Cybercriminals abusing popular scheduling tool Calendly to infect Macs with malware — be on your guard for suspicious links and invites

News
By published

Social engineering can sometimes catch you off-guard

Calendar page pinned in a calender on date business meeting schedule
(Image credit: Shutterstock/ACTS_DATA STOCK)

Hackers are using complex social engineering campaigns and calendar invites to distribute Mac malware.

The hackers are abusing calendar scheduling tool Calendly to distribute meeting invites as part of their attempts to fool the best Mac antivirus.

Article continues below

Shady investments

Disclosed by a reader of Krebs On Security, the campaign saw hackers go after cryptocurrency by posing as investors looking for their next startup to provide with funding. In this case, the victim was originally contacted via Telegram looking for an investment opportunity.

The scammer wanted to organize a meeting to discuss the potential investment options, and so the victims sent over their Calendly details in order to organize a video call. The fateful day approached, but nothing happened when the victim attempted to open the meeting link. Low and behold, the scammers’ ‘IT team’ fixed the issue by sending out a new meeting link.

Alas, the second link opened up a technical error message instead of the meeting, with a message displaying that there was an error with the video service. Luckily the message had a handy little script that could fix the issue and allow the victim to finally get some facetime with the potential investors.

Rather than being graced with the face of the generous benefactor, the script installed a trojan with the ability to steal sensitive information from the victims Mac device. The victim, realizing the error of their ways, then changed their passwords and installed a fresh version of macOS. 

While this was a good choice on the victims part, it unfortunately means that there is no evidence to suggest exactly what strain of malware was used.

In order to keep your device safe, always have a healthy amount of suspicion when receiving and clicking on any links sent from a stranger, and be sure to keep your device up to date with the latest updates, or take a look at some of the best firewalls to keep your device secure.

Via TomsGuide

More from TechRadar Pro

TOPICS
Benedict Collins
Benedict Collins
Senior Writer, Security

Benedict is a Senior Security Writer at TechRadar Pro, where he has specialized in covering the intersection of geopolitics, cyber-warfare, and business security.

Benedict provides detailed analysis on state-sponsored threat actors, APT groups, and the protection of critical national infrastructure, with his reporting bridging the gap between technical threat intelligence and B2B security strategy.

Benedict holds an MA (Distinction) in Security, Intelligence, and Diplomacy from the University of Buckingham Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies (BUCSIS), with his specialization providing him with a robust academic framework for deconstructing complex international conflicts and intelligence operations, and the ability to translate intricate security data into actionable insights.