WatchCat

WatchCat is a very new piece of malware that only works on Mac computers. Thankfully, no active copies of the WatchCat implant have been found in the wild, and, so far, malware researchers only encountered WatchCat on an online file scanning service. After analyzing the sample, researchers determined that it is not linked to any of the previously known malware families for Mac, and it is likely to be an entirely new project.

Threats like the WatchCat show a worrying trend – in the past, criminals who wished to target Mac systems usually did this by reworking a piece of Windows malware so that it would be compatible with the macOS. The WatchCat, however, does not seem to have any traces of Windows compatibility – this malware was created with the sole purpose of exploiting Mac systems.

There is little information about the WatchCat implant, but cybersecurity experts suspect that it might be one of the latest products of the Lazarus APT who appear to be experimenting with Mac malware – recently, they introduced the OSX.Casso backdoor Trojan. Although the WatchCat has not been detected in the wild yet, researchers confirm that this implant appears to be a finished project that is ready to be deployed. Unfortunately, this means that it probably will not be a long time before the cybercriminals behind the WatchCat start distributing it to their targets. It is advised to take the required precautions to protect your system and files by investing in a reputable Mac security software suite.