No matter how secure a computer is, hackers will always find a tiny flaw that can be exploited. And sure enough, hackers have found a flaw on at least 17,000 Mac computers and are using it to control them through Reddit.
Russian security company Dr. Web discovered the software called “Mac.BackDoor.iWorm.” but has yet to discover how the worm spreads. Thankfully, Dr. Web has given out information on the hackers who use the Mac.BackDoor.iWorm.
The Mac is first infected with the Mac.BackDoor.iWorm, and then after it’s infected, it will try to connect to a command server. The Mac.BackDoor.iWorm. then tries to use Reddit’s search function to find the hackers comments in a Minecraft subreddit.
Here is an example of how the hackers use the Mac.BackDoor.iWorm. on Reddit:
When the Mac.BackDoor.iWorm. finally gets the Reddit comments, it will try to connect to the server addresses associated with the Minecraft subreddit. Once achieved, the hackers can use their “botnet” — a collection of programs connected to the internet that communicated with other similar programs to perform certain tasks — towards the Mac.BackDoor.iWorm. infected Macs.
Dr. Web reports that 17,658 Mac computers have been affected so far. Here is a map that Dr. Web reports are affected by the iWorm:
