Phishing attacks targeting Apple operating systems are on the rise

The number of phishing attacks targeting computer users Mac, mobile devices iOS and the relevant internet services ecosystem reached 1.600.000 in the first half of 2019.

Τthis size is 9% higher compared to the attacks that occurred in 2018 as a whole. The growing number of users of popular digital devices is clearly attracting more and more digital criminals. This is one of the main findings of Kaspersky's report on the threats posed by macOS users in 2019.

While the volume of malware threatening macOS users and iOS platforms is much lower than that of Windows users and Android platforms, when it comes to phishing attacks, things are quite different. As they rely on social engineering, most digital attacks have nothing to do with software.

The research is based on threat statistics voluntarily shared by Kaspersky Security Network users - a global cloud infrastructure designed to respond promptly to emerging digital threats.

Among the most common fraudulent scams are those designed to look like the iCloud interface in order to steal account logins Apple, ID. Links to such services usually come from spam emails presented as emails by technical support departments. They often threaten to block the user's device if he does not click on the link.

Another common system is the use of risk websites that try to convince the user that their computer is under serious security threat and will only take a few clicks and a few dollars to resolve these issues.

In addition to the increase in phishing, the report also revealed other types of threats targeting users of macOS-based devices. The results have shown some relatively positive trends: the most common threats to Mac users turned out to be not extremely dangerous malware, such as banking Trojans, but AdWare threats, which are not necessarily forced and defined as 'potentially unwanted programs'. ».

Most adware threatens users by overloading their devices with unwanted ads, however some of these programs can, in fact, turn into covert, more serious threats.

The total number of phishing attacks detected in the first half of 2019 on Macs protected by Kaspersky solutions was almost 6.000.000. In 2018, a total of 7.300.000 hits were recorded. 39,95% of them aimed to steal users' financial data. This size is 10 percentage points higher compared to the first half of 2018.

The most active malware was variants of the Shlayer family, which succeeded in distributing updates under the guise of Adobe Flash Player.

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