Mac users have recently been targeted by a phishing scam that falsely claimed their computers were infected with a virus. Upon being redirected to an illegitimate website, users were instructed to install “Mac Defender,” which was malware masquerading as an antivirus application. Until recently, Apple had reportedly instructed its AppleCare support reps to deny any existence of the problem and said reps should “not remove or uninstall any malware” found on a computer. On Tuesday, how...

AppleCare representatives can do a lot of things for Mac owners suffering software issues… except when it comes to malware. In an internal support article leaked to ZDNet, Apple instructs its call center representatives on how to handle calls from users reporting that they have a machine infected with the “Mac Defender” malware trojan. And, as you can see, Apple is definitely taking the hands-off approach. “AppleCare does not provide support for the removal of the malware,” rea...

Apple has made changes to its policy regarding the transferability of AppleCare Protection Plans, a source told BGR. Starting immediately, an Apple customer will have the ability to transfer AppleCare Protection Plan coverage to a new device without having to cancel the current plan and purchase a new one. Though no formal announcement has been made to the public, Apple notified its employees of the new procedure on Monday. The policy change, which applies only to eligible purchases made within the 30-day per...

This afternoon, on Apple’s official iPhone 4 Case Program website, the company released the following statement:We now know that the iPhone 4 antenna attenuation issue is even smaller than we originally thought. A small percentage of iPhone 4 users need a case, and we want to continue providing them a Bumper case for free. For everyone else, we are discontinuing the free case program on all iPhone 4s sold after September 30, 2010. We are also returning to our normal returns policy for all iPhone 4s sold...

The antenna issues plaguing the iPhone 4 have infuriated many iPhone users (and rightfully so), but have you ever wondered how Apple is training its employees to deal with the fiasco? Well thanks to one of our Apple connects, we now know the exact procedures AppleCare reps must follow when dealing with any reception complaints regarding the iPhone 4. Hit the jump to check them out. (more…)

Mac aficionados that also enjoy a pack of Marlboros every now and then might want to keep their smoke as far away from their computer as possible for it appears Apple doesn’t take kindly to the habit. Yesterday, Consumerist ran a story about two customers that were denied warranty repairs to their MacBook and iMac by Apple (both had purchased extended AppleCare warranties) simply because the machines were exposed to second-hand smoke. Both appealed to the office of Steve Jobs to no avail. The strangest ...