Russian anti-virus company Doctor Web is telling users (http://macte.ch/FflOH) about a new Trojan for Mac OS X dubbed Trojan.SMSSend.3666. The malicious scheme used to spread this Trojan is notorious among many Windows users, but until now it hasn't been employed to deceive owners of Macs, says Doctor Web. Trojan.SMSSend is a fake installer which can be downloaded from various sites under the guise of useful software. Doctor Web says that Trojan.SMSSend programs are found in large numbers on the Internet. These are fake installers available on various sites disguised as distributions of legitimate software. When a user starts such an installer, they see the interface that imitates the installation wizard of a corresponding application. In order to continue the "installation" fraudsters ask that the victim enter their cellphone number into an appropriate field and then specify the code found in a reply SMS. By performing these actions the user agrees to terms of a chargeable...

Logitech (www.logitech.com) has introduced two new products for the Mac: the Logitech Bluetooth Easy-Switch Keyboard for Mac, iPad and iPhone and the Logitech Rechargeable Trackpad for Mac. They're due in January for $99.99 and $69.99, respectively. The Logitech Bluetooth Easy-Switch Keyboard features Logitech Easy-Switch technology -- similar to the popular Logitech Bluetooth Illuminated Keyboard K810 -- so you can go from typing an e-mail on your Mac to taking notes on your iPad to replying to a text on your iPhone, by simply pressing a button. In addition, the Logitech Rechargeable Trackpad gives you the full set of Mac OS X multi-touch gestures on a smooth glass surface. The Logitech Bluetooth Easy-Switch Keyboard can pair with up to three Apple devices simultaneously, and its Mac layout features the keys you’d expect, including Command, Brightness and Mission Control, according to Mike Culver, vice president of brand development for consumer computing platforms at Logitech. Its...

Developed by Rocksteady Studios and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment for consoles and PC, Batman: Arkham City GOTY will arrive on the Mac fully loaded with all previously released downloadable content (DLC), including the Harley Quinn’s Revenge pack.   Batman: Arkham City GOTY for the Mac will retail in North America for US$39.99. It will be available online for direct download from a variety of digital partner sites worldwide including http://www.feralinteractive.com/ . A mini-site dedicated to the game is available now at http://www.feralinteractive.com/en/mac-games/bmac/ and trailers can be found at http://www.youtube.com/user/feralinteractive. Minimum system requirements call for a 2.0GHz Intel Mac with at least 4GB RAM, 256MB or better graphics card, and Mac OS 10.7.4 or later. The game does not support the following graphics cards: ATI X1xxx series, ATI HD2xxx series, NVIDIA 9400, NVIDIA 7xxx series, NVIDIA 320M, Intel HD3000 and Intel GMA series.

Graphic Node (http://graphicnode.com/) has introduced Set for iWork 1.0, its new iWork templates application developed exclusively for iOS devices. The brand new pack for Apple's Pages, Keynote, and Numbers for iOS contains over 2,500 templates and images. The new collection covers everything from brochures, business cards, vacation planners to photos, 3D objects and so much more. Set for iWork carries a selection of designs: over 1,100 designs for Pages documents, 100 spreadsheet templates for Numbers, 50 slideshow themes for Keynote, and 1300 images for illustrating users' content. It costs US$9.99 and is available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Productivity category.

Here are the latest updates for Mac OS X apps: Tension Software (www.pomola.com) has revved AutoMailer, which allows you to send personalized emails to hundred or thousands of users with a single click, to version 1.3. The upgrade sports an improved layout, redesigned toolbar, a better undo system and more. VeprIT (www.veprit.com) has released Resize Sense 1.4.0, an update of the batch image resizer/cropper/converter. Users can now save presets, take advantage of new ways to handle small images and more. MyLove Company (www.mylovecompany.com) has announcedExif Everywhere Standalone 2012.1an update to its photo application that allows users to strip private information from the metadata of photos they post on the Internet. Zevrix Solutions (www.zevrix.com) has given us BatchOutput PDF 1.0.8, a maintenance update to its solution to printing multiple PDF documents on Mac OS X. The new version improves support for certain Xerox Phaser printers.

mLogic is shipping its mLink Thunderbolt expansion chassis. It enables PCIe cards such as RAID controllers, 10GigE, Fibre Channel and audio/video capture cards to connect to Mac desktop and laptop computers via Thunderbolt. The mLink supports half-length, Thunderbolt-aware PCIe cards and sports two high-performance 10Gbit/second Thunderbolt ports. It also supports daisy-chaining of up to six Thunderbolt peripherals. According to mLogic CEO Roger Mabon, the mLink is the industry’s smallest (8.1 x 2.75 x 5.9 inches) and lightest (two pounds) Thunderbolt expansion chassis. It's available at a manufacturer's suggested retail price of US$399 from authorized mLogic resellers and at www.mlogic.com/products/mlink .

The iPhone 5 tops TIME's "Top 10 Gadgets of 2012" list. Here's what TIME has to say about the latest gen Apple smartphone: "Apple may be responsible for more than its share of the tech industry’s great leaps forward, but it’s at least as good at fussing over the tiny little details other companies ignore. The iPhone 5, which starts at $199 with a two-year contract, is one of the most artfully polished gadgets anyone’s ever built, with a taller screen than previous iPhones built into a thinner, lighter case. The camera, with a particularly well-done panorama mode, is another highlight. There are lots of nifty smartphones out there, including the iPhone’s impressive archrival, Samsung’s Galaxy S III. But when it comes to melding hardware, software and services so tightly that the seams fade away, Apple still has no peer. What's more, the 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display came in at number six on the list. You can read more at http://macte.ch/WnS4G .

Real Software has released Real Studio 2012 Release 2, the latest version of its object-oriented, cross-platform software development tool. The new version focuses on improved cross-platform support and specific additions, like Web Control SDK and WebCanvas, to enhance web application development. Real Studio 2012 Release 2 includes: 30-plus OS X Cocoa updates; 20-plus Web updates; a new Web Control SDK that allows you to create web controls for use in Real Studio web applications using HTML/CSS/JavaScript; faster remote debugging for improved cross-platform support; a WebCanvas for easily creating graphical, interactive custom controls; and cypto module (Hashing) with support for MD5, SHA1, SHA256, SHA512, HMAC and PBKDF2 for 1-way encryption. Web applications can now be localized to support multiple languages in the same way you localize desktop applications. Real Studio 2012 Release 2 also offers PostgreSQL SSL support for improved security, ays Geoff Perlman, Real Software Founder...

Apple has gotten the green light to add to its fuel cell installation at the company’s Maiden, North Carolina, data center campus, reports the "Hickory Record" (http://macte.ch/fnIEj). According to files with the North Carolina Utilities Commission, the commission issued an order accepting the registration of the addition to Apple’s fuel cell, taking it from 4.8 megawatts to 10 megawatts. The commission approved Apple’s 4.8 megawatt fuel cell in May. The order accepts Apple’s registration of the 10 megawatt fuel cell as a renewable energy facility. The electricity created by the fuel cell will be sold to Duke Energy, says the "Hickory Record." The fuel cell will use bio-gas from Element Markets Renewable Energy to generate the electricity, the order says. The bio-gas will come from methane created at landfill. Last year it was announced that Apple would build a data center in Catawba County on the outskirts of Maiden. Maiden and Catawba County agreed to US$7.3 million in incentives...

Between Sept. 11 and Dec. 10, Apple insiders have sold US$54.87 million in shares, while others have purchased US$1 million worth, accordingto Pennystocksinsiders.com. Apple recently announced the iPhone 5 will be available in China on Friday, December 14. By the end of Monday's trading, shares of Apple ended lower by US$3.43 (or -0.64%) to US$529.82. Pennystocksinsiders.com thinks "that it is a clever way to check if insiders in Apple are starting to buy more company shares."

FileMaker, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Apple, says FileMaker Go for iPad and FileMaker Go for iPhone have surpassed 500,000 downloads from the Apple App Store. The two FileMaker Go apps are a part of FileMaker’s comprehensive lineup of desktop, server and iOS software used to design, build, deploy and manage data-driven business solutions for iPad and iPhone, says Ryan Rosenberg, vice president, marketing and services, FileMaker, Inc. FileMaker solutions also run on Mac, Windows and in web browsers. A free 30-day trial of FileMaker Pro 12 is available at the FileMaker Inc. web site (www.filemaker.com).

The Federal Trade Commission (www.ftc.gov) has issued a new staff report, "Mobile Apps for Kids: Disclosures Still Not Making the Grade," examining the privacy disclosures and practices of apps offered for children in the Google Play and Apple App stores. The report details the results of the FTC’s second survey of kids’ mobile apps.  Since FTC staff’s first survey of kids’ mobile apps in 2011, it says its staff found little progress toward giving parents the information they need to determine what data is being collected from their children, how it is being shared, or who will have access to it.  The report also finds that many of the apps surveyed included interactive features, such as connecting to social media, and sent information from the mobile device to ad networks, analytics companies, or other third parties, without disclosing these practices to parents. "While we think most companies have the best intentions when it comes to protecting kids’ privacy, we haven’t seen any...

Apple has posted Mac mini EFI Firmware Update 1.7 (http://macte.ch/utbTb). It addresses HDMI video flicker issues on Mac mini (Late 2012) computers and is recommended for all users. The Mac mini EFI Firmware Update will update the EFI firmware on your computer. Your computer's power cord must be connected and plugged into a working power source. When your Mac mini restarts, a gray screen will appear with a status bar to indicate the progress of the update. It will take several minutes for the update to complete. Don't disturb or shut off the power on your Mac mini during this update.

Acclivity has announced AccountEdge Pro 2013 for Mac and Windows. The latest version of their small business accounting software is available immediately and features a long list of enhancements and improvements. The new document management feature lets the user attach files to records, including documents, images, and scans. Bills, invoices, purchases, or any type of file can be attached to transactions, and AccountEdge files it away for later viewing. AccountEdge’s retainers feature gets an update, with the ability to link bank accounts, which allows the user to write checks directly from their retainer, escrow, and trust accounts, as well as easily transfer funds into and out of these accounts. Importing and reconciling bank statements is more streamlined and intuitive with the new Bank Statement Import. The new "worksheet" acts as a middle-man between import and reconciliation to improve the workflow of dealing with bank statements. Plus, rules can be created to look for and match...

If you ordered a 27-inch iMac shortly after they were announced, you may be getting it soon. According to "MacRumors" (www.macrumors.com), the all-in-ones are "Preparing for Shipments" for early buyers. Alas, if you didn't order early, you'll have to wait a bit. Shipping estimates for new orders placed for the newest generation of new 27-inch iMac models have slipped from “3-4 weeks” to “January,” per the Apple online store.

Mildura (Australia) police are urging driversto be careful when relying on the Maps app in iOS 6 after a number of motorists "were directed off the beaten track in recent weeks," reports the "Victoria Police News" (http://macte.ch/LqamC). 

Local police have been called to assist distressed motorists who have become stranded within the Murray-Sunset National Park after following directions -- or, rather, mis-directioins -- on their iPhone. Tests on the mapping system by police confirm the mapping systems lists Mildura in the middle of the Murray Sunset National Park, approximately 70km away from the actual location of Mildura, says the "Victoria Police News."

 Police have contacted Apple about the matter and hope the matter is rectified quickly "to ensure the safety of motorists traveling to Mildura," the article adds. Meanwhile, anyone traveling to Mildura or other locations within Victoria should rely on other forms of mapping, the police say.

Kaspersky Lab (www.kaspersky.com) has released its annual "Kaspersky Security Bulletin,"which provides the overall malware and cyber-threat statistics for 2012. The data analyzed in the report was obtained using the Kaspersky Security Network (KSN), the cloud-based infrastructure used by Kaspersky Lab products to report telemetry and to deliver instant protection in the forms of blacklists and heuristic rules, which are designed to catch the newest threats. The 2012 report revealed significant growth of Mac-specific malware and an explosive growth in the number of threats targeting the Android platform. Overall, Kaspersky Lab’s products detected and blocked more than 1.5 billion web-based attacks in 2012 and more than 3 billion infected files. At the present time Kaspersky Lab detects and blocks more than 200,000 new malicious programs every day, a significant increase from the first half of 2012, when 125,000 malicious programs were detected and blocked each day on average. Mac OS...

Apple and Google have teamed up to offer more than US$500 to buy Kodak's patents out of bankruptcy, reports "Bloomberg," quoting unnamed "people familiar with the situation." The two companies have partnered after leading two separate groups this summer to buy some of Kodak’s 1,100 imaging patents, the article adds. Showing the weird workings of the global business world, on another front, Apple and Google are doing battle in the smartphone market. Last month Eastman Kodak was granted court permission to retain exclusive control of its bankruptcy case through Feb. 28 as it tries to execute an US$793 million financing offer from a group of bondholders. The company hopes to sell off its patent portfolio to a list of potential buyers that include Apple and Google.

Here are the latest Apple rumors from the blogosphere. "Before there ever was a Project Glass from Google, there was Apple's Glass Project in the form of a patent application filed in late 2006, published in 2008 and granted in 2009. Apple's Glass Project seemed to have fallen off the grid until July 2012 when a new patent application laid out some new parameters for their future glasses. The new glasses were being designed to work with augmented reality but more importantly, they were being designed with telephonic capabilities in mind." -- "Patently Apple" (www.patentlyapple.com) "Apple Inc. and worldwide demand for its iPhone and iPad — and maybe soon iTV — may be behind top-secret efforts to land a second major semiconductor manufacturing facility in the Capital Region."-- "TimesUnion" (http://www.timesunion.com/default/article/Region-may-have-Apple-s-eye-40...) "Foxconn likely would want to expand its U.S. manufacturing capabilities to take advantage of recent moves by companies...

Windows 8 sits atop the "100 Best Products" list from "PCWorld" (www.pcworld.com) and "TechHive" (www.techhive.com). With big technology launches and announcements now on par with blockbuster movie premiers and red carpet galas, tech fans were treated to their fair share of pageantry and promenading from the likes of Apple, Microsoft, Google, and many others this year. The gang at "PCWorld" and "TechHive" took a look back at 2012 to rank the "100 Best Products" that made the biggest impact At the top of the list of 100 Best Tech Products sits Microsoft’s biggest operating system update and rollout since Windows 95: Windows 8. In some ways, the jury is still out on whether Windows 8 was/is a big success, but the "PCWorld": and "TechHive" credit its "substantial performance improvements and bold step into the mobile/touch-screen universe" with winning the top rank for 2012. The top 10 includes many of the most popular and successful products from the year: Apple’s iPad (3rd generation,...

Judge Andreas Voss of the Mannheim Regional Court in Germany has ordered a stay of a Samsung lawsuit against Apple over doubts concerning the validity of a patent covering a particular method for entering smileys on a mobile phone, reports "FOSS Patents" (http://tinyurl.com/bhuynwb). A nullity (invalidation) action against that patent is pending at the Federal Patent Court. The Mannheim court won't let Samsung "enforce this questionable patent unless its validity is affirmed at the end of the nullity proceedings," notes "FOSS Patents." This is all part of the ongoing, global legal battle. Apple and Samsung have filed more than 30 lawsuits against each other across four continents. For example, Apple alleges that Samsung copied the slide-to-unlock technology of its iPhone and iPad devices.

Alien Skin Software has rolled out Eye Candy 7, an upgrade of its graphic design effects plug-in for Adobe Photoshop and Photoshop Elements. Eye Candy 7-- which works on Mac OS X 10.7 or higher -- renders realistic effects that are difficult to achieve in Photoshop alone, such as Fire, Chrome, and the new Lightning. The redesigned user interface lets users browse all of Eye Candy's effects through icons and instant previews. Eye Candy 7 contains the new Lightning, Electrify, and Cloud effects. It also boasts over 1,000 presets. Eye Candy is made for professionals in production environments who need support for 16-bit/channel images and CMYK mode. It provides multiple techniques for non-destructive editing in Photoshop, including Smart Filter support and rendering effects on a new layer. Eye Candy 7 is available at www.alienskin.com for US$199. Owners of any previous version of Eye Candy may upgrade for $99. Free upgrades will be automatically sent to everyone who purchased Eye Candy...

Here are the latest updates for Mac OS X apps: Apple has posted maintenance updates its line of professional video editing software: Final Cut Pro 10.0.7, Motion 5.0.6 and Compressor 4.0.6. Read more: http://www.macnn.com/articles/12/12/06/updates.mostly.maintenance.releas... Technologies (www.econtechnologies.com) has updated ChronoSync to version 4.3.6. The latest version of the syncing software supplies more information to connected ChronoAgents that will utilized in future updates of ChronoAgent and ChronoMonitor. Zevrix Solutions (www.zevrix.com) has announced LinkOptimizer 4.7.12, a feature update to its workflow automation solution for Adobe InDesign. The new version offers uninterrupted conversion of multilayer images to PNG while preserving image transparency. Cocoatech (www.cocoatech.com) has released Path Finder 6.1.1 for Lion/Mountain Lion. It's a new version of their file browser and management application that offers new features and bug fixes. Tension Note has...

A patent agreement between Apple and HTC forbids the Taiwanese company from making and selling mobile devices that copy what is described as the "Distinctive Apple User Experience," according to a redacted version of the agreement filed in a California court." reports the "IDG News Service" (http://macte.ch/AIaz0). The "slide to unlock" feature at the bottom of the screen of some Apple devices, for example, could qualify as a distinctive Apple user experience, while the "pinch to zoom" functionality does not, and will not be considered a "cloned feature," according to the document. According to the IDG News Service, disputes over cloning are to be referred for arbitration, if company executives fail to arrive at a resolution. HTC may be required to remove the cloned feature in its design within 90 days, and Apple may only dispute features designed by HTC in this way. Last month Apple and HTC reached a global settlement that includes the dismissal of all current lawsuits and a ten-year...