Final Cut Pro Piracy Is More Dangerous Than You Think
Most professional software these days has moved to expensive subscription-based models, but not Apple: Final Cut Pro is still the same $299 it was when it launched in 2011. let’s say “alternative” markets for the app. However, if you’re tempted to use Final Cut Pro for free editing, don’t do it: it’s too dangerous.
As reported by 9to5Mac , cybersecurity company Jamf Threat Labs recently discovered malware in pirated copies of Final Cut Pro. This in itself is not necessarily a shock. Pirated software does not provide the same security or protection that you would expect when you download an app through an official store such as the Mac App Store. Thus, attackers are taking advantage of the situation by injecting malware into popular apps to infect users who are looking for a free app.
However, the Jamf Threat Labs malware found in pirated copies of Final Cut Pro is not necessarily designed to steal your information or compromise your accounts. Rather, it is crypto-mining (or cryptojacking) malware that can turn your power-efficient Mac into a chore.
How Cryptojacking Affects Your Mac
Cryptocurrency mining requires a lot of resources, which forces miners to invest in both hardware and electricity costs. Some instead choose to invest in other people for both: once installed, cryptomining malware hijacks your Mac’s processing power to mine cryptocurrency for the hacker’s benefit. Thus, the hacker does not need to invest any of his resources in cryptocurrency mining equipment, and he can transfer these tasks to his victims.
They are good, you are bad. This type of malware, like all crypto mining programs, is demanding on your system, especially your GPU, the chip that handles graphics on your computer. In fact, with so many crypto miners buying GPUs for their rigs, the price of GPUs has skyrocketed . Attackers have an incentive to force practices on you, causing you to suffer all the system slowdowns and energy costs associated with practice.
Of course, the impact on your system is not the only reason to avoid this situation. Unintentionally installing malware on your Mac is always a bad thing. Nobody wants weird software on their machines – that’s the definition of an invasion of privacy, whether you notice the consequences of it or not.
This crypto mining malware is particularly insidious
Even more troubling in this particular case is that Jamf Threat Labs found that normal macOS protections did not intercept cryptomining malware when it was installed on a user’s machine. This is likely due to a clever trick by hackers who wrote a malicious version of Final Cut Pro that secretly runs the open source XMRig crypto mining software.
Previous versions of this malware were less stealthy, first requiring the user to enter their system password and then requiring the application to run for the malware to work. In this latest version, once the malicious Final Cut Pro is launched, the cryptocurrency mining malware starts running in the background and does not require Final Cut Pro to be opened for further mining.
He knows that you will also be concerned about your Mac slowing down: if you open the Activity Monitor to examine a program that is taking up so many resources, the malware will shut down until you close the Activity Monitor. Creepy, but perhaps an always-on activity monitor is the best new anti-malware solution on the market.
Final Cut Pro is just the latest pirated application found with this type of crypto-hacking malware, as Jamf Threat Labs found similar issues with pirated versions of Photoshop and Logic Pro. On Apple’s side, the company claims that this family of malware does not bypass their malware protection.
However, this news serves as a reminder that the Internet still has a “Wild West” side, even in 2023. The safest way to install apps like Final Cut Pro on your Mac is to get them from the Mac App Store, which has protocols. in place to drastically reduce the risk of malware.