Thursday, May 26, 2011

Mac Rogue Remover Tool

The creators of rogue (fake) antivirus programs that have been plaguing Windows users for many years have now migrated to the Mac platform. 

Although Apple is planning a Mac OS X software update that is expected to automatically find and remove Mac Defender malware and its known variants, affected Mac users do not need to wait for the update.  In the meantime, Mac users are advised to consider the following:
  1. For Safari users, uncheck the default setting "Open safe files after downloading" on your Mac.
  2. In the event you fell for the scam and purchased the fake program, contact your credit card company.
  3. Watch for the promised update to be issued by Apple.
  4. Install an antivirus software.  (Sophos offers a free antivirus software for Mac home users.)
In the unfortunate event your computer has been infected with one of the rogues, Bleeping Computer to the rescue!  Site owner, Microsoft MVP Lawrence Abrams, has created a tool and removal guides to assist in the removal of many of the known variants of the recently released rogues.  As other variants become available, expect that additional removal guides will be made available. 

For background information on the Mac Removal Tool, see Introducing the BleepingComputer Mac Rogue Remover Tool.


Remember - "A day without laughter is a day wasted."
May the wind sing to you and the sun rise in your heart...


2 comments:

Neither spam nor comments containing vulgarities will be approved.