Mac users who upgrade to macOS High Sierra will benefit from a significant new security feature that works in the background.

macos high sierra
macOS High Sierra automatically checks a Mac's EFI firmware against Apple's database of "known good" data to ensure it hasn't been tampered with, according to a series of tweets from an Apple engineer.

The tweets have since been deleted, but a summary remains available on the Mac blog The Eclectic Light Company.

The new utility eficheck, located in /usr/libexec/firmwarecheckers/eficheck, runs automatically once a week. It checks that Mac's firmware against Apple's database of what is known to be good. If it passes, you will see nothing of this, but if there are discrepancies, you will be invited to send a report to Apple.

If the check fails, a prompt will appear with options to "Send to Apple" or "Don't Send." The selection is remembered in subsequent weeks.

eficheck
The "eficheck" tool sends the binary data from the EFI firmware, and preserves user privacy by excluding data which is stored in NVRAM, according to The Eclectic Light Company. Apple will then be able to analyze the data to determine whether it has been altered by malware or anything else.

The database's library will be automatically and silently updated so long as security updates are turned on.

EFI, which stands for Extensible Firmware Interface, bridges a Mac's hardware, firmware, and operating system together to enable it to go from power-on to booting macOS.

macOS High Sierra will be publicly released on the Mac App Store later today.

Tags: EFI, Security
Related Forum: macOS High Sierra

Top Rated Comments

jsalda Avatar
109 months ago
Huh, I wonder what this will mean for Hackintosh?
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gpat Avatar
109 months ago
Huh, I wonder what this will mean for Hackintosh?
Probably nothing at all.
Will just make actual Macs more secure.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
craig1410 Avatar
109 months ago
This is great news as it should help to guard against any sort of tampering which might result through a bad actor having temporary physical access to a machine such as at a border security point.

I honestly don't believe that Hackintoshes are being targeted here but if increasing legitimate Mac security results in Hackintoshes having a few bumps in the road then so be it IMO.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Onexy Avatar
109 months ago
Spoken like a government. This is probably not to fight malware but to fight hackintoshs.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Cougarcat Avatar
109 months ago
This sounds like a way to get rid of Hackintoshes.
Huh, I wonder what this will mean for Hackintosh?
This doesn’t affect hackintoshes. HS is working on them just fine. (The Apple employee who posted the original tweets even said don’t send in your data if you’re on a hack, because it’s useless to them.)
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jblagden Avatar
109 months ago
('https://www.geekwebguides.com/2017/09/25/macos-high-sierra-weekly-efi-security-check/')


Mac users who upgrade to macOS High Sierra will benefit from a significant new security feature that works in the background.



macOS High Sierra automatically checks a Mac's EFI firmware against Apple's database of "known good" data to ensure it hasn't been tampered with, according to a series of tweets from an Apple engineer.

The tweets have since been deleted, but a summary remains available on the Mac blog The Eclectic Light Company ('https://eclecticlight.co/2017/09/24/high-sierra-automatically-checks-efi-firmware-each-week/').If the check fails, a prompt will appear with options to "Send to Apple" or "Don't Send." The selection is remembered in subsequent weeks.



The "eficheck" tool sends the binary data from the EFI firmware, and preserves user privacy by excluding data which is stored in NVRAM, according to The Eclectic Light Company. Apple will then be able to analyze the data to determine whether it has been altered by malware or anything else.

The database's library will be automatically and silently updated so long as security updates are turned on.

macOS High Sierra will be publicly released on the Mac App Store later today.

Article Link: macOS High Sierra Automatically Performs Security Check on EFI Firmware Each Week ('https://www.geekwebguides.com/2017/09/25/macos-high-sierra-weekly-efi-security-check/')
This sounds like a way to get rid of Hackintoshes.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Apple Logo Zoomed

Tim Cook Teases Plans for Apple's Upcoming 50th Anniversary

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:54 pm PST by
Apple turns 50 this year, and its CEO Tim Cook has promised to celebrate the milestone. The big day falls on April 1, 2026. "I've been unusually reflective lately about Apple because we have been working on what do we do to mark this moment," Cook told employees today, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "When you really stop and pause and think about the last 50 years, it makes your heart ...
wwdc sans text feature

Apple Rumored to Announce New Product on February 19

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:22 pm PST by
Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld. The report, citing industry sources, is available in English on Macworld. Apple announced the iPhone 16e on Wednesday, February 19 last year, so the iPhone 17e would be unveiled exactly one year later if this rumor is accurate. It is quite uncommon for Apple to unveil...
Finder Siri Feature

Why Apple's iOS 26.4 Siri Upgrade Will Be Bigger Than Originally Promised

Friday February 6, 2026 3:06 pm PST by
In the iOS 26.4 update that's coming this spring, Apple will introduce a new version of Siri that's going to overhaul how we interact with the personal assistant and what it's able to do. The iOS 26.4 version of Siri won't work like ChatGPT or Claude, but it will rely on large language models (LLMs) and has been updated from the ground up. Upgraded Architecture The next-generation...
maxresdefault

Apple Shows Off a Key Reason to Upgrade to the iPhone 17

Saturday February 7, 2026 9:26 am PST by
Apple today shared an ad that shows how the upgraded Center Stage front camera on the latest iPhones improves the process of taking a group selfie. "Watch how the new front facing camera on iPhone 17 Pro takes group selfies that automatically expand and rotate as more people come into frame," says Apple. While the ad is focused on the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max, the regular iPhone...
iOS 26

iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday February 3, 2026 7:47 am PST by
While the iOS 26.3 Release Candidate is now available ahead of a public release, the first iOS 26.4 beta is likely still at least a week away. Following beta testing, iOS 26.4 will likely be released to the general public in March or April. Below, we have recapped known or rumored iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 features so far. iOS 26.3 iPhone to Android Transfer Tool iOS 26.3 makes it easier...