Malicious miners target pirated Final Cut Pro for macOS
IT security analysts warned of the spread of hidden cryptocurrency miners in pirated versions of Final Cut Pro
Pirate versions of Final Cut Pro application for macOS began to hide XMRig mining program. This was reported by analysts at IT firm Jamf Threat Labs on their official website. It is reported that infected version of video editor was started to spread on The Pirate Bay forum by some user under nickname wtfisthat34698409672.
Researchers found out that the same attacker had been uploading malicious software to torrent forums since 2019 under the guise of pirated versions of Adobe Photoshop and Logic Pro X. To cover their tracks, the miners' connections are made through an i2p network and controlled by a botnet. Also, with each new version, malicious software gets new methods of disguise. For example, the latest versions masquerade as system processes in Spotlight.
In addition, the most recent version of the virus has a built-in script that constantly checks whether the task manager is running. If the task manager is running, the program shuts down all of its processes to avoid detection. How many macOS devices have managed to get infected with the malicious miner is unknown. An Apple spokesperson said in a media commentary that the company is aware of the problem and is already working on updates to its XProtect antivirus to block it.
