Up to 350,000 Macs exposed by a forgotten Popcorn Time updater
AI-summarised brief · reviewed before publication
Eye Research uncovered that an abandoned Popcorn Time updater exposed up to 350,000 Macs to remote takeover, allowing attackers to run malicious code with root privileges. The vulnerability, CVE‑2026‑30612, stemmed from an unencrypted HTTP updater that accepted unsigned code. Between November 2025 and March 2026, researchers deployed a patch that disabled the updater on affected machines, distributing over two million updates before ceasing the operation in March 2026. The incident highlighted risks from legacy software infrastructure.
💡 Why It Matters
- · The breach shows how dormant update mechanisms can become powerful attack vectors, underscoring the need for continuous monitoring of legacy software.
- · It also demonstrates the ethical complexities researchers face when intervening on users’ systems without explicit consent.