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Things just keep on getting better for security researcher Jonathan Zdziarski. After bagging a job at Apple earlier this month, it has now been revealed that his Mac security app Little Flocker has been bought by F-Secure. While the price has yet to be declared, Zdziarski has no doubt had a handsome payday.
Confirming the acquisition of Little Flocker, a spokesman for F-Secure said the software will be built into a new product called Xfence, due to be released in the next 12 months. Little Flocker is a behaviour-based analysis app compatable with Macs and macOS devices. It detects and blocks Mac ransomware and malware by monitoring attempts to access confidential files and resources.
Xfence will combine Little Flocker’s monitoring capabilities with F-Secure’s cloud security package for a central security solution centrally managed on a computer, mobile device or sever.
Janne Pirttilahti, VP of F-Secure’s corporate cyber security business confirmed that the Little Flocker app has been withdrawn, however a standalone version of Xfence will be introduced soon, with the ‘same features and functionalities’ of Zdziarski’s app. The first release for this is expected at some point next week.
Chief technology officer at F-Secure, Mika Stahlberg said that the threat of malware to Macs is an increasing threat. He said that hackers are becoming increasing likely to target the platform rather than PCs, owing to the popularity of Macs among senior member of staff. “Macs have become an appealing entry point for attackers seeking to penetrate organisations. With Little Flocker’s technology, we will enhance the behavioural blocking capabilities in our Mac endpoint protection to stop modern adversaries cold,” he said.
