Got a Mac? Think having a Mac protects you from the spyware often associated with sleazy porn sites?

Think different again.

Intego, a security research firm, says a Trojan — dubbed OSX.RSPlug.A — has popped up on several pornography Web sites. It tricks users into installing the malware on their Macs.

Users hoping to see porn instead are told that QuickTime can’t view the salacious images, and a codec must be downloaded and installed. Of course, the clueless user never gets any codecs. After downloading and running the install package, the user is asked for an administrative password. The program then has full access to make changes to the computer, redirecting browser calls to bogus Web sites.

Macworld has a good description of exactly how it works:

Your machine could be infected if you’ve recently gone looking for some, um, less-than-flattering pictures of Britney Spears. Thinking you’ve found what you’re looking for, you click a video to watch it, only to see a message stating that your machine lacks the necessary codec. A disk image will then start downloading, and (depending on the settings on your machine) may then mount and launch an installer which asks for your admin password.

Rule #1: Do not install software from untrusted sources, especially if that software comes as an installer package and requests your administrator’s password! However, if you do proceed to run the installer, here’s what will happen:

• Sorry, but you won’t be able to watch those videos, as no codec was installed.
• Your DNS will be changed to point to malicious DNS machines. What this means is that even if you type www.apple.com in your browser’s URL area, you may be taken there, to a phishing “clone” of that site, or to another site completely–such as a porn site. Where you wind up depends solely on how the malicious DNS machines are configured. If you consider ebay.com or paypal.com, for instance, the consequences may be dire.
• A cron job (scheduled task) will run every minute to restore the malicious DNS info, in case you change it.

The Macworld article also has details on how to tell if it’s on your Mac, and how to remove it. If you own a Mac, you should read it.

MacNN also has good coverage.

Keep in mind this is not something that can be passed automatically from machine to machine. It requires user action — and user gullibility. Since Mac users may think they’re immune to malware, tweaking this Trojan to be used on a non-porn site could have serious consequences.

The best advice I can offer: Surf smart. And when it comes to the kind of sites that are known to server up malware — don’t even go there.

Related: Security geeks say Leopard needs fixing.

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GT provides us with new Virtua Fighter 5 Online footage. This game is available now on the Xbox 360. Videos after the break. Click here for more pictures.

Players will not only achieve victory by defeating highly-skilled opponents, but also by competing for prizes and earning in-game money which allow them to buy many items at an in-game shop

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That’s right, “for less than a nickel, you can change your regular antenna into a high gain antenna just like the $30 range extender antennas.” Video after the break.

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Made by China-based e28, Indiastreet claims that the phone above could be the new Google gPhone. Though technical specifications have not yet been announced, it does look similar to the Blackberry. Click here for more pictures.

China’s e28 is going to be Google’s Gphone software and handset manufacturer. We have not been able to confirm whether the Chinese smart phone manufacturer will have the exclusive Gphone rights. E28 is a leading provider of mobile Linux convergence technology and will fit the Google mantra of keeping everything open

[via Gizmodo]

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Recording artist 50-Cent unveiled his completely revamped Pontiac G8 at SEMA 2007. It boasts a 550hp LSX 427 engine, fitted with “a variety of production-based components used on the Corvette Z06’s 7.0L LS7 engine, including a forged steel crankshaft, lightweight titanium connecting rods, racing-derived aluminum cylinder heads and a complete LS7 intake/throttle body/fuel injection system.” Video after the break. Click here for more pictures.

The new G8 - which goes on sale nationally in early 2008 - is totally customized, with custom paint and exterior appointments, as well as a re-trimmed interior outfitted with an audio system that shakes the ground as much as 50 Cent’s three albums shook up the charts

[via Jalopnik]

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We get a first look at Crysis’ two cutscenes (demo) — courtesy of “Nightmare225″. Video after the break. Click here for more pictures.

This is it folks. The first Crysis cutscene, the one that starts the entire party. This is the demo, running completely maxed out, all very high settings, with 4xAA on my 8800 - Q6600 system. Completely stunning, it blew away all of my expectations. The gameplay, the graphics, the sound, the IMMERSION

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There’s no doubt about it — personal computer operating systems are getting prettier. As both Microsoft and Apple take advantage of advances in the capabilities of graphics cards, their products are getting more pleasant to use. With each successive version of Windows or Mac OS X, there’s more eye candy — changes in the interface designed solely to add visual appeal.

Not everyone appreciates eye candy — turning it off is the first tweak many users make after they’ve upgraded their OS. I know people running Windows Vista who use the Windows Classic theme, which drops it back to the ugly days of Windows 2000. Blech.

The controversy over eye candy has erupted again with the release of Leopard, the latest version of the Mac OS. To me, its reflective Dock and translucent menu bar are drop-dead gorgeous.

To others, they’re a distraction and thus hard to use. Dave Winer’s an example of those who don’t appreciate the changes:

I want my white menubar back.

I think the idea of the translucent menubar is wrong.

Here’s a screen shot.

See how dark it is in the upper-right corner. You look in that corner all the time, it’s where the clock is, it’s where you see how much battery you have left, how good your wifi signal is, etc. We don’t have much room for a dashboard on these machines, but that’s where it is. If it changes appearance just because I changed the desktop image, that’s new and unexpected behavior, and it can make it hard to read for people with old eyes. And for what purpose? It makes the desktop background choice something that impacts a crucial part of the user interface.

What’s interesting is, for a while I was using the same background Winer was, and I didn’t have a problem with reading menu text — and my eyes are fairly “old,” too. In fact, I rather like how the menu bar’s translucency reacts to certain colors and shadowing in the images behind it. Leopard users: Try the dandelion background image in the Nature folder. The menu bar turns a lovely shade of green.

There’s already a growing body of hacks and tips for stripping the new eye candy out of Leopard. Someone even figured out how to change the color of the reflective shelf.

When Windows Vista came out, many users swore they’d turn off the beautiful Aero interface because it would cause their PCs to be sluggish. But if your machine can handle and display Aero, sluggishness is not an issue (at least because of the interface). That’s because the computer’s graphics card is handling the workload, not its main processor. Turning off the Aero interface won’t speed things up in terms of the computer’s overall performance.

For me, having an attractive user interface is pleasing, even relaxing. It’s like working in a room that’s pleasantly decorated, with intriguing art on the walls and autumn light streaming in through the windows. Turning off eye candy is like working in a cubicle.

Here’s what my Vista desktop looks like right now. The background is from a site called Sushicam, which features beautiful photos from Japan.

Though I usually use Vista’s default window colors, I’m opting for graphite at the moment. Doesn’t that look like an inviting place to get work done?

Now, here’s that same desktop in the Windows Classic theme.

Suddenly, it’s 1999!

I feel the same way about Leopard’s changes. I preferred Vista’s look over that of Mac OS X 10.4, or Tiger, but now I’m torn. Leopard and Vista are currently tied for prettiest interface, in my estimation. Vista may have an edge because it’s easier to customize.

Of course, all this is subjective. I don’t quite understand why some folks would want to uglify their desktops, but they’re quite adamant about it.

Let’s discuss eye candy. Do you love or loathe it? How is your desktop configured? As they say in the car business, is it stripped or equipped?

Please leave a comment.

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• Privacy Groups Propose Do-Not-Track List — If you’re name’s on the list, sites wouldn’t track you via cookies.

• Storm Worm sent 15 million pump-and-dump e-mails and ‘Criminal’ Botnet Stumps for Ron Paul, Researchers Allege

• The Secret World of Bandwidth — What exactly is your ISP doing with your connection?

• AT&T Invents Programming Language for Mass Surveillance — Maybe I won’t switch after all . . .

• Google and Friends to Gang Up on Facebook — Creating a set of standard components for social networks.

• Restated results cut Dell income by $92 million

• Eye-Fi Adds Wi-Fi to Almost Any Digital Camera — Memory card and Wi-Fi adapter in one.

• Apple OS X 10.5 (Leopard) Full Preview — “. . . it’s by far the best operating system ever written for the vast majority of consumers. . . “: From PC Magazine, of all publications!

• Tweak Mac OS X Leopard’s User Interface — Get rid of the reflective Dock, or round the menu bar’s corners.

• DirectX 10.1 in Windows Vista SP1 - The Evolution — Coming in Windows Vista’s SP1.

• Vista team blogs about audio glitches — Older drivers locking out the CPU may be a cause.

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Filed under: Transportation

While not the first bunch to try and mesh invisibility with military equipment, the British Army is reportedly staying busy by “testing technology it claims makes tanks and troops invisible.” Apparently, the (previously) uber-secret trials were conducted by the Royal Engineers and scientists from QinetiQ, and if eyewitness reports are to be believed, they were able to “make a vehicle seem to completely disappear.” The illusion (read: we’re no closer to actual invisibility cloaks) was reportedly created by utilizing “cameras and projectors to beam images captured from the surrounding landscape onto a specially-adapted tank coated with silicon to maximize their reflective qualities,” and if things go as planned, these elusive machines could make their way onto the battlefield “within five years.” ‘Course, it’s not like anyone will have visual proof of that, but we suppose that’s just the nature of the beast.

[Via DailyMail]

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Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

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Filed under: Displays, Transportation

One may wonder how on Earth a wheel manufacturer can top the sheer gaudiness displayed on the world’s biggest spinners, but apparently, somebody’s already all over it. Shown at SEMA 2007, the pictured Chrysler 300 was sporting a set of LED-equipped wheels (PimpStar, anyone?), each of which contained its own (effectively worthless) color display. Unfortunately, all we have to go by is a short video (posted after the jump, if you dare) which incorrectly calls the car a Bentley, so as you may expect, we’ve no idea how much coin these will demand. But then again, your money would probably be better spent on in-car electronics — or pretty much anything else, to be frank.

Continue reading Chrysler 300 sports display-equipped wheels at SEMA

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Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

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