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"Apple has issued a new software update that also serves to remove the most common variant of the Flashback Trojan.\nThe update, which was released via Software Update on April 12, supersedes the previous software updates issued to patch the Java vulnerability that allowed malicious software to track users on more than 600,000 Macs.\nIn addition to removing the most common variant of the malware from infected systems, the latest update also does its part to protect against future Java infections. \nAs Apple's security notes describe:\n\"This update also configures the Java web plug-in to disable the automatic execution of Java applets. Users may re-enable automatic execution of Java applets using the Java Preferences application. If the Java web plug-in detects that no applets have been run for an extended period of time it will again disable Java applets.\"\n\n\n\n\nThe real-world effects of the Flashback Trojan are not really known, but the potential damage is very, very real. All Mac users are encouraged to update their systems immediately.\nApple has been criticized for allowing the vulnerability in its branch of Java to go unpatched for such a long time. This allowed Flashback to evolve from a user-installed piece of malware into something that would self-install if users simply visited an infected web page.\nWhile we'll give the company credit for coming up with a solution that both removes the malware and helps protect against future attacks, this is also the sort of situation that didn't have to happen.\nApple advertises security as one of the key features of OS X \u2014 and this is true \u2014 but that doesn't mean that Macs are invulnerable from malware. It doesn't help when Apple-provided software is left out of date even after a vulnerability is found.\nIf you haven't already, install the latest update on your Mac immediately."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2012/04/13/apple-flashback-removal-update/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Mashable+%28Mashable%29>