Top MacOS App Exfiltrates Browser Histories Behind Users’ Backs

ronjor · Sep 7, 2018

Tom Spring September 7, 2018

A top-grossing Apple App Store program called Adware Doctor is capable of sidestepping macOS security controls and surreptitiously copying a user’s entire browser history. It then sends it to a China-based domain.
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ronjor · Sep 7, 2018

A Popular Mac App That Sent Users' Browsing History To China Has Been Removed

Nicole Nguyen Posted on September 7, 2018
Apple confirmed to BuzzFeed News that it has removed Adware Doctor from its Mac App Store after researchers said it was "surreptitiously stealing" user data.
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Rasheed187 · Sep 8, 2018

We need security tools that block access to certain files and memory areas.

guest · Sep 10, 2018

Trend Micro Apps Leak User Data, Removed from Mac App Store
September 10, 2018
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/ne...ps-leak-user-data-removed-from-mac-app-store/

On Saturday, security researcher Privacy_1st published a video showing that Dr. Cleaner and Dr. Antivirus collected browser history from Safari, Chrome, and Firefox, along with some system information.
iOS developer and 9to5Mac writer Guilherme Rambo found that Trend Micro's Dr. Unarchiver was also siphoning user data.
Info heading to Trend Micro servers
Privacy_1st looked into the three apps from Trend Micro and saw that they had hardcoded strings for exfiltrating user information.

It is important to note that the three apps analyzed by Privacy_1st did not exhibit data exfiltration behavior every time they launched. Also, the researcher did not have a chance to look closer into this, but from his experience with analyzing APT malware, this looks like a valid theory.
Multiple apps remove data in the same way, all from Chinese devs
Adware Doctor and Komros Adware Cleaner (same developer behind them), Open Any Files and Adblock Master relied on the same technique to lift the information from users. [...] Also removed is App Uninstall, another product under Trend Micro's developer account.
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guest · Sep 11, 2018

Trend Micro: we didn't steal Chrome and Safari history data from Mac users
September 11, 2018
https://www.cso.com.au/article/6465...al-chrome-safari-history-data-from-mac-users/

Trend Micro refuted reports that it is siphoning user data off to an unidentified server in China and noted that the features that led to this conclusion are not included in its Windows products.
“Reports that Trend Micro is “stealing user data” and sending them to an unidentified server in China are absolutely false,” the company said in a blog post.

Trend Micro said it has completed an initial investigation of of the issue affecting its MacOS consumer products and found that it only took a “snapshot” of users’ browser histories for security purposes.

“The results confirm that Dr Cleaner, Dr Cleaner Pro, Dr. Antivirus, Dr. Unarchiver, Dr. Battery, and Duplicate Finder collected and uploaded a small snapshot of the browser history on a one-time basis, covering the 24 hours prior to installation. This was a one-time data collection, done for security purposes (to analyze whether a user had recently encountered adware or other threats, and thus to improve the product & service).
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Rasheed187 · Sep 15, 2018

mood said: ↑

Trend Micro: we didn't steal Chrome and Safari history data from Mac users
September 11, 2018
https://www.cso.com.au/article/6465...al-chrome-safari-history-data-from-mac-users/
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Yeah right, Trend Micro and other AV companies like Avast should be ashamed of themselves. We all know that they are spying on users.

guest · Sep 20, 2018

Sen. Rubio wants answers from Apple on privacy-violating app
September 19, 2018
https://www.cyberscoop.com/rubio-apple-tim-cook-privacy-adware-doctor/

On Wednesday, Sen. Marco Rubio wrote to Apple demanding answers on why it reportedly took the tech giant weeks to address the issue.
“For a company that prides itself on prioritizing user privacy and security, this delayed response is extremely disconcerting,” Rubio, R-Fla., wrote to Apple CEO Tim Cook.

“While I am aware of Apple’s efforts to protect against these intrusions by keeping apps compartmentalized from each other in ‘sandboxes,’ it is evident that Adware Doctor managed to circumvent your implemented guidelines and protections,” he added.

Rubio also asked Cook what steps the Cupertino, California, tech company will do to ensure that its applications have “security protocols in place to prevent foreign actors from gaining access to user data.”
You can read the full letter from Rubio to Cook below: [...]
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