Just like it’s a new day, a new Ransomware threat has emerged. Only this time, the new ransomware threat, called KeRanger, is attacking Apple Mac OS X systems instead of typical Windows computers.

The Keranger Ransomware Threat was discovered over the past weekend where it is wreaking havoc on Mac OS X systems. KeRanger is the first known kind of ransomware threat to attack Apple computers and probably will not be the last.

What we know about KeRanger is that it has similar file encryption abilities where it will lock up infected Mac Computer much like other well-known encryption-type Ransomware Threats do on Windows PCs. Many victimized Mac Computer Users have taken notice to the demands of KeRanger being 1 bitcoin, or $400 for obtaining a decryption key to restoring all files that were encrypted by the threat.

History will reveal to us that Apple Mac Computers have been known for being less susceptible to malware threats or hacking for many reasons. One of the reasons was because there were simply not enough Mac computers on the market and hackers utilize their resources where they could make the most impact, which left them to attack the abundant numbers of Windows-based PCs. While the landscape of Macs has changed slightly over the years with a little growth, hackers are finding it rather easy to utilize their arsenal of sophisticated and aggressive ransomware threats to target Mac computers.

Ransomware has been a very serious type of malware threat that some claim to be among the worst we have ever seen in the front of malicious software. New encryption ransomware is dominating the malware waves, and Computer Users are finding it very difficult to stay afloat through conventional malware removal methods as encryption-type ransomware decimates everything in its path. Computers infected with recent encryption ransomware threats have been forced to either restore their entire hard drive, pay the ransom fee to decrypt their files, or consider all data stored on the infected computer’s hard drive a complete loss. It turns out; Mac computer users are going to be in the same boat with the KeRanger ransomware threat on the scene.

Computer security experts have found KeRanger to be primarily spread through a legitimate program called Transmission 2.90, which was corrupted by cybercrooks. Those utilizing variations of Transmission 2.90, which is an application that Mac computer users may use for transferring data through the BitTorrent Peer-to-Peer file sharing network, have had KeRanger ransomware installed. The makers of Transmission have answered to the allegations by informing its users to upgrade to their software’s 2.92 version, which is said to remove the KeRanger ransomware.

There is no doubt that ransomware threats are becoming more aggressive, and now, emerging into different system platforms, such as Apple Mac computers. It is highly advisable for computer users of any system take the necessary precautions and ensure all of their software is updated, and they have adequately backed up their hard drive to an external storage medium.