Verified X ad spreads Mac malware, while ConsentFix steals Microsoft accounts


Cybercriminals are finding new ways to trick people into compromising their own devices and accounts. One campaign used a sponsored ad on X to target Mac users, while another technique, dubbed ConsentFix, steals Microsoft 365 accounts without installing malware.

Researchers have discovered a ClickFix-style attack running as a sponsored advertisement on X. The ad was posted from a verified account, adding an extra layer of credibility to the scam.

ClickFix campaigns use convincing lures—historically fake “human verification” screens, and now a fake download for DynamicLake, a legitimate macOS utility that turns your MacBook’s notch into an unofficial but functional version of Apple’s Dynamic Island. This type of attack requires the user to paste a command from the clipboard, making it depend heavily on user interaction.

Read more…
Source:  MalwareBytes Labs


Sign up for the Cyber Security Review Newsletter
The latest cyber security news and insights delivered right to your inbox


Related:

  • ‘Proactive SIM’ cards can hijack smartphones, IoT devices and even EV chargers

    August 18, 2026

    A malicious SIM card can instruct the device it sits in to run commands of an attacker’s choosing, and on the cellular modules embedded in electric vehicle chargers, industrial routers, and car telematics units, essentially allowing it to take the entire device over. Researchers from the University of Birmingham and the German security firm Fuzzware demonstrated ...

  • Mitigating large-scale credential attacks

    August 18, 2026

    Identity has effectively become the new perimeter, where cybercriminals are increasingly choosing to log in rather than break in. To accomplish this, attackers frequently gather previously leaked username and password pairs. Gathering these credentials can then allow them to pivot to password spraying against services exposed to the internet, gaining credentials for other products and ...

  • Hunting MacSync Stealer infrastructure through behavioral pivots

    August 18, 2026

    MacSync Stealer is a macOS-focused information stealer that relies on changing infrastructure to deliver payloads, communicate with compromised devices, and exfiltrate data. Earlier reporting by RST Cloud identified the threat through a limited set of domains and documented rapid command-and-control (C2) replacement after public disclosure. Microsoft Defender Experts expanded that view by correlating recurring endpoints and network behaviors ...

  • ‘Unprecedented’ number of Apple users received recent spyware alert, say investigators

    August 17, 2026

    An unprecedented number of Apple customers have reported receiving a recent threat notification alerting them to suspected spyware attacks targeting their devices, according to experts who investigate these types of incidents. Several people publicly and privately reported receiving Apple’s spyware alerts over the weekend, after Apple sent out a new wave of notifications on Friday alerting customers in ...

  • Operation ASTERIX: Anatomy of a Crypto Fraud Pipeline

    August 17, 2026

    Rapid7 researchers identified an exposed web directory on infrastructure used to support a cryptocurrency fraud operation. The server contained raw phone-number datasets, account-validation tools, enriched lead records, phishing panels, voice-dialing scripts, fake wallet applications, persistence mechanisms, and Telegram exfiltration code. Among the artifacts was evidence that the operator relied on AI coding assistants throughout the ...

  • ChainDrop worm crawls into npm supply chain, evades standard defenses

    August 15, 2026

    A new variant of the Shai-Hulud npm worm has poisoned hundreds of packages while adding propagation techniques that can leave little trace in the corresponding source repositories. In Frank Herbert’s Dune, Shai-Hulud was the name of the giant self-sustaining desert sandworms that moved silently beneath the surface of the planet Arrakis. So it made sense that when ...