The cybercriminal gang LockBit has now set its sights on Apple products with the development of its first ransomware for Macs, according to 9to5 Mac.
The Security research group MalwareHunterTeam (via Brett Callow) recently discovered that LockBit appears to have developed a ransomware build that is compatible specifically with macOS. The never-before-seen ransomware might be a first for LockBit, as the gang typically develops on Windows, Linux, and virtual host machines, the publication added.
The Mac-specific ransomware seems to target Apple Silicon Macs and is listed on the web under the build name locker_Apple_M1_64, according to researchers.
Another older Twitter account called vx-underground shows mention of the LockBit ransomware around November 2022, however, MalwareHunterTeam and other researchers note that there seems to be no real indication of the existence of locker_Apple_M1_64 until now. This current account might be the first public notice that Apple devices are at risk of being affected by ransomware. The research group notes that now that news of the ransomware is out in the open, Macs might be more susceptible to cyberattacks.
LockBit is a notoriously powerful gang on the web, and is known by security analysts as a Russian-based group. Even so, the group leader is believed to operate out of the U.S. or China. The cybercriminal gang is a ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) operation that allows others to purchase their nefarious products for their own unsavory tasks, 9to5 Mac noted.
Not a single person I can find tweeted LockBit has a Mac targeting version before I did above yesterday, nor can find any blog posts mentioning it, etc. So even if the gang had the first build in 2022 November, for public, this is not late at all, but even yet, seems the first… pic.twitter.com/4iR71cuLpo
— MalwareHunterTeam (@malwrhunterteam) April 16, 2023
The group is already known for its custom ransomware exfiltration tool called StealBIT, and is also known for quickly updating and preparing its infrastructure to keep on top of the cybercriminal food chain, Kaspersky’s Global Research senior security researcher Dmitry Galov said in a statement last year.
Expanding its reach to Apple products might just be an indication of how powerful the ransomware group has become.
Jon DiMaggio from Analyst1 similarly told Wired earlier this year that LockBit’s leader treats the RaaS group very much like a business, with point-and-click access, frequent updates, concern about user feedback, and frequent recruitment from rival gangs to maintain the quality of the ransomware.
ASUS has started selling its UGen Intel Arc Pro B70 graphics card in Europe, bringing its take on Intel’s workstation GPU to customers with a hefty €1,799 recommended price. The card is available in Germany and Austria, while ASUS lists it at CHF 1,799 in Switzerland.
Intel first introduced the Arc Pro B70 in March 2026, with its own branded model starting at $949. ASUS’s version arrives several months later with the same core GPU architecture but a different cooling design and a higher power rating. The price also places it well above Intel’s original starting point, although the two prices are not directly comparable because ASUS’s European figure includes VAT.
Anthropic has officially filed to go public, and buried inside its S-1 is a blunt warning about the technology at the center of its business. The maker of Claude AI says advanced AI could cause everything from large-scale cyberattacks and geopolitical instability to catastrophic or even existential risks for humanity.
The warnings take up a surprisingly large part of the filing. Axios notes that more than 90 pages, or roughly a third of the prospectus, focus on risk factors. Many of them warn about what could happen as AI systems become more capable and autonomous.
AI giants have a growing autonomy problem on their hands. A new Axios report has revealed that Anthropic's Claude recently accessed publicly available Georgia vote count without human authorization, sparking fresh concerns about AI security ahead of the upcoming midterm elections.