A comprehensive guide to the threats facing Apple computers and the foundational knowledge needed to become a proficient Mac malware analyst.
Defenders must fully understand how malicious software works if they hope to stay ahead of the increasingly sophisticated threats facing Apple products today. The Art of Mac Malware, Volume 1: The Guide to Analyzing Malicious Software is a comprehensive handbook to cracking open these malicious programs and seeing what s inside.
Discover the secrets of nation state backdoors, destructive ransomware, and subversive cryptocurrency miners as you uncover their infection methods, persistence strategies, and insidious capabilities. Then work with and extend foundational reverse-engineering tools to extract and decrypt embedded strings, unpack protected Mach-O malware, and even reconstruct binary code. Next, using a debugger, you ll execute the malware, instruction by instruction, to discover exactly how it operates. In the book s final section, you ll put these lessons into practice by analyzing a complex Mac malware specimen on your own.
You ll learn to:
Recognize common infections vectors, persistence mechanisms, and payloads leveraged by Mac malwareTriage unknown samples in order to quickly classify them as benign or maliciousWork with static analysis tools, including disassemblers, in order to study malicious scripts and compiled binariesLeverage dynamical analysis tools, such as monitoring tools and debuggers, to gain further insight into sophisticated threatsQuickly identify and bypass anti-analysis techniques aimed at thwarting your analysis attempts
A former NSA hacker and current leader in the field of macOS threat analysis, Patrick Wardle uses real-world examples pulled from his original research. The Art of Mac Malware, Volume 1: The Guide to Analyzing Malicious Software is the definitive resource to battling these ever more prevalent and insidious Apple-focused threats.
Defenders must fully understand how malicious software works if they hope to stay ahead of the increasingly sophisticated threats facing Apple products today. The Art of Mac Malware, Volume 1: The Guide to Analyzing Malicious Software is a comprehensive handbook to cracking open these malicious programs and seeing what s inside.
Discover the secrets of nation state backdoors, destructive ransomware, and subversive cryptocurrency miners as you uncover their infection methods, persistence strategies, and insidious capabilities. Then work with and extend foundational reverse-engineering tools to extract and decrypt embedded strings, unpack protected Mach-O malware, and even reconstruct binary code. Next, using a debugger, you ll execute the malware, instruction by instruction, to discover exactly how it operates. In the book s final section, you ll put these lessons into practice by analyzing a complex Mac malware specimen on your own.
You ll learn to:
Recognize common infections vectors, persistence mechanisms, and payloads leveraged by Mac malwareTriage unknown samples in order to quickly classify them as benign or maliciousWork with static analysis tools, including disassemblers, in order to study malicious scripts and compiled binariesLeverage dynamical analysis tools, such as monitoring tools and debuggers, to gain further insight into sophisticated threatsQuickly identify and bypass anti-analysis techniques aimed at thwarting your analysis attempts
A former NSA hacker and current leader in the field of macOS threat analysis, Patrick Wardle uses real-world examples pulled from his original research. The Art of Mac Malware, Volume 1: The Guide to Analyzing Malicious Software is the definitive resource to battling these ever more prevalent and insidious Apple-focused threats.
"[The Art of Mac Malware] serves as a valuable resource for anyone looking to level up their skills to stay on top of the latest macOS threats. Patrick's approachable, educating writing style and extensive knowledge in this field made him the ideal author to write this book."
Maria Markstedter, @Fox0x01, Forbes Person Of The Year In Cybersecurity
"Mac doesn t face the same level of malware threat that Windows users experience. However, it is possible to create malware for macOS and the excellent book, The Art of Mac Malware, goes into a lot of detail."
Security Boulevard
"Awesome job keeping readers hooked."
Tony Lambert, @ForensicITGuy
"An awesome researcher writing for my favorite publisher . . . If you re interested in Mac malware, I highly recommend!"
Francisco Donoso, @Francisckrs
Maria Markstedter, @Fox0x01, Forbes Person Of The Year In Cybersecurity
"Mac doesn t face the same level of malware threat that Windows users experience. However, it is possible to create malware for macOS and the excellent book, The Art of Mac Malware, goes into a lot of detail."
Security Boulevard
"Awesome job keeping readers hooked."
Tony Lambert, @ForensicITGuy
"An awesome researcher writing for my favorite publisher . . . If you re interested in Mac malware, I highly recommend!"
Francisco Donoso, @Francisckrs
"[The Art of Mac Malware] serves as a valuable resource for anyone looking to level up their skills to stay on top of the latest macOS threats. Patrick's approachable, educating writing style and extensive knowledge in this field made him the ideal author to write this book."
Maria Markstedter, @Fox0x01, Forbes Person Of The Year In Cybersecurity
"Mac doesn t face the same level of malware threat that Windows users experience. However, it is possible to create malware for macOS and the excellent book, The Art of Mac Malware, goes into a lot of detail."
Security Boulevard
"Awesome job keeping readers hooked."
Tony Lambert, @ForensicITGuy
"An awesome researcher writing for my favorite publisher . . . If you re interested in Mac malware, I highly recommend!"
Francisco Donoso, @Francisckrs
Maria Markstedter, @Fox0x01, Forbes Person Of The Year In Cybersecurity
"Mac doesn t face the same level of malware threat that Windows users experience. However, it is possible to create malware for macOS and the excellent book, The Art of Mac Malware, goes into a lot of detail."
Security Boulevard
"Awesome job keeping readers hooked."
Tony Lambert, @ForensicITGuy
"An awesome researcher writing for my favorite publisher . . . If you re interested in Mac malware, I highly recommend!"
Francisco Donoso, @Francisckrs