I stumbled over MacScan last week looking for a port scanner with an UI for OS X. I never found it (though SAINT, a web based UI, would have worked) but I did find MacScan which I thought was interesting. Interesting because it’s a spyware scanner and removal tool. Even more interesting is that it’s trailware. Now, where on the Windows operating system, which is the birthplace of spyware, you can find at least two excellent spyware tools (Ad-Aware and Search and Destroy) for free, here is a tool for OS X that’ll cost some money. Is the threat that great that the price is even justified? Any price?

Since MacScan is a try-before-you-buy software product, I did just that. I went and dowloaded the product after filling out my life story and installed it. I did a full system scan and as you can see from the screen shot, I’m clean. While SecureMac’s screenshot shows some files that are spyware, I have a feeling most other Mac users will see the same thing I did. Nothing.

But MacScan isn’t all about spyware, thankfully for them. If it were, talk about the wrong program for the wrong operating system. But SecureMac does do a bit more looking under the hood than just for spyware. It also looks for trojans (another no-issue on Macs) as well as for keyloggers and remote administration software. Aaah, now we’re talking. The later two items are things Macs can get just as easy as PCs. Well, not just as easy, but Macs can get them. For certain people, this software scanner may be a good thing to have after all.

First, keyloggers are programs that run silentily in the background collecting and saving every key you type into a file for later retreival. A hacker could use this file to get your passwords, credit card numbers, and such, from when you enter this information into web sites, accounting software, or other software on your Mac. Keyloggers have been known to do some heavy damage in peoples lives.

The otehr item is remote administation. Apple’s own Remote Desktop is such a program. In a nutshell, remote administration allows someone else to log into your computer and see the screens contents, control the mouse, and type key strokes into it as if they were sitting in the chair in front of your Mac. They have complete control. Thus, like a keylogger, they have a mightily powerful tool of destruction. Remote administration can also be a simple program that punches a hole in your firewall and allows command line access to your Mac. Remember, OS X is UNIX and UNIX is all about CLI (command line interface.)

So, maybe MacScan is useful, for some. Most probably won’t have to worry about keyloggers or remote administation programs running on their Mac, but there are security professionals that will definetily find this piece of software as a great tool. At any price.

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One Response to “Do You Need MacScan the Spyware Scanner for Your Mac?”

1. nak Says:
   June 27th, 2006 at 8:47

   By port scanner do you mean something like Network Utility (ships with OS X)?