Apple Addresses 'Mac Defender' Threat With Security Update 2011-003 for Snow Leopard

macdefender
Apple today released Security Update 2011-003 (Snow Leopard), a new software update that addresses the "Mac Defender" malware that has been afflicting Mac users over the past month.

- Malware removal

Available for: Mac OS X v10.6.7, Mac OS X Server v10.6.7

Impact: Remove the MacDefender malware if detected

Description: The installation process for this update will search for and remove known variants of the MacDefender malware. If a known variant was detected and removed, the user will be notified via an alert after the update is installed.

The update weighs in at 2.36 MB and requires Mac OS X 10.6.7.

Seed notes for the most recent developer build of Mac OS X 10.6.8 had indicated that the update will identify and remove known variants of Mac Defender, but Apple apparently wanted to push the anti-malware portions of the update as quickly as possible before incorporating it directly into Mac OS X 10.6.8 for future updaters.

Popular Stories

airtag purple

AirTag 2 Rumored to Launch Next Year With These New Features

Sunday November 17, 2024 5:18 am PST by
Apple released the AirTag in April 2021, so it is now three over and a half years old. While the AirTag has not received any hardware updates since then, a new version of the item tracking accessory is rumored to be in development. Below, we recap rumors about a second-generation AirTag. Timing Apple is aiming to release a new AirTag in mid-2025, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman....
Magic Mouse Next to Keyboard

No, Apple CEO Tim Cook Didn't Say He Prefers Logitech's MX Master 3 Over the Magic Mouse

Sunday November 17, 2024 3:03 pm PST by
While the Logitech MX Master 3 is a terrific mouse for the Mac, reports claiming that Apple CEO Tim Cook prefers that mouse over the Magic Mouse are false. The Wall Street Journal last month published an interview with Cook, in which he said he uses every Apple product every day. Soon after, The Verge's Wes Davis attempted to replicate using every Apple product in a single day. During that...
New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

18 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Wednesday November 13, 2024 2:09 am PST by
Apple is set to release iOS 18.2 next month, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. There are a handful of new non-AI related feature controls incoming as well....
iPhone 17 Slim Feature Single Camera 1 Redux

'iPhone 17 Air' Rumored to Surpass iPhone 6 as Thinnest iPhone Ever

Monday November 18, 2024 1:07 pm PST by
In a research note with Hong Kong-based investment bank Haitong today, obtained by MacRumors, Apple analyst Jeff Pu said he agrees with a recent rumor claiming that the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" will be around 6mm thick. "We agreed with the recent chatter of an 6mm thickness ultra-slim design of the iPhone 17 Slim model," he wrote. If that measurement proves to be accurate, there would be ...
iPhone 7 Lightning to Headphone Jack Adapter

Apple Seemingly Discontinuing Lightning to Headphone Jack Adapter Introduced Alongside iPhone 7

Sunday November 17, 2024 12:33 pm PST by
It appears that Apple is discontinuing the Lightning to 3.5mm headphone jack adapter that it released alongside the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus in 2016. The adapter was recently listed as "sold out" on Apple's online store in the U.S. and most other countries, according to MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris. The adapter remains available from Apple in only a handful of countries, such as...
Apple TV 4K hero 221018 feature

It's 2009 Again: Apple is Apparently Reconsidering Making a TV

Sunday November 17, 2024 5:27 am PST by
Between around 2009 and 2011, it was repeatedly rumored that Apple would be releasing a TV, but that obviously never happened. Now, a decade-and-a-half later, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman says the idea is back on the table. In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman briefly mentioned that Apple has been "evaluating" the "idea of making an Apple-branded TV set." He did not provide any further...

Top Rated Comments

Cougarcat Avatar
176 months ago
While i dont know the actual threat of his particular 'malware', I think apple needs to do a lot better than this in future. Such hot fixes need to be available within a couple of days max. If i wanted to use a virus/malware prone PC for weeks, i'd have simply opted for a windows machine instead of the mac!

And it should be available for 10.5 as well.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MacMan86 Avatar
176 months ago
While i dont know the actual threat of his particular 'malware', I think apple needs to do a lot better than this in future. Such hot fixes need to be available within a couple of days max. If i wanted to use a virus/malware prone PC for weeks, i'd have simply opted for a windows machine instead of the mac!
Apple have just made the very sensible step of allowing auto-updating of their malware definitions list. Future malware shouldn't require a formal Software Update:

"File Quarantine

Available for: Mac OS X v10.6.7, Mac OS X Server v10.6.7

Impact: Automatically update the known malware definitions

Description: The system will check daily for updates to the File Quarantine malware definition list. An opt-out capability is provided via the "Automatically update safe downloads list" checkbox in Security Preferences. Additional information is available in this Knowledge Base article: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4651"
From http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4657
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Chris Grande Avatar
176 months ago
This security update also makes the system automatically and in the background update the File Quarantine definitions daily.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
benthewraith Avatar
176 months ago
Nope. Just Windows ME.

It's not that you find viruses on Windows ME computers. It's that Windows ME IS a virus.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
tkermit Avatar
176 months ago
Nice! :)

Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
blackburn Avatar
176 months ago
There are exploits for mac os x, linux and windows. It's just a gamble, and you might get hacked in either systems. If the mac user base continues to grow we should expect more malware.

The best protection is to be smart, and be careful to with the sites you visit.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)