Trojan question:Can I get one on my mac via a PC, or a possibly infected google doc?

[Lisboa]

Hi, any help would be really appreciated.
This is the issue:

I personally have a mac, but my family has PC for a desktop. The PC has been infected with a trojan. (Please don't stop reading here- it relates to my mac!) . We haven't been able to remove the trojan yet and so the PC is nearly unusable, BUT- I have several very important files on it which I need to access and edit (and that weren't backed up anywhere else). I did not want to plug a flashdrive or external harddrive into the infected computer in order to retrieve the files, so I emailed them to myself.

1.) If I open them on my mac (OSX), can the trojan infect it? I didn't know if PC trojans are transferable or not.

2.) Instead of saving the files directly onto my mac, would I prevent getting the trojan if I just open the file as google docs or html- and then copy and paste the content over, making new files?

The trojan is Win.32.agent.at , if that helps.

Thank you!

 

[MrCheeto]

No.

 

[lucifiel]

The poster above is technically wrong, but the idea is correct.

Let me clarify, you can actually import the trojan program onto your Mac. But it cannot operate as the trojan will not typically know how to run in an OS X environment.

I.e. the trojan will be "physically" on your HDD, but it won't do much cos it doesn't know how to run itself.

 

[MrCheeto]

Proof.

 

[Lisboa]

That's helpful, thank you!

 

[CylonGlitch]

But be careful, some trojans CAN be nasty and do things that you don't like. For example a Microsoft Word trojan can execute on both Mac and PC (if the versions are correct). How much damage can it wreck? It depends.

Now if there was a java script trojan that you gave admin access to; you can be in trouble (if you have java installed).

Basically if it is an interpreted language and it exists on both platforms and you give it admin access; yes it can be transferred.

 

[notjustjay]

More than once now I have given my USB memory stick to someone and when I put it back on my Mac, I see a file called "Jargon.vbs" on it. This is a Windows VBScript virus. It is harmless to Macs, but the stick is still infectious to any PC that I might put it into. I simply delete the file (don't forget to empty the trash!) from the Mac to clean it up.

 

[Patrick J]

Proof.

What is up with the one syllable replies?

If Windows can write to the Mac drive (Mac OS Extended), then the virus, if programmed so, will propagate through the Mac file system. The virus won't run on Mac, so it will be harmless, apart from consuming space on your Hard Disk.

If there is a virus on a pen drive (usually hooked into the autorun.inf), and you plug it into the Mac, then nothing will happen as the virus won't run.

 

[mstrze]

What is up with the one syllable replies?

Why?

 

[Patrick J]

I give up

 

[Chocie]

Help plz over heating !

I have a mini mac and recently it has started to shut down in the middle of things . Do you think it is due to Over heating ? or an internet thing ? I haven't renewed my net barrier which expired and now i seem to only have an option to update for Leapord .. but my operating system is Tiger .. (

Can you help advise me .. plz .. Sorry if ive posted this in the wrong place ! plz advise ..

Chocie .

 

[Patrick J]

I have a mini mac and recently it has started to shut down in the middle of things . Do you think it is due to Over heating ? or an internet thing ? I haven't renewed my net barrier which expired and now i seem to only have an option to update for Leapord .. but my operating system is Tiger .. (

Can you help advise me .. plz .. Sorry if ive posted this in the wrong place ! plz advise ..

Chocie .

Wrong section.