San Francisco, Apr 17 (IANS): The notorious ransomware gang, known as LockBit, has seemingly expanded their targets to include Mac devices for the first time, the media reported.

In a series of tweets spotted by 9to5Mac, a group of security researchers known as the MalwareHunterTeam said, they have uncovered evidence of a new variant of Lockbit ransomware that has been specifically designed to target macOS devices.

"As much as I can tell, this is the first Apple's Mac devices targeting build of LockBit ransomware sample seen... Also is this a first for the "big name" gangs?," it tweeted.

The announcement appears to be the first time Lockbit's ransomware has been publicly identified as a threat to Apple computers, as far as the group is aware.

Pointing to the significance of the disclosure, security analyst Brett Callow said, "I think this is the first time one of the major ransomware players has taken aim at Apple's OS".

According to the report, the LockBit gang has historically focused on Windows, Linux and virtual host machines as those operating systems are overwhelmingly used by the businesses the group's partners target.

For those who are unaware, the Lockbit gang operates a "ransomware-as-a-service" operation.

The group does not engage directly in the business of extracting ransoms from businesses. Instead, they focus on developing and maintaining malware that affiliates can utilise to target organisations.