Another worm burrows Mac OS X's way

By Simon Aughton

Posted on 19 Feb 2006 at 21:39

A second OS X worm has been identified that exploits an old Bluetooth vulnerability to spread from one Mac to another.

Inqtana.A is a 'proof of concept' and harmless worm that relies on a vulnerability in both Panther and Tiger that Apple patched last June. The patch is also included in all subsequent OS X updates.

Unpatched, the flaw could allow access to files outside the default Bluetooth exchange folder.

Mac Security News notes that Inqtana.A has not been discovered 'in the wild' and relies on a Bluetooth library, locked into a specific Bluetooth address, that expires on 24 February 2006.

'If you are using OS X 10.4 make sure that you have latest security patches installed and you are safe from Inqtana.A and any future worm that tries to use same exploit,' the website advises.