According to a report from mobile security platform Zimperium, threat actors are using a modified version of Android malware, dubbed “FakeCall,” taking control of phone dialers and intercepting calls made to banks.
- “FakeCall is an extremely sophisticated Vishing attack that leverages malware to take almost complete control of the mobile device, including the interception of incoming and outgoing calls. Victims are tricked into calling fraudulent phone numbers controlled by the attacker and mimicking the normal user experience on the device.”
First reported by Kaspersky in 2022, the attack mimicked banking apps and let users make calls through them. Attackers would overlay the bank’s actual number on victims’ screens and then impersonate bank employees when the victim called the number, thereby obtaining users personal banking information.
Ted Miracco, CEO, Approov had this to say:
“Google’s isolated approach to Android security has proven insufficient, as exemplified by recurring threats like ‘FakeCall.’ Dismantling Google’s monopolistic Play Store and fostering competitive app stores with open standards for security—including attestation and a transparent rating system—would empower consumers with clearer insight into app risks and access to safer, rigorously vetted applications.”
The fact that this was first discovered in 2022 and is still around today shows that there needs to be a new approach to keep this sort of malware from being a problem. Hopefully Google who is in all sorts of trouble when it comes to the Play Store can come to the table with something that addresses this once and for all.
Hot Take: Expect Apple To Stop Supporting Intel Macs In 2026
Posted in Commentary with tags Apple on November 2, 2024 by itnerdOne thing that I have been asked a lot since Apple Silicon became a thing is how long can someone hold onto their Intel based Mac. Now I don’t have a crystal ball or anything, but based on the fact that the transition from Intel to Apple Silicon isn’t Apple’s first rodeo when it comes to changing chip technology, you can make some intelligent guesses based on Apple’s prior history:
First, though Apple doesn’t say it, the company typically supports its products with five or more years of software updates. Specifically security updates. So one can reasonably expect that once the Intel Macs that are supported by Apple reach that five year mark, it’s game over for those Macs. Let’s put that into practice. This is the list of Macs that are supported by macOS Sequoia:
The oldest Mac on this list is the iMac Pro which is way beyond the 5 years of software support that Apple typically provides. The MacBook Pro’s, Mac mini, from 2018-2020 are the next oldest. Followed by the Mac Pro and iMac from 2019. All those Macs are within the 5+ year window that I spoke of earlier in terms of software support. MacBook Air owners who have Intel processors are already out of luck as the 2020 model was the first Apple Silicon model. So based on that, I anticipate that the 2026 version of macOS will be the first one with only Apple Silicon support.
If we look at history, my theory holds water. Consider the following sequence of events from the last time Apple changed processor technology. When they went from IBM’s PowerPC to Intel, this happened:
All of that was a roughly 5 year timespan. That makes 2026 as a date for the demise of Intel Macs plausible. More so if you consider that Apple Silicon was announced in June of 2020 and the first Macs to have Apple Silicon showed up in November of that year.
So what should you do if you have an Intel Mac? Well, now is the time to plan your transition to Apple Silicon. This is especially true if you have a Mac that isn’t getting software updates of any sort from Apple right now. Because with no software updates from Apple, and software companies to likely not support these computers, the usefulness of these computers will nosedive pretty dramatically. Thus planning out your move to Apple Silicon in a calm manner is the way to go. That way you don’t hit 2026 and wonder what your options are.
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