Recent Downloads from Eltima Software Were Infected with Malware

If you recently downloaded Elmedia Player or Folx—two Mac OS X programs from German-based developer Eltima Software—then your Mac may be infected with malware. According to a report from ZDNet, hackers recently managed to breach the Eltima Software servers. The hackers bundled Elmedia Player and Folx with a Mac OS X Trojan called Proton.

Elmedia Player is a popular media player app that Eltima says is capable of recognizing “any file format you probably may think of.” The app also allows for HD video playback with no slowdowns and …

Popular Terminal App Patches Severe Bug That Leaked Tons of Data

For power users, nothing is quite as useful in the macOS ecosystem as the Terminal app. Whether you are working on a simple project or trying to create extensively customized functionality for your machine, it opens many doors for the savvy user. Those same users sometimes find the default Terminal app to be lacking, though, and thus alternatives, like the popular iTerm2 software, have sprung up over the years. With a recently issued security patch, however, the developer of iTerm2 acknowledged that the program had been leaking all kinds …

SecureMac Continues Pushing Mac Security Forward with Release of MacScan 3.1

Las Vegas, Nevada — With malware making headlines nearly every week, users everywhere wonder how to keep their computers safe. Today, SecureMac released the latest version of its flagship security software, MacScan 3.1. Since its initial release over a year ago, MacScan 3 has led the way with user-friendly and intuitive anti-malware protection. Its original support for OS X 10.8 (Mountain Lion) through OS X 10.11 (El Capitan) has since been expanded to include the latest version of macOS 10.12 (Sierra). With last year’s emergence of the KeRanger ransomware …

Compromised Download Server Infects Handbrake Users with Malware

People with an extensive DVD or Blu-Ray collection can enjoy a wide variety of media at home, but what happens when you want to take it with you? The simple solution is to “rip” your favorite DVDs to create digital media files you can play back on your MacBook, or perhaps store on your home media server. Many Mac users dabble with this. Most people use the popular software, Handbrake, to digitize their media. Unfortunately, hackers recently compromised one of Handbrake’s download servers. For four days, an unknown quantity …

Recent Google Issues Present Some Mac Users with Pop-Up Password Prompt

No one likes to contend with pop-up windows, no matter what the context. Once a mainstay of advertising on the web, pop-ups today mostly remain only on less refined websites. Many users also associate pop-up windows with malware infection — and that isn’t a wrong association to have, either. Often, malware will present you with a dialogue box that resembles a genuine system prompt. However, it could then lead you into installing more malicious software or exposing your personal information. However, it’s not always a sign that something is …

SecureMac Releases PrivacyScan 1.9.2 to Enhance User Privacy

Las Vegas, Nevada, 20 March 2017 — SecureMac has announced the release of PrivacyScan 1.9.2, the latest version of its award-winning software designed to protect user privacy. The incremental update provides a more refined user experience while also addressing minor bugs. PrivacyScan 1.9.2 adds support to clean additional Firefox and Safari data locations, ensuring removal of personal information left behind after browsing the web. Meanwhile, users can enjoy interface refinements and ease-of-use improvements for even easier operation. 

What PrivacyScan does for users

PrivacyScan plays a dual role: freeing up valuable disk …

Safari Syncing Bug Left User Browsing Histories Accessible Through iCloud

Regularly clearing the history of sites one has visited in a browser is a common habit for many users. It reduces digital clutter while also providing you with a degree of control over your privacy on the web. When you’ve cleared your history, no one can access your device and instantly see where you’ve been online. That’s the idea, at least; unfortunately, an issue within iCloud meant that user histories lingered in the cloud, sometimes including data over a year old. Though wiped from the devices, a well-informed individual …

Emoji Issue Create Crashes in Older iOS Versions

As a cultural phenomenon, emojis seem to be the natural evolution from more “old school” style emoticons. No longer just a small set of pictograms, emojis now compromise several hundred tiny digital images. Users pepper their text messages with them and fill up social media posts with emojis. The iPhone, like many other smartphones, includes its own built-in library of standard emojis. However, a recently uncovered flaw in the way some versions of iOS render a particular emoji can cause instability and inaccessibility for some iPads and iPhones.

What …

Patch Available to Correct Privacy Flaw in Skype for Mac Users

For many users, Skype is often used to stay in touch with both friends and family as well as for business communications. Those who rely on Skype for Mac should be aware there was a recent discovery of a vulnerability in the application. Affecting Skype versions as recent as 7.35 (and all previous versions), the flaw could potentially expose user information or allow malware to interact with Skype.

The issue concerns the way Skype handles data interaction.  Researchers uncovered the ability to bypass authentication requirements while while interacting with …

Flash’s Decline Continues as Edge and Chrome Move to Block the Software

Once common on websites across the entire Internet, Adobe Flash is today mainly known for its extreme security flaws. At times it has seemed like a new Flash zero-day exploit came out several times each month, always sending Adobe scrambling to issue a quick fix. Earlier this year, Apple took the step of blocking all out-of-date versions of Flash from running in Safari; that position transformed into an even more hardline approach by the early summer. At that point, Apple announced that future versions of Safari would disable Flash …

Cyber Monday Savings from SecureMac – PrivacyScan for Only 99 Cents

Las Vegas, NV, November 21, 2016 – SecureMac, one of the key contributors in the Mac security world, today announced a Cyber Monday special for its PrivacyScan software.  Consumers will have one day, Monday, November 28, 2016 to purchase this popular privacy protection software for Mac users for only 99 cents, compared to $14.99 the other 364 days of the year.

PrivacyScan securely removes files used for tracking your computer usage and online whereabouts, including internet browsing history, cache files, cookies, search history, recent items and much more – …

Adobe Issues Zero-Day Exploit Patch for New Flash Vulnerability

Once an undeniable staple and even a trendsetting application across the web, Adobe Flash no longer enjoys the widespread popularity it once did. This shift of power is due in part to the rise of HTML5 video support across the Internet. Being more stable and secure, HTML5 offers a superior alternative to Flash. The deprecation of many Flash only websites also ensures that the web is easier to browse and more mobile friendly. Nonetheless, there are still some sites which require Adobe Flash to function properly. We advise users still …

Dropbox Security Concerns Deepen with Extensive System Permissions Requests

Over the past few years, there has been an undeniable explosion in the popularity of using “the cloud” for services as diverse as music streaming, web hosting, and file storage. One of the earliest, biggest, and most continually influential players in cloud services is Dropbox. As the company that brought cloud storage and file syncing into widespread use, it’s easy to ascribe safety and security to the Dropbox brand based on popularity alone. In spite of its presence on many platforms including OS X and its everyday use in business …

Opera Suffers Major User Data Breach

With millions of active users on Mac platforms alone and hundreds of millions more users worldwide, Opera remains a favorite web browser even two decades after its first release. On its website download page, Opera even bills itself as “the best browser for Mac.” Apple users should, therefore, pay close to attention to a recent data breach affecting users of the Sync feature. Opera Sync functions similarly to Google Chrome’s sync function, which synchronizes settings and other data over multiple devices. This feature is very helpful for individuals who use …

Little Snitch Linked with Privilege Escalation on Mac OS X El Capitan

The Little Snitch app is an application firewall that is great for monitoring and controlling how the apps on your Mac can connect to and use the internet. However, according to a recent report from Threatpost, the application might be vulnerable itself. Discovered by researcher and hacker Patrick Wardle, the vulnerability is a local escalation of privileges issue. If exploited, the issue could allow malware programs or local users to gain root privileges on a target computer.

Root privileges, of course, are dangerous for how much control they can give hackers …

Support for MacScan 2 Has Ended

Effective August 1, 2016, support for MacScan 2 software has officially ended. 

This means that SecureMac is no longer providing technical support or malware definition, tracking cookie blacklist, or program updates for MacScan 2.  We have been strongly encouraging existing users of MacScan 2 to consider upgrading to MacScan 3 for ongoing protection.

The five-star ratings and feedback MacScan 3 has generated from the thousands of customers who have already upgraded has been incredibly positive.  Most users share the same sentiment that the new software is easier-to-use, extremely fast …

Apple releases key security updates

Apple recently released the latest round of security updates for all of its operating systems and key software programs. The updates all hit the web on July 18th and are officially available for download as we speak. Here’s a brief rundown of each update, what it includes, and why you should make a point to install it ASAP.

OS X El Capitan v10.11.6 and Security Update 2016-004: Apple’s rundown of security fixes for El Capitan should be more or less familiar to anyone who has ever read the notes …

Apple Blocking Outdated Versions of Adobe Flash

Have you tried to use Adobe Flash Player on your Mac recently, only to get a message about your Flash Player plug-in being blocked or out-of-date? As of April 28th, Apple has begun blocking older versions of the Flash plug-in. You will need to update Adobe Flash Player before you can access audio or video content, view animations, or carry out any other tasks that require Adobe Flash.

The sudden blockage of Adobe Flash is not a glitch or an error on Apple’s part. On the contrary, according to an email …

Outdated Git Version in OS X Puts Developers at Risk

Update: May 4, 2016 –  Apple has released an updated version of Xcode to patch this vulnerability. Users can download Xcode 7.3.1 directly from Apple’s developer site at: https://developer.apple.com/xcode/download/

An outdated Git client in Apple’s Command Line Tools Package is putting OS X developers at risk by opening them up to remote code execution. According to a report from MacWorld, developers will typically use Xcode when developing apps for OS X or iOS, which means they are working on Macs that use Apple’s Command Line Tools package. The issue is that the …

The DataVault Password Manager: A Review and Basic How-To Guide

Available for $9.99 from the Mac App Store, the DataVault Password Manager from Ascendo is a robust password management application that is worth the modest price of admission. The program allows you to store passwords, login details, credit card information, membership information, insurance details, vehicle information, and more—all in one secure spot on your computer.

The program uses 256-bit AES encryption to protect your passwords and other sensitive information and has a range of other security features that will help you feel safe, as well. You can even …