Macs are no longer the virus-free computer.

Security researchers discovered a new computer virus infecting at least half a million Macs -approximately half of them in United States – about two weeks ago, according to an April 6 New York Times article. Last Tuesday, the virus started infecting computers at Syracuse University, said Information Technology and Services employee Dylan Katz.

The computer user does not need to click on a link or download any malware to get infected, according to the article. Instead, the program downloads itself and the malware’s creators gain unauthorized access to the victim’s computer.

Katz, a sophomore information studies major, said the issue is called the flashback virus. He explained that there has been a vulnerability in Java computer programming starting six months ago that Apple did not act on. Usually, Apple patches itself instead of Mac users having to go through the Java website. Because it was not patched, someone was able to identify the vulnerability and made a virus for it.

On the first day, 600,000 computers were infected, Katz said.

This virus creates a backdoor on the victim’s computer so the creator can upload tools like key stroke loggers that watch what the user types and has the ability to gain personal information, Katz said.

Because of the creator has the ability to access the victim’s information, SU has created a quarantine. This means the infected computer is kicked off of AirOrangeX and the victim must have his or her computer restarted, or fresh-started, to regain access. This is why there has been uproar on campus, Katz said.

Most people who have Macs don’t do software updates very frequently, Katz said, which has been the major issue. He said the ITS department will likely be seeing computers with this issue for the rest of the year, but once everyone does the updates, this problem specifically should be finished. The department has completed about 200 fresh-starts so far, Katz said.

‘Usually, a fresh-start costs $34.95, but for this particular situation, with the flashback virus, we have not been charging at all,’ Katz said.

He explained the reason for the quarantine is to protect the network, SU and students.

Katz said programs have supposedly been created to get rid of the virus, but these programs have not been thoroughly tested and are not yet trusted.

ITS employees have been instructed to wipe out the infected computers completely and reinstall the operating system, Katz said. This ensures a 100 percent chance that the virus is gone.

‘By doing that, we are not giving the virus any chance to come back,’ Katz said.

Although it could not be immediately confirmed by SU Bookstore employees, the store appears to be completely sold out of external hard drives.

Apple has now patched where the virus enters Mac systems, Katz said. This means after fresh-starting a Mac, as long as the computer user does system updates, especially for Java, the computer will not obtain the virus again.

Katz said Apple’s marketing strategy has been hurt because the company markets its computers as virus-free.

‘Now that someone has made a virus for Macs, I think that we are going to start seeing more,’ Katz said.

Michael Rogers, a sophomore television, radio and film major, is a student whose Mac has been infected. After he received a notification on his Mac that its software had found and deleted malware, Rogers downloaded free, additional software from CNN.com to ensure the virus was no longer on his computer.

The virus had been removed from his Mac’s system, but SU’s wireless network had detected that Rogers’ computer was infected at some point, and his Mac was quarantined.

Though he can still connect to the Internet through an Ethernet cable, he said it is a large inconvenience, and he is somewhat confused about how to save his important files.

‘For someone who is not tech inclined, I am unsure how to back everything up,’ Rogers said.

He said he plans to get his computer fresh-started in the near future.

rebarill@syr.edu 

Published on April 17, 2012 at 12:00 pm