MacSweeper is a

rogue application Rogue security software is a form of malicious software and internet fraud that misleads users into believing there is a virus on their computer and aims to convince them to pay for a fake malware removal tool that actually installs malware on ...

that misleads users by exaggerating reports about

spyware Spyware (a portmanteau for spying software) is software with malicious behaviour that aims to gather information about a person or organization and send it to another entity in a way that harms the user—for example, by violating their privac ...

, adware or viruses on their computer. It is the first known "rogue" application for the

Mac OS X macOS (; previously OS X and originally Mac OS X) is a Unix operating system developed and marketed by Apple Inc. since 2001. It is the primary operating system for Apple's Mac (computer), Mac computers. Within the market of ...

operating system. The software was discovered by

F-Secure F-Secure Corporation is a global cyber security and privacy company, which has its headquarters in Helsinki, Finland. The company has offices in Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, ...

, a Finland-based

computer security Computer security, cybersecurity (cyber security), or information technology security (IT security) is the protection of computer systems and networks from attack by malicious actors that may result in unauthorized information disclosure, the ...

software company, on January 17, 2008. , the official website for the application, macsweeper.com, was shut down, as was the website for KiVVi Software shortly after.

Problems caused by MacSweeper

MacSweeper could be downloaded through KiVVi software's (the company that makes the "rogue") website, as a

drive-by download Drive-by download is of two types, each concerning the unintended download of computer software from the Internet: # Authorized drive-by downloads are downloads which a person has authorized but without understanding the consequences (e.g. down ...

, or silently downloaded with another application. Once automatically installed, MacSweeper scans the computer and informs the user that many applications on their computer (such as

iCal Calendar is a personal calendar app made by Apple Inc. that runs on both the macOS desktop operating system and the iOS mobile operating system. It offers online cloud backup of calendars using Apple's iCloud service, or can synchronize with ...

Dashboard For business applications, see Dashboard (business). A dashboard (also called dash, instrument panel (IP), or fascia) is a control panel set within the central console of a vehicle or small aircraft. Usually located directly ahead of the driver ...

, safe pre-installed Apple applications) are "fat binaries or trash" and must be slimmed immediately. When the unsuspecting user tries to "Remove Objects", they are told that the trial version downloaded cannot delete the supposed trash. Then the user must provide credit card details to the company for a $39.99 "lifetime subscription serial key".

Clones

MacSweeper's

Graphical User Interface The GUI ( "UI" by itself is still usually pronounced . or ), graphical user interface, is a form of user interface that allows users to interact with electronic devices through graphical icons and audio indicator such as primary notation, inste ...

and behaviour is almost identical to another program that is published by KiVVi Software, Cleanator. Cleanator, however is designed for Windows operating systems. It is also very similar to the

SpySheriff SpySheriff is malware that disguises itself as anti-spyware software. It attempts to mislead the user with false security alerts, threatening them into buying the program. Like other rogue antiviruses, after producing a list of false threats, ...

and SpyAxe applications, infamous for

typosquatting Typosquatting, also called URL hijacking, a sting site, or a fake URL, is a form of cybersquatting, and possibly brandjacking which relies on mistakes such as typos made by Internet users when inputting a website address into a web browser. Shoul ...

Google Google LLC () is an American multinational technology company focusing on search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, artificial intelligence, and consumer electronics. ...

. A paragraph from within the software that encourages users to purchase the full version is identical to that of SpySheriff.

Removal

Companies including

McAfee McAfee Corp. ( ), formerly known as McAfee Associates, Inc. from 1987 to 1997 and 2004 to 2014, Network Associates Inc. from 1997 to 2004, and Intel Security Group from 2014 to 2017, is an American global computer security software company head ...

Symantec Symantec may refer to: *An American consumer software company now known as Gen Digital Inc. *A brand of enterprise security software purchased by Broadcom Inc. Broadcom Inc. is an American designer, developer, manufacturer and global supplier ...

and

Sunbelt Software VIPRE Security Group, (also known as VIPRE or VIPRE Security) a brand of Ziff Davis, is a privately held cybersecurity company headquartered in New York. VIPRE develops cybersecurity products focused on endpoint and email security along with ad ...

have identified the threat and have posted removal instructions on their websites.

Intego Intego is a Mac and Windows security software company founded in 1997 by Jean-Paul Florencio and Laurent Marteau. The company creates Internet security software for macOS and Windows, including: antivirus, firewall, anti-spam, backup software a ...

VirusBarrier and iAntivirus are capable of removing it too.

SiteAdvisor The McAfee SiteAdvisor, later renamed as the McAfee WebAdvisor, is a service that reports on the safety of web sites by crawling the web and testing the sites it finds for malware and spam. A browser extension can show these ratings on hyperlink ...

, a division of

has controversially given the site a green rating. However, SiteAdvisor's tests are conducted on PCs, that cannot recognise

.dmg DMG may refer to: Organizations Entertainment * Dames Making Games, a Canadian non-profit organization that encourages the participation of women, non-binary, femme and queer people in the creation of video games * Davidson Media Group, an Americ ...

, the file format of MacSweeper.

Media attention

MacSweeper has received much media attention from websites including

CNET ''CNET'' (short for "Computer Network") is an American media website that publishes reviews, news, articles, blogs, podcasts, and videos on technology and consumer electronics globally. ''CNET'' originally produced content for radio and televi ...

as well as others, as it is considered to be one of the first instances of malware designed for the Mac OS X operating system.

MacSweeper's response

After F-Secure alerted Macintosh users about the rogue, MacSweeper responded on F-Secure's website, saying

References