Cybercriminals are increasingly targeting Apple devices and 2016 will see a rise in attacks on its operating systems, security experts suggest.<\/p>\n
According to security firm Symantec, the amount of malware aimed at Apple’s mobile operating system (iOS) has more than doubled this year, while threats to Mac computers also rose.<\/p>\n
Security firm FireEye also expects 2016 to be a bumper year for Apple malware.<\/p>\n
Systems such as Apple Pay could be targeted, it predicts.<\/p>\n
Apple is an obvious target for cybercriminals because its products are so popular, said Dick O’Brien, a researcher at Symantec.<\/p>\n
While the total number of threats targeting Apple devices remains low compared with Windows and Android, Symantec is seeing the range of threats multiply.<\/p>\n
Last year, it was seeing a monthly average of between 10,000 and 70,000 Mac computers infected with malware.<\/p>\n
“This is far fewer than Windows desktops and we don’t want to scaremonger. Apple remains a relatively safe platform but Apple users can no longer be complacent about security, as the number of infections and new threats rise,” said Mr O’Brien.<\/p>\n
The number of unique OS X computers infected with malware in the first nine months of 2015 was seven times higher than in all of 2014, its research found.<\/p>\n
A significant amount of this spike is accounted for by so-called greyware – applications that may not have malware attached but can still be annoying to users, by serving up unwanted ads or tracking their web-browsing habits.<\/p>\n
Symantec also found seven new threats aimed at Apple’s mobile iOS platform, with jailbroken devices – those that have been unlocked – being particularly vulnerable.<\/p>\n
And hackers are also increasingly targeting corporations, where Mac use is now more prevalent.<\/p>\n
A corporate espionage group known as Butterfly which attacked multi-billion dollar companies in 2015 developed malware tools that attacked both Windows and Apple computers.<\/p>\n
Walled garden
\nTraditionally iOS has been seen as a more secure platform than Android because of the more closed community that Apple runs for its apps but that is changing, according to FireEye.<\/p>\n
While it found that the vast majority – 96% – of mobile malware is targeted at Android devices, iOS is no longer immune.<\/p>\n
According to Bryce Boland, chief technology officer at FireEye, attackers are increasingly “finding ways into Apple’s walled garden, and that will ramp up next year”.<\/p>\n
FireEye recently discovered that XcodeGhost, iOS malware that Apple acted quickly to remove from its app store, had found its way into the networks of 210 US businesses.<\/p>\n
The attack was thought to be the first large-scale attack on Apple’s app store.<\/p>\n
The introduction of new payment systems, such as Apple Pay, will add a financial incentive for hackers, making it worth their “time and effort” to develop new malware, FireEye said.<\/p>\n
Mr O’Brien said: “We haven’t yet seen any threats targeting Apple Pay but anything that involves a financial transaction will be of interest to hackers.”<\/p>\n
–<\/p>\n
Source: BBC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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