Heads up iPhone owners! Symantec has just identified and confirmed the iPhone firmware 1.1.3 prep application as the first ever Trojan virus targetting the mobile device.

Although it does not pose a big threat, the application can still remove files on the iPhone rendering valid programs such as Sendfile and Erica's Utilities useless. More information regarding the virus in the full article.

More bug news about Apple, and this time it's about Mac OS X. It seems that a recent addition of an exploit to the infamous Metasploit hacking framework has upped the level of threat that an unpatched bug in Samba currently poses to the system it's installed on, as well as on its user. This warning came directly from Symantec Corp., the company expressing concern over what appears to be apathy on Apple's part.

Of course, the people behind Samba had already done their homework on the bug itself. In fact, the patch that resolved the vulnerability in the open-source file and print-sharing program was produced and distributed by the Samba community exactly the day it was announced. That fixes things for Samba, but not for the Mac OS X itself.

So what's the unpatched bug, really? When turning on the Mac OS X's Windows Sharing feature, it also activates Samba. Keep in mind, Samba is not just a Mac OS X exclusive file-sharing software, as it's also used by PC and Linux users. This in itself is already a very wide opening in terms of security for the Mac OS X, as users can easily take advantage of the exploit and gain root access. Of course, this "opening" is very easily closed, as users only need to disable Windows Sharing - but it's more of a temporary stopgap rather than an actual remedy.

Apple's products may have few bugs and exploits, but by no means is it an excuse to not stay on your toes when root access security is concerned. That aside, let's hope for some timely measures coming from Apple itself. Updates as we get them.

"Macarena", the song that you either loved (it was one of the biggest hits of 1996) or hated, has come back to haunt us. The good news: not as the song. The bad news: it has reincarnated into OSX.Macarena - a virus that targets client and server editions of Mac OS X 10.0.0 through 10.4.8.

Symantec says the current version has a lowest-possible threat rating and doesn't carry a malicious payload. But since the source code for the MacVirus has gone public, the company does not discount the possibility of more dangerous variants in the future.

OSX.Macarena targets some, but not all, Mac OS X Mach-O executables but does not infect PowerPC Mach-O binaries, nor Universal binaries for the PowerPC and Intel Mac platforms.

While the SANS Instituter's Internet Storm Center (ISC) said the Macarena MacVirus is "no big deal" it did say it should be taken as a warning to get anti-virus protection for Macs even if there are no viruses in the wild today.

The publicity on the whole Apple's stock option practices fiasco still hasn't died down, and now Apple CEO Steve Jobs is now fast becoming the target for further investigation. Now the question is, will Steve Jobs be graduating from the Apple board and walking down the hall of shame?

In previous interviews with Jobs, he claims that he doesn't know nor understand anything about the accounting implications. But IF the investigation finds that Jobs knew more about the company's practices than he's letting on, particularly about the accounting, recording, and reporting of grants, there's gotta be somebody to take his place right?

So who would be the possible replacements for Jobs? Over at AAPL, they have posted up a list of possible candidates to take the CEO position and they are:

• Phil Schiller - long-time head of global product marketing. He has been with the company since 1997 and has been critical in most product launches.
• Tim Cook - The company's COO, has had a long career at IBM and heads the Mac division.
• Tony Fedell - One of the fathers of the iPod; has an engineering background and is a former executive at Philips Electronics.
• William Campbell - One of Apple's leading directors. He has run a large public software company, Intuit.
• Jerome York - Although he is over 70, York has experience operating troubled companies. He was CFO of IBM and a member of that company's board. He is also on the GM board.
• Jim Allchin - Head of platforms and services at Microsoft, and plans to retire with the the launch of Vista. Also has an engineering background.
• Sue Decker - The highly regarded CFO of Yahoo! She has a Wall St. background and now runs several key divisions at Yahoo!
• John Thompson - The highly-regarded CEO of Symantec, has a background in running a large software company and is well liked on Wall Street.

How about you, who do you think would be the best replacement for Steve Jobs?

Todd Stewart, who works for Virus Slayer Symantec, sets the record straight. As of today, there are no file-infecting viruses yet affecting machines running on the Mac OS X. He clarifies that the first-ever reported virus for the Mac, the OSX.Leap.A, is not a virus but a worm. What's the difference? A virus infects files within a single computer, worms are programmed to spread from one computer to another. Got that?

So as far as viruses are concerned, Mac users can still look down on PC users. But when it comes to worms, trojan horses and rootkits, Apple People and PC people could be paddling in the same boat soon. Symantec has already a high severity advisory for all versions of Mac OS X 10.4.x prior to 10.4.7. Later, they issued a Category 1 threat advisory for OSX.Exploit.Launchd, a proof of concept trojan code released publicly.

While Mac OS X security threats are still highly manageable, Stewart reminds everyone that "no operating system is without imperfections, and no computer connected to the Internet will ever be 100% immune from attack." In fact, he says it is possible that the first real Mac virus could be just five minutes away. Apple Computer agrees. While the company says the Mac offers better protection from viruses than a PC,  "itÂ?s never a bad idea to run extra virus and security software."