{"id":2622,"date":"2011-05-02T11:35:21","date_gmt":"2011-05-02T18:35:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.intego.com\/?p=2622"},"modified":"2020-10-21T16:32:41","modified_gmt":"2020-10-21T23:32:41","slug":"macdefender-rogue-anti-malware-program-attacks-macs-via-seo-poisoning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.intego.com\/mac-security-blog\/macdefender-rogue-anti-malware-program-attacks-macs-via-seo-poisoning\/","title":{"rendered":"MAC Defender Rogue Anti-Malware Program Attacks Macs via SEO Poisoning"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>UPDATE: See <a href=\"https:\/\/www.intego.com\/mac-security-blog\/intego-security-memo-macdefender-fake-antivirus\/\">Intego&#8217;s full security memo<\/a> with detailed information about the MAC Defender fake antivirus.<\/p>\n<p>Intego has discovered a rogue anti-malware program called MACDefender, which attacks Macs via SEO poisoning attacks. When a user clicks on a link after performing a search on a search engine such as Google, this takes them to a web site whose page contains JavaScript that automatically downloads a file. In this case, the file downloaded is a compressed ZIP archive, which, if a specific option in a web browser is checked (Open &#8220;safe&#8221; files after downloading in Safari, for example), will open. The file is decompressed, and the installer it contains launches presenting a user with the following screen:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"700\" height=\"520\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-2623\" title=\"macdefender1\" src=\"https:\/\/www.intego.com\/mac-security-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/05\/macdefender1.png\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.intego.com\/mac-security-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/05\/macdefender1.png 700w, https:\/\/www.intego.com\/mac-security-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/05\/macdefender1-300x222.png 300w, https:\/\/www.intego.com\/mac-security-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/05\/macdefender1-100x74.png 100w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>If the user continues through the installation process, and enters an administrator&#8217;s password, the software will be installed.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"700\" height=\"520\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-2624\" title=\"macdefender2\" src=\"https:\/\/www.intego.com\/mac-security-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/05\/macdefender2.png\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.intego.com\/mac-security-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/05\/macdefender2.png 700w, https:\/\/www.intego.com\/mac-security-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/05\/macdefender2-300x222.png 300w, https:\/\/www.intego.com\/mac-security-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/05\/macdefender2-100x74.png 100w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>It is important that users not continue with any unexpected installation of this type. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.intego.com\/virusbarrier\/\">Intego VirusBarrier X6&#8217;s<\/a> malware definitions will be updated today, and Intego will be publishing a security memo when we have more information about this malware. For now, the threat is low, but users should be careful not to install software when installers open unexpectedly.<\/p>\n<div class=\"blog-download\">\n<p class=\"button\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.intego.com\/demo?blog2\">Download 30-day free trial<\/a><\/p>\n<h4><a href=\"https:\/\/www.intego.com\/demo?blog2\">Protect your Mac from malware<\/a><\/h4>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.intego.com\/demo?blog2\">Download a free 30-day trial version of VirusBarrier X6 and save $5<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Intego has discovered a rogue anti-malware program called MACDefender, which attacks Macs via SEO poisoning attacks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":8763,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[190],"tags":[54,2689,86,113],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v17.4 - 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