Backdoor.MAC.Elanor Malware Access Mac Webcams, Steals Data, More

There’s a new Mac malware threat in the wild dubbed Backdoor.MAC.Elanor that’s particularly nasty because it lets attackers take control of your Mac’s camera, download data from your computer, and remotely run code. Mac users can fall victim to the threat by downloading what otherwise appears to be a legit app and has even shown up on some mainstream Mac software repositories.

Backdoor.MAC.Elanor was called out by digital security company Bitdefender. The company described the threat in a blog post saying,

The backdoor is embedded into a fake file converter application that is accessible online on reputable sites offering Mac applications and software. The EasyDoc Converter.app poses as a drag-and-drop file converter, but has no real functionality – it simply downloads a malicious script.

The bad news is that EasyDoc converter app containing Backdoor.MAC.Elanor is available on several sites right now, and the only thing it does is install the malware threat. The good news is that it is doesn’t include an Apple developer signature, so your Mac’s default security settings will prevent it from installing—and it isn’t available through Apple’s own Mac App Store.

Backdoor.MAC.Elanor is a serious threat and an excellent reminder that blindly trusting app download sites isn’t a good idea—and stay away from sites you don’t know and trust, or offer deals that sound too good to be true.