Proof of concept adware app targets OS X

While it's true that the Mac remains, for all intents and purposes, a platform that is seldom the target of security exploits, a number of security companies seem intent on tarnishing OS X's "bug free" reputation--if only to prove that Macs aren't somehow invincible. The latest to join the fray is Finnish security vendor F-Secure, whose iAdware has been called "the first example of adware for Macs." Interestingly enough, the program doesn't even require admin-level privileges to install itself on a user's hard drive as a System Library. "In theory, this program could be silently installed to your user account and hooked to each application you use," says the F-Secure blog. "This particular sample successfully launched the Mac's Web browser when we used any of a number of applications."

For more on the proof-of-concept exploit:
- see this ZDnet article