Apple admits Mac malware 'getting worse'

Malware threats for Apple Inc.’s Macintosh operating system are getting worse, and Apple’s official policy is not to help get rid of the problem. These were the admissions of an AppleCare call center representative who spoke to tech website ZDNet’s Ed Bott, who posted the transcript of the conversation on ZDNet’s site. “We started getting a trickle of calls a couple weeks ago. However, this last week over 50 percent of our calls have been about it. In two days last week I personally took 60 calls that referred to Mac Defender," said the representative. Mac Defender is a rogue software masquerading as an anti-malware program for computers running the Mac OSX operating system. It presents bogus messages and charges users to pay for the program. 'We're not supposed to help customers But the representative said that they had been advised to adopt a passive stance against Mac Defender and any other such malware. “we’re not supposed to help customers remove malware from their computer," the representative said. “The reason for the rule, they say, is that even though Mac Defender is easy to remove, we can’t set the expectation to customers that we will be able to remove all malware in the future. That’s what antivirus is for," the representative said. But the representative admitted some call center representatives still try to help, despite an agreement for AppleCare that they are not supposed to help with malware. “Indeed we are monitored, but I can’t personally justify telling a father who’s freaking out about what his 6-year-old daughter just saw that I can’t help him out. Our on-floor managers and QA guys do their best to let it slide, but if they start getting pushed from higher-ups, we could face write-ups and even termination," the representative said. 'It's getting worse' The representative also said the problem with Mac Defender is getting worse. “It started with one call a day two weeks ago, now it’s every other call. It’s getting worse. And quick," the rep said. The rep added they would also give callers whose computers were hit links to antivirus software makers. — TJD, GMA News