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Apple releases security update, Flashback removal tool for Leopard

#1 User is offline   Macworld 

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Posted 14 May 2012 - 01:15 PM

Post your comments for Apple releases security update, Flashback removal tool for Leopard here
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#2 User is offline   tfrogh 

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  Posted 14 May 2012 - 01:40 PM

So, everyone with a G5, your time with Flash is now over if it is diabling old Flash? There is no "newer version" for anyone with a G-Series Mac.

Quite sad, ancient PCs running XP get Flash updates. Machines far older than my G5.
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#3 User is offline   alterbentzion 

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  Posted 14 May 2012 - 02:21 PM

I had the same questions as tfrogh, but now I wonder if this is just for Intel machines. I just ran Software Update on my G5, and the app told me all of my software is up-to-date.
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#4 User is offline   TeaEarleGreyHot 

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Posted 14 May 2012 - 02:32 PM

View Posttfrogh, on 14 May 2012 - 01:40 PM, said:

So, everyone with a G5, your time with Flash is now over if it is diabling old Flash? There is no "newer version" for anyone with a G-Series Mac.

Quite sad, ancient PCs running XP get Flash updates. Machines far older than my G5.

Once again.... this has nothing to do with Adobe Flash.

it is malware code that runs in Java. (Not Javascript).

I'm glad Apple has released the Leopard version of the removal tool. We use a number of old PowerMacs that are running Tiger, I wonder if they are not susceptible to Flashback? Or is that truly "too old"?
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#5 User is offline   JorgeTJ2000 

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  Posted 14 May 2012 - 03:14 PM

Not a big deal but Right Said Fred ids from the 90s. I know because my fiance made me buy the disc at the time ("UP" is a suprisingly good listen).
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#6 User is offline   MorrisTheCat 

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Posted 14 May 2012 - 04:04 PM

View PostTeaEarleGreyHot, on 14 May 2012 - 02:32 PM, said:

View Posttfrogh, on 14 May 2012 - 01:40 PM, said:

So, everyone with a G5, your time with Flash is now over if it is diabling old Flash? There is no "newer version" for anyone with a G-Series Mac.

Quite sad, ancient PCs running XP get Flash updates. Machines far older than my G5.

Once again.... this has nothing to do with Adobe Flash.

it is malware code that runs in Java. (Not Javascript).

I'm glad Apple has released the Leopard version of the removal tool. We use a number of old PowerMacs that are running Tiger, I wonder if they are not susceptible to Flashback? Or is that truly "too old"?


Perhaps you should read the article again. Apple released TWO updates. The Flashback malware removal tool AND an update just like the one they released for 10.6 and 10.7 that will disable the Flash Player plug-in if it is an old version (last version it allows was released in 2010 sometime) So yes, this does have to do with Flash Player plug-in.
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#7 User is offline   TeaEarleGreyHot 

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Posted 14 May 2012 - 04:43 PM

View PostMorrisTheCat, on 14 May 2012 - 04:04 PM, said:

Perhaps you should read the article again. Apple released TWO updates. The Flashback malware removal tool AND an update just like the one they released for 10.6 and 10.7 that will disable the Flash Player plug-in if it is an old version (last version it allows was released in 2010 sometime) So yes, this does have to do with Flash Player plug-in.

Thank you, MorrisTheCat, I did re-read it and you are correct.

If the site software would allow me to edit my initial post in this thread, I would strikeout the text, since it is clearly incorrect.

This post has been edited by TeaEarleGreyHot: 14 May 2012 - 04:46 PM

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#8 User is offline   KurtSmeiska 

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Posted 14 May 2012 - 05:24 PM

View Postalterbentzion, on 14 May 2012 - 02:21 PM, said:

I had the same questions as tfrogh, but now I wonder if this is just for Intel machines. I just ran Software Update on my G5, and the app told me all of my software is up-to-date.

With a G4 running 10.5.8 did get the same results. I then tried manually updating by downloading the update files but the installer package would not run, must be intel only- although that is not stated anywhere in this article or apple's system requirements for both updates.
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#9 User is offline   RobertHuang 

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  Posted 14 May 2012 - 07:31 PM

Just tried to install with my PowerMac G5 with OS 10.5.8 and did not work.

Must be Intel only..:(
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#10 User is offline   DocNo 

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Posted 15 May 2012 - 03:33 AM

View PostTeaEarleGreyHot, on 14 May 2012 - 04:43 PM, said:

If the site software would allow me to edit my initial post in this thread, I would strikeout the text, since it is clearly incorrect.


You can from the forum side of things, just not from below the story. So just reply to any post, then click on the story title in the bread crumb trail towards the top of the screen (for this story it's the line starting with: "Macworld Forums> Macworld Talk> Story Discussion> Apple releases security update, Flashback removal tool for Leopard" with the last link being the one for the story) and viola - you are in the thread for this story.

Why the !^#%@# the webmasters can't just put the stupid direct link to the story back in is beyond me :angry: If it bugs you as much as it does me, please express your concern here.

This post has been edited by DocNo: 15 May 2012 - 03:34 AM

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#11 User is offline   tfrogh 

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Posted 15 May 2012 - 04:39 AM

View Posttfrogh, on 14 May 2012 - 01:40 PM, said:

So, everyone with a G5, your time with Flash is now over if it is disabling old Flash? There is no "newer version" for anyone with a G-Series Mac.

Quite sad, ancient PCs running XP get Flash updates. Machines far older than my G5.



Last night I powered up the Appa and Momo (G5 Tower and G5 iMac). Neither of them could be updated. I guess Apple really considers the G-series to be not worth the trouble.

Oh well, I'll be sure to do my part keeping the infection story in the news by running my old machines and having the Anti-Mac crowd keeping hollering about the infection rate.

Really really stooopid of Apple and Adobe.
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#12 User is offline   TxTom 

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  Posted 15 May 2012 - 06:06 AM

If you go to the information page about the security updates, there is a table there with recent security updates...the latest being for Leopard. But it does specify that the update is Intel only. The PPC family is now orphaned.
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#13 User is offline   TeaEarleGreyHot 

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Posted 15 May 2012 - 06:12 AM

View PostDocNo, on 15 May 2012 - 03:33 AM, said:

You can from the forum side of things, just not from below the story. So just reply to any post, then click on the story title in the bread crumb trail towards the top of the screen (for this story it's the line starting with: "Macworld Forums> Macworld Talk> Story Discussion> Apple releases security update, Flashback removal tool for Leopard" with the last link being the one for the story) and viola - you are in the thread for this story.

Are you sure about this, DocNo? I'm aware of the oddity you describe, and yet I find that after some time has passed (or a post is replied to perhaps?), the "edit" button disappears even from the forum side of things. I actually did look for it... Oh well, not something I need to dwell on.
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#14 User is offline   HandyMac 

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  Posted 15 May 2012 - 06:47 AM

1) I have a PowerBook G4 running 10.5.8. Software Update didn't show either of these updates.

2) When I downloaded these updates they wouldn't run.

Clearly, they're for Intel Macs only. But another question comes to mind: Does the Flashback malware run on PPC Macs? If it involves any kind of "executable" application/program (and I should think it must) then it would have to be coded as "Universal". Given that expert malware coders have been trained and experienced entirely in the Intel environment, and that the number of PPC Macs, six years after the Big Transition, is a very small percentage of the target "audience", it would seem to be hardly worth their trouble to learn to code a Universal Mac app. So maybe there's not much to worry about for PPC Mac users.

TenFourFox Development explores security for PPC Macs in a recent blog post
http://tenfourfox.bl...nket-blues.html
"...while no PowerPC machines were known to be exploited by the recent Flashback worm, our previous analysis shows that the flaw was real; it's just that the actual payload was Intel-only, so it could not run even though it was possible to gain the privileges it would have required to be successful." But there are other issues it seems; the article is worth a read.

I don't use 10.5 regularly myself, nor PPC Macs, but for those who do, it's increasingly the sort of hobby that will require constant tweaking, like an old car.

This post has been edited by HandyMac: 15 May 2012 - 06:52 AM

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