Following the publication of video featuring what appears to be a preview model of the yet-to-be-released MacBook Pro M4 by a Russian YouTuber, Apple users are being warned that a security threat has emerged built around the leak. Here’s what we know so far and it doesn’t, to be honest, look that scary after all.
Kaspersky Security Researchers Issue MacBook Pro M4 Warning
Most everything you could want to know about the soon-to-be-released MacBook Pro featuring Apple’s newest M4 chip is already on the internet. From the leaked release date to an alleged video unboxing of the laptop itself by a Russian YouTuber. If it’s technical specs, release dates and costs you are after, you’ve come to the wrong place. If, however, you want to know about an emerging security threat surrounding the pre-launch hysteria, and I don’t feel that’s too much of an exaggeration, given the Russian video amassed half a million views in a matter of days, then listen up.
Researchers, ironically from Russian-based Kaspersky, have confirmed that the buzz around the leaked review video has led to what they call “a surge in scamming activity, with fraudsters exploiting the hype by offering fake pre-sales and product testing programs of the unreleased laptop.” The ultimate goal of which, like most such scams, is to steal credentials and money. But just how worried should you be?
Apple MacBook Pro M4 Email Scam
According to an email sent to me by the Kaspersky researchers, one such phishing campaign that is of concern involves the receipt of an email offering the target an opportunity to test an unreleased version of the MacBook Pro. Now, let’s be honest, you would hope that anyone could see through the faux-legitimacy of such an overt scam. Even if tempted to click on the link in the email this would then take them to a cloned Apple marketplace offering the M4 MacBook Pro, a device that will likely cost from upwards of $1,500, for just, erm, $13 in exchange for testing and user feedback.
I would never indulge in victim-shaming, but if someone were to go on to complete the required form, giving up all sorts of contact information, and then enter their credit card information to pay the handling fee and $13 purchase price, well, enough said.
A second scam uncovered by the Kaspersky researchers, however, could potentially be more believable. This involves the victim being directed to a fake Apple website where they are required to complete a survey. Upon completion, they are told they have won a prize: you guessed it, a MacBook Pro M4. Of course, they are then further required to cover the cost of shipping because, erm, Apple wouldn’t have the resources to do that, would it?
“The recently released video featuring an unreleased laptop has created false expectations,” Dmitry Galov, head of research center, Russia, at Kaspersky’s Global Research and Analysis Team, said, “leading people to believe that if an influencer managed to get their hands on the device, it might be available for regular users too.”
While this is true, if common sense prevails and anyone interested in the MacBook Pro M4 just waits a few more weeks until the November launch, there’s no real cause for concern here. Unless, as Galov suggests, the scammers start pushing more realistic phishing campaigns as the release date draws ever closer. “Always verify information through official websites and steer clear of third-party sources when making purchases,” Galov advises.
