Software | Mac Sage

Leopard Security – Still An Issue

by patrick

The QuickTime vulnerability originally reported on November 15 seems to have been spotted in the wild. This is not good news.

Apple made a decision to change the firewall settings in Leopard, provoking some serious questions about the security of this new OS. This latest security issue puts a spotlight on what may become a real thorn in Apple’s side.

This from Symantec:

Originally, the flaw was disclosed on November 23, 2007 by Polish security researcher Krystian Kloskowski and since then we have seen number of exploits targeting the vulnerability being released to the public. But now the exploit is active and in the wild, meaning web surfers are in danger of being attacked. Our current analysis is also leading us to believe that there may be multiple attacks in existence. Further investigation is currently under way to confirm this.

Let me briefly explain what we have seen. The attack we have confirmed today begins with the popular IFRAME. An IFRAME code that causes the browser to make an additional request to another URL, is embedded in a porn site. Without knowledge, users visiting this site are redirected to the malicious site serving the exploit. Currently, the malware that is downloaded by the exploit is detected by Symantec as Downloader. We are still studying the attack in depth, so look out for more information at a later time.

Since a patch to correct the issue has yet to be released, we advise users to be cautious when browsing the web. For those of you seeking extra protection, we also recommend the following options:

- Run web browsers at the highest security settings possible
- Disable Apple QuickTime as a registered RTSP protocol handler.
- Filter outgoing activity over common RTSP ports, including TCP port 554 and UDP ports 6970-6999.

Retrieve Emptied Trash Items

by patrick

If you folks have Leopard, then you should be using TimeMachine to safeguard against losing files to corruption or emptied trash. But if you have not yet installed Leopard, or are simply not using TimeMachine, and you find yourself wishing you could undelete an emptied trash item, you may be in luck.

The folks at SubRosaSoft have created a solid little application called FileSalvage ($79.00) which can retrieve files even after you’ve emptied the trash. When the trash is emptied, the OS X system doesn’t actually erase the data. Instead, it informs the file management system that the space previously occupied by the file is now available for being overwritten. FileSalvage can retrieve that file as long as the data for the file has not already been overwritten with other data. This is why it’s more likely that you’ll be successful in getting your file back if you use FileSalvage as soon after the file has been trashed as possible.

You can download a trial copy of FileSalvage and check whether or not your file is recoverable, then purchase the software to implement the recovery.

Check it out: FileSalvage

Leopard Firewall Off By Default

by patrick

The casual user of Apple’s new operating system, Leopard, may not be aware that unlike in Tiger, the firewall is off by default. To turn it on, you’ll need to go to System Preferences/Security/Firewall tab.

This is a new interface which lets you specify firewall blocking by application rather than ports or services (unlike Tiger). There have been several reports that Leopard’s firewall does not behave like Tiger’s. In some cases, it appears that it is not blocking certain services indicated by the settings.

Stay tuned for ongoing information regarding Leopard’s firewall issues, including some other security issues arising from Leopard’s Screen Sharing capabilities.

Gmail IMAP and Mail

by patrick

Google has now made IMAP an available option for their gMail account holders. Now you can synchronize it with a desktop mail client like OS X’s Mail. This is especially nice for folks who travel and would like to have their mail folders available via Mail wherever they go.

Google has created extensive help pages for setting up IMAP with several different mail clients. Check it out here: IMAP Access

Move To Leopard Could Prove Troublesome

by patrick

As the debut of Apple’s latest operating system nears, the rumblings about incompatibilities and problems increases. Although the new features are impressive, the problems and barriers to easy upgrade for exiting Tiger users is making quick adoption more difficult.

It’s not clear to me that this new OS will make my life easier/better in the educational environment I manage. For the first time, I will be testing this OS on a non-essential machine, and watching carefully the feedback from folks on several online forums. My move to Leopard will be slow and careful, despite my enthusiasm for new technology.

Check these concerns about Leopard: Leopard Compatibility