A group of light-fingered cybercrooks have been running a deceptive campaign where Mac OS X users are misinformed about the presence of the Tapsnake virus on their systems. When surfing the web with their favorite browser, the targeted people suddenly bump into popup alerts that report said infection and recommend an application that will supposedly rectify the problem.

Tech support scams are universal as they hit users regardless of their computers. The idea is simple: to dupe people into thinking their machines are at risk and then offer a rogue fix. The pseudo remedy recommended by the crooks can be a junk app or the assistance of a self-proclaimed support agent. The browser alerts saying, “Your Mac is infected with 3 viruses” is part of a classic scam targeting Mac users.

The criteria of legitimacy for Mac apps are becoming increasingly blurred. It holds true for system utilities in particular. Some of them look trustworthy and appear to actually deliver some security and maintenance features, but the distribution tactic backing them is beyond regular practices. MacShiny, a tool marketed as an optimizer and antivirus, may carry through with some of its promises but typically installs itself without permission.

Although the impact of adware attacks is low to moderate, this form of malicious code is dominating the Mac threat landscape. One of the latest examples is a campaign where victims get recurrent popup alerts saying, “Network Layer wants to make changes”. This post gives insights into the origin of these ads, the goals of this hoax, and ways to get rid of the irritating Mac virus.

While using a VPN is not necessary for everyone, it is important because it enhances security, management, and function. While the management use is mostly practiced in corporate setups by executive members, the function and security purposes are the reason why most people use a Virtual Private Network. Based on users shared experience and some more research while using different services, there are some VPNs that stand out more than others.

The distribution of Mac viruses can be trickier than the use of trojanized spam attachments. Some malicious apps make the rounds by means of social engineering combined with auxiliary infections. This is the case with the Adobe Flash Player update virus target Mac. It redirects a victim’s web browser to sites that recommend updating Flash Player, with the actual payload being scareware or spyware.