As per insights from former NSA hacker and security researcher at Synack, Patrick Wardle, revealed to ZDNet that the Fruitfly malware was initially identified in January. This malware variant possesses the capability to seize complete control of an infected computer, encompassing files, cameras, screens, and peripheral devices.
Reports indicate that Fruitfly malware initiated attacks on Mac systems upon its detection by cybersecurity experts across 'hundreds of Mac computers'.
Fruitfly has been lurking for years before this malware was discovered back in January this year, and according to Wardle, 'current Mac security software is not effective'.
Apple has implemented OS patches to combat versions of the Fruitfly malware, but it remains uncertain whether these patches are 'up to snuff' against the latest iteration of the Fruitfly malware.
According to Wardle, 9 out of 10 victims of the Fruitfly malware are in the U.S. Wardle has reason to believe that this Fruitfly malware is crafted by a hacker 'with the intention of monitoring individuals for illicit activities'. Clearly, the Fruitfly malware's onset on Mac is not an attack aimed at government agencies but rather targeted towards individual users.
In response to CNET, Wardle states, 'I believe the attacker is MIA', 'so I don't think people are still being targeted by this malware (tricked into downloading/running a program, some software). But the Fruitfly malware itself still operates on MacOS'.
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