Overcoming Mac security threats in the enterprise

Apple champions privacy and security in its products. It’s designed from the ground-up alongside hardware and software so that it’s a seamless part of the overall system – not an afterthought. Despite the number of security features and controls baked into each system, Mac isn’t invulnerable to threat actors' tactics.

Hence why it’s critical for organizations to understand and address Mac-specific security challenges, reduce risk exposures and shrink attack surfaces.

And that is precisely the aim of this blog, discussing the:

• Top security threats facing Mac
• Proven strategies for overcoming threats
• Role of aligning compliance with business goals

1-2-3-4-5 against one

As Apple adoption grows, so do the top security threats facing Mac. Like Jackie Chan fending off dozens of colorful bad guys in Hong Kong alleyways, IT faces constantly evolving attacks of their own.

Today’s threats adapt fast and strike across platforms.

Mac is not immune, highlighting the importance of understanding what types of threats exist – from stealthy malware disguised as trusted apps to social engineering trickery – so that Mac isn’t left exposed in the rumble.

Malware

It’s difficult to ascertain exactly how much Mac-specific malware has grown year over year (YoY). Some sources state new macOS malware doubled YoY while others claim a 73% increase in macOS malware incidents from 2024 to 2025. One thing that is clear – there is a direct correlation between the global increase in Mac adoption and bad actors doubling down on targeting macOS with malicious code.

Infostealers have been leading the malware charge since 2023 with little signs of slowing down. Threat actors continue to be hard at work distributing malicious, infostealing code as repackaged, legitimate macOS applications. Stepping beyond infostealers, Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs) often combine multiple threats into one layered attack to achieve long-term persistence on compromised Macs. Simultaneously, AI-based malware threats leverage the low barrier of access and ease-of-use to deliver sophisticated, difficult-to-identify malicious code to scale.

Social engineering

No longer the top threat across various industries it once was, social engineering threats, like phishing and its myriad variants, still pose a considerable threat to enterprise Mac security.

Consider this: many recent macOS malware threats include AppleScript capability, like mimicking the confirmation prompt received when installing a legitimate app. This is done to trick users into providing their credentials so that threat actors can harvest them for additional layers of an attack. For example, unlocking the user’s Keychain and silently exfiltrating saved credentials or mining cryptocurrency in the background.

Social engineering is often the tip of the spear, combining targeted phishing campaigns with exploiting vulnerabilities, taking advantage of the victim’s trust to accept malicious meeting invites to further compromise devices.

Misconfigurations

Fun fact: “39% of organizations were found to have at least one device with known vulnerabilities.” At face value, one device may not seem like much – but when set against the pool of 15 million devices, 39% equals 5.9 million vulnerable devices placing enterprises at risk of a data breach.

At its core, misconfigurations represent risk that impacts device security postures in the following ways:

• Hardware/software patches not up to date
• Missing/weak/easy to guess passwords
• Unmanaged settings left on defaults
• Improperly configured system settings
• Missing or unsanctioned software
• Hardening profiles not installed
• Improper access controls

Cross-platform

Presenting a low risk-high reward opportunity for threat actors, exploiting a vulnerability in commonly used business tools on one platform often leads to exposing the vulnerability across the many platforms supported by the affected product.

One such example being a dependency on development tools, such as Python, to run software without worrying about compatibility between platforms while masking that attackers bundled malicious payloads to compromise macOS.

Supply-chain attacks represent another example whereby bad actors attack a cloud-based software or service that compromises the intended target downstream. In this case, malicious patches were published to a package used to update software that was already installed and trusted on victim Macs.

Security parity

Many enterprises are Windows-centric, meaning they often utilize security controls that were designed for and prioritize Windows, not macOS. This leads to disjointed protections between platforms, inevitably both introducing risk to the organization while leaving them unable to comprehensively safeguard devices, data or users against increasingly evolved threats.

In the case of the former, risks that may mitigated on Windows endpoints still exist, unmitigated, on macOS endpoints, posing a threat to data security and compliance overall. For the former, a lack of parity means there are gaps in security due to inconsistencies between security controls and remediation workflows across all platforms supported by your enterprise.

Adapt and overcome

Armed with an understanding of the five critical security threats targeting Mac is a great start…but it’s not enough.

“Defense is about being in the right position, at the right time, with the right attitude.” – Avery Johnson

To stay in the fight, IT needs proven strategies for overcoming Mac-specific threats with the same agility and relentlessness as the attacks they face.

Implementing advanced endpoint protection stops malicious code

Signature-based detection to stop known malware, combined with active monitoring identifies unknown threats based on behavioral characteristics. Next, gathering and analyzing telemetry data not only informs IT of endpoint health in real-time, but provides granular context for threat hunting teams to track dormant threats that have gone undetected. Last, combat sophisticated malware with machine learning (ML). Together, they safeguard your Mac fleet by:

• Continuously learning and identifying novel threats
• Fast, efficient, multi-source data analysis at scale
• Improving threat response times and capabilities
• Providing data-driven guidance that prioritizes risk
• Automating remediation/threat hunting workflows

Conducting security awareness training regularly decreases phishing success.

An often overlooked yet essential layer in a defense-in-depth security strategy is end-user security training. Not a one-off high-level training that occurs alongside other HR-type trainings that serve to essentially “check employee compliance with company rules off the list.” Instead, when security awareness trainings are used effectively, they can help create and maintain a security-minded culture. One that is thoughtfully planned out and:

• Aligned to organizational policies
• Scoped to stakeholder roles
• Targets business-critical vectors
• Performed on an ongoing basis
• Evolves over time (as threats do)
• Measures performance metrics
• Supports regulatory compliance

Hardening endpoints and mitigating vulnerabilities reduce attack surfaces.

A security foundation cannot be realized without management. Not unlike Yin and Yang, management represents a complementary force to security. As such, common security best practices rely on mobile device management to perform the heavy lifting. To provide the native support for macOS and the code that runs on Mac architecture, implement the following endpoint hardening techniques:

• Deploy Mac configured, out of the box, with Zero Touch
• Standardize authentication and resource access by integrating IdP
• Never miss an OS or app patch with automation
• Streamline app access and security with Self Service
• Keep track of device lifecycles with up to date inventory

Vetting application, tool and service risk proactively upholds productivity.

Applications are an essential part of stakeholder productivity. Supporting thousands of Macs across different departments and device ownership models adds complexity to the necessary task of minimizing software risks. Best practices to follow when vetting applications are to:

• Ensure compatibility with organizational needs and existing infrastructure
• Source software updates from official developer-sanctioned repositories
• Perform integrity checks to verify the code is signed by the developer
• Conduct vulnerability scanning to identify malicious code or weaknesses
• Repackage apps to install-ready formats and test them before deployment
• Catalog various app versions and maintain an up to date change log

Standardizing security across platforms minimizes overall enterprise risk.

It is table stakes to an organization’s security posture that threats are prevented regardless of where they originate from. Enterprise security restricts the window of opportunity for attackers, while simultaneously maximizing IT’s window for vulnerability remediation. Streamlining management strategies that ensure security parity in cross-platform enterprises include:

• Perform regular risk assessments and audits for gaps in security
• Implement holistic baseline configurations consistent with standards
• Actively monitor endpoints for real-time visibility into device health
• Integrate solutions to ensure a unified level of security protection
• Converge IT/Security teams, focusing support on alignment and strategy

One of us

“The nail that sticks out gets hammered down.” – Japanese Proverb

Compliance is the key to both setting the bar and measuring endpoint performance to determine Mac’s alignment with unique requirements or industry and regional regulations.

When it comes to the role of aligning compliance with business goals, Mac-specific security practices are a necessity – not a luxury – for modern enterprises.

Baselines

A collection of device configurations and settings that are used to establish the minimum acceptable security posture for Mac. Implementing baselines sets the criteria for foundational security while setting a metric by which to measure compliance (or non-compliance).

Benchmarks

Specific, measurable metrics used to audit whether security configurations and device settings fall in or out of scope with the standards or frameworks required of organizations seeking to meet specific compliance requirements.

Standards

Define the functional and assurance requirements, grouping together best practices, such as rules and protocols used to evaluate compliance. This criterion is typically voluntary unless mandated by regulations and offers organizations greater flexibility when choosing how to implement compliance by defining what should be done.

Frameworks

A structured approach that guides overall compliance strategies. Broad in scope, controls to various regulations are mapped for the implementation, management and assessment of security and compliance programs.

Despite their similarities, each of the four aids organizations along the compliance path in cross-platform enterprises.

• Create baselines customized to unique, organizational needs
• Upload hardening profiles to device management solution
• Deploy profiles, configuring Mac devices with baseline criteria
• Actively monitor endpoints and gather telemetry data
• Assess device health to determine compliance status
• Remediate non-compliance with automated policies
• Demonstrate due diligence to auditors and regulators
• Iteratively support policy creation and control implementation

Conclusion

As Mac adoption grows, so do targeted threats.

Relying on outdated assumptions puts organizations at risk.

IT must embrace modern, proactive security that supports macOS alongside other platforms. By combining solutions with native platform support and cross-platform strategies, enterprises reduce risk and strengthen compliance.

Treating Mac as a fully supported, protected peer contributes to strengthening the organization’s security posture while recognizing a platform that drives business success in today’s evolving enterprise landscape.

Key takeaways

• Mac threats are evolving in sophistication as enterprise adoption increases.
• Infostealers and AI-powered threats dominate the Mac malware landscape.
• Many of the misconfigurations exploited by attackers are easily mitigated.
• Vulnerabilities in common business tools are used to target multiple OS’s.
• Consistent security across all platforms reduces overall enterprise risk.