Unlike Windows OS, Mac systems are normally not very prone to viruses. However, recently, a piece of Mac malware was detected on a website. It wasn’t any ordinary website; it was “the” website – the Dalai Lama website. The said malware was linked to Dalai Lama’s online platform, using a Java exploit.

This Java exploit automatically installed a Trojan on visitors’ computer in an attempt to steal their personal information. Java experts who have had experience reporting this exploit said that it was very well documented.

Now the question is why this issue is still being handled? Well, as it turns out, people who have already lost their information to this Mac malware, called: Dockster, it seems that there is no viable solution.

“Dockster” was originally found lurking in the depths of ‘Gyalwarinpoche.Com’ website. At least I haven’t heard this tongue twisting name before. Anyhow, the malware installed a very basic backdoor to monitor a key log based activity of the said “victims”.

Was it Java developers’ fault? The question is still hard to answer. In a way, yes, it was their fault for not checking things thoroughly. But since the exploit was very old and quite basic, maybe the Java guys never paid too much attention to it. Maybe they thought, “Hey who would want to use an old exploit in today’s day and age?”

As it turns out, “Dockster” compromised personal information on more than 600,000 Macs. Most of the users confused it with a browser plugin, which is why no one suspected the entire installation process. On a related topic, online security is becoming a matter of utmost importance these days. Please take care while surfing the internet, downloading programs or interacting with anyone on the world wide web. 

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 5th, 2012 at 2:29 PM and is filed under Latest News, National News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.