread even
faster than its predecessor as it does not require
the permission of the user to install.
Fake antivirus programs and malware
scanners are all too common on Microsoft's Windows
platform, which dominates 90% of the operating
system market. However, this new attack on Mac
users highlights that they too are now becoming a
target. The time for claims that Macs are immune
to this type of threat by the company itself and
its devoted consumers is definitely over.
Telecoms Google has announced
plans to introduce a mobile payment system that
allows people to use their Android powered
smart-phones to pay for services, buy store items,
redeem coupons, and get loyalty points. The
technology, called near field communication, will
be built into new smart phones running Android. It
allows a shake of the phone near a specially
equipped cash register to authorize the payment.
Google will offer mobile payments with
MasterCard and Citibank, in addition to cell phone
carriers, hardware manufacturers and retailers.
The new service, dubbed Google Wallet, will be
launched this summer and will be available
initially on the Nexus S 4G phone on Sprint, it
will also hold a virtual Google Prepaid
MasterCard, which can be loaded with money charged
from regular credit cards.
The digital
wallet will work at more than 124,000 merchants
that take contactless payments through
MasterCard's PayPass terminals, and around 300,000
outlets outside the United States. Google's own
wallet will continue to fatten from the scheme as
it will generate revenue by offering ''Google
Offers'' promotions as people shop. Advertising
deals from local and online retailers will be
updated through the phone to alert the shopper to
offers in the store or area nearby. Google will
then take a cut from participating stores whenever
a consumer redeems one of its coupons.
The
app itself will be free to users to download via
Android, and a PIN will be required to make a
transaction that will be encrypted and stored on a
secure chip built into the phone. Google has
encouraged all businesses, banks, credit card
companies, mobile carriers and merchants to work
with its new system.
Security has been
taken into consideration since the mobile wallet
can be remotely disabled upon theft. However, the
notion of Google now knowing what and where you're
buying in addition to what you're browsing may
leave some of us feeling a little insecure.
Gaming Labor camp workers in
northeast China are being forced to play online
games in a money making scheme for the guards. Up
to 300 workers at the Jixi labor camp in
Heilongjiang province have been found ''gold
farming'', a practice that involves collecting
online credit in games such as World of Warcraft.
The credit, which is usually accrued by completing
repetitive menial tasks in the game, can then be
exchanged for real money with other players.
The practice, which is technically
illegal, is widespread. Players in developing
countries often accumulate vast amounts of gaming
gold that can then be sold to those in Europe or
the US. In an interview with The Guardian,
prisoners spoke of 12 hour shifts and punishment
for not completing their digital work quotas.
Guards had been rumored to be earning 5-6,000 yuan
a day (US$770-$920) from the scheme.
Officials representing labor camps in
China denied the claims. Gold farming is big
business in the People's Republic; an estimated $2
billion in online gaming currencies was traded in
2008, and roughly 80% of all the gold farming in
the world is done in China, where more than
100,000 people make a full-time living from it.
Martin J Young is an Asia Times
Online correspondent based in Thailand.
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