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Backdoor Trojan For Windows Ported To Mac OS

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the run-for-cover dept.

An anonymous reader writes "A Remote Access Trojan (RAT) for Windows, known as darkComet, has been ported to Mac OS X. The new backdoor Trojan is not yet finished, but it could be indicative of more underground programmers attempting to take advantage of Apple's growing market share."

5 of 263 comments (clear)

  1. Besides missing link, summary isn't accurate.. by intellitech · · Score: 5, Informative

    darkComet (aka darkComet-RAT) is the name of a remote administration tool, which BlackHoleRAT's control functionality is derived from. The trojan is actually called BlackHoleRAT, but regardless, here's an article link.

    And, while I'm going, the distortion of the term "trojan" is starting to test my patience. A trojan horse is a piece of software that is deceptive in nature, one which appears to perform a desirable function, but, in fact, steals information or harms the system its occupying. This application, darkComet-RAT, is referred to as a trojan itself all over the web in news articles relating to this beta of "BlackHoleRAT," which is NOT the case. darkComet-RAT is a legit remote administration tool, similiar in functionality to VNC, and should be treated as such.

    I understand this butchering of the acronym "RAT," between its use as "Remote Administration Tool" and "Remote Access Trojan" may be confusing, as with all acronyms that use the same letters, but please, for the love of god, do some damn fact checking, and this would be less likely to happen.

    Grumble grumble grumble.

    --
    vos nescitis quicquam, nec cogitatis quia expedit nobis ut unus moriatur homo pro populo et non tota gens pereat.
    1. Re:Besides missing link, summary isn't accurate.. by commodore6502 · · Score: 1, Informative

      >>>do some damn fact checking

      "What's that?" - thousands of journalists and their professors. I don't think this is a deliberate misuse of the word trojan - just non technical people getting confused between DarkComet and BlackHole. Similar to how some non-tech people call megabits per second a "bandwidth" or 9.8 meters per second the "force" of gravity.

      --
      Information wants to be expensive AND wants to be free. So you have Value vs. Cheap distribution fighting each other.
    2. Re:Besides missing link, summary isn't accurate.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      Well, darkcomet isn't technically a trojan anymore than CoDC's Back Orifice is, but both are designed to be installed by subverting OS security restrictions and run stealthily. And while both have legitimate remote administration functions, they also have some not-so-legitimate ones well (i.e keyloggers). Let's face it, darkcomet and its ilk are designed to be used by black hat (wannabes). I doubt you would ever find them installed by any responsible IT dept for RA of business desktops.

      It may not be a trojan itself, but it's designed to be used as a payload for trojan software.

  2. Re:Or... by vague+disclaimer · · Score: 3, Informative
    I didn't say they wrote it.

    But Sophos has pushed out alarmist trolling press releases every quarter or so for years now all implying how OSX is about to be hit by a tidal wave of viruses, worms etc (other sites have credited Sophos as the source of this story - not Slashdot though, it seems.

  3. Re:It was just a matter of time by chaim79 · · Score: 5, Informative

    Hmm, you spout off on some stupid controversial opinion without even checking if it has anything to do with the topic on hand, yes you are a troll.

    Though part of the fault is that whoever made this summary is also a troll, DarkComet is a Remote Administration Tool (Emphasis on TOOL) similar to VNC, SSH, etc. There is nothing about this that is Virus or Trojan related.

    --
    DEMETRIUS: Villain, what hast thou done?
    AARON: Villain, I have done thy mother.
    Shakespeare invents 'your mom'