bleeping-computer Aug 4, 2026 · Crawled Aug 4, 2026

New XCSSET variant targets macOS devs via compromised Xcode projects

1 Malware

AI Summary

A new variant of the XCSSET malware, version 40, is targeting macOS developers by compromising Xcode projects and GitHub repositories. The malware spreads when developers build infected projects, enabling it to propagate across systems and deploy 17 modules for credential theft, keystroke logging, clipboard manipulation, browser hijacking, and data exfiltration. This variant includes new capabilities such as a Chrome hijacker that enables real-time web traffic interception and a Telegram trojanizer that replaces the legitimate Telegram Desktop app with a malicious version. The malware employs advanced evasion techniques, disables macOS security features, and uses encrypted, build-unique ciphers to avoid detection.

AI-extracted · verify before operational use

Extracted Entities 1 found

Malware XCSSET →

MITRE ATT&CK TTPs 43 techniques

T1001 Data Obfuscation · Command And Control T1003 OS Credential Dumping · Credential Access T1012 Query Registry · Discovery T1016 System Network Configuration Discovery · Discovery T1021.001 Remote Desktop Protocol · Lateral Movement T1027 Obfuscated Files or Information · Defense Evasion T1040 Network Sniffing · Credential Access T1053.005 Scheduled Task · Execution T1055 Process Injection · Defense Evasion T1056.003 Web Portal Capture · Collection T1057 Process Discovery · Discovery T1059.001 PowerShell · Execution T1059.004 Unix Shell · Execution T1070 Indicator Removal · Defense Evasion T1070.004 File Deletion · Defense Evasion T1070.006 Timestomp · Defense Evasion T1071.001 Web Protocols · Command And Control T1071.004 DNS · Command And Control T1074.001 Local Data Staging · Collection T1080 Taint Shared Content · Lateral Movement T1082 System Information Discovery · Discovery T1083 File and Directory Discovery · Discovery T1087.002 Domain Account · Discovery T1090 Proxy · Command And Control T1090.004 Domain Fronting · Command And Control T1095 Non-Application Layer Protocol · Command And Control T1098.004 SSH Authorized Keys · Persistence T1105 Ingress Tool Transfer · Command And Control T1112 Modify Registry · Defense Evasion T1113 Screen Capture · Collection T1129 Shared Modules · Execution T1133 External Remote Services · Persistence T1204.002 Malicious File · Execution T1210 Exploitation of Remote Services · Lateral Movement T1485 Data Destruction · Impact T1496 Resource Hijacking · Impact T1497 Virtualization/Sandbox Evasion · Defense Evasion T1548 Abuse Elevation Control Mechanism · Privilege Escalation T1553 Subvert Trust Controls · Defense Evasion T1555 Credentials from Password Stores · Credential Access T1557.001 LLMNR/NBT-NS Poisoning and SMB Relay · Credential Access T1566 Phishing · Initial Access T1647 Plist File Modification · Defense Evasion