If you own an iMac, Mac Pro, Macbook Air / Pro you are in luck. Because it is now possible to download the latest free version of BlueStacks for Mac (dmg file) for free from this page.
With BlueStacks App Player for Mac you can run your Android applications from your Mac computer using this emulator without any problem.
Apply permissions to all items in a folder or a disk. On your Mac, select a folder or disk, then choose File Get Info. If the lock at the bottom right is locked, click it to unlock the Get Info options, then enter an administrator name and password. Click the Action pop-up menu, then choose “Apply to enclosed items.”. To repair your permissions using the Disk Utility:Choose Go Utilities.Double-click Disk Utility.Select the volume in the left pane for which you want to repair permissions.Click the First Aid tab.Select the volume to which you want to install the Adobe application, and then click Repair Disk Permissions.Dec 1, 2016.
Not sure this answers all parts of your question, but from the terminal command line, enter the command 'spctl -status' if it shows 'assessments enabled' then enter the command 'spctl -master-disable' and vice versa for 'assessments disabled'. This changes the 'Gatekeeper settings'. BlueStacks requires permission to run on your Mac. This can be given by going to your System Preferences General Clicking on 'Allow'. However, if you don't see the 'Allow' button on your device, then there are three solutions for this issue.
If you’ve always wanted to run some games or Android apps on your Mac computer and now you can do it thanks to the software BlueStacks 5 for Mac which has been designed for this purpose. You can download this software for any of your Mac computers.
BlueStacks Inc. developers have developed the BlueStacks App player which is an Android emulator for various platforms such as PC or Mac. Through an advanced engineering work your computer will be able to load an Android environment like a mobile phone, Offering the ability to download and run many exclusive Android apps from the OSX operating system.
Actually is compatible with the most of the current applications but its compatibility is not total (completely logical if we consider that there are thousands and thousands of apps) offering in any case a surprising product if we consider how different arquitectures are OSX and Android.
In this article we will teach you the most important features and a small installation guide that will help to the most inexperienced users. The download links are below:
Download BlueStacks for Mac with OSX
- Title: BlueStacks App Player 5.0
- File name: BlueStacksInstaller_5.022.0.2802_f0d74274755272aa2edf6aa4cb1787e8
- File size: 682.9MB (639.806.364 bytes)
- Requisits: iMac, Mac Pro, Macbook Air/Pro (2015/2016)
- Languages: Multiple languages
- Licence: Freeware
- Last update: October 25 2020
- Developer: Bluestack Systems Inc.
- Official website: www.bluestacks.com
Read also: If you own a PC you may be interested in downloading Bluestacks for PC.
Now BlueStacks has a monthly fee of $2 to cover project costs. To be honest is very small investment for the advantages we get from being able to run our games and Android apps under our web browser. Therefore we consider that it is totally recommendable. Although we know that exists cracked versions of the program, we offer only safe and original content of the page bluestacks.com avoiding incur any legal problem.
Unlike other websites, we offer quality software free of viruses or any malware which may affect your computer because you will download any version from the official BlueStacks website.
Many of you will install it out of curiosity, although this can also be tremendously useful for web professionals like designers or layout designers. Being an open platform they can analyze user interface of Android apps without having to buy a terminal of this type.
If you are still not sure if you want to install it, read user reviews and you can have a more objective and real opinions about the advantages of having BlueStacks. We hope this helps you.
Install Bluestacks on Mac
First you must download the .dmg file that I described above and execute it (the process takes around 1 minute). A window will open with several icons, We must to double click on the BlueStacks icon and the installation will starts. You will see a warning window about the application is downloaded from the internet so we proceed to authorize and open. Click on continue and keep the options to access the app store and communications, and press continue. After waiting a few minutes we will be given a permission to use location that you must accept. Once this is done BlueStacks will install successfully on your Mac. Just open it and start enjoying.
I hope you find it useful!
If you have any problems with the installation do not forget to read the most common errors in bluestacks.
If you still have any doubts do not hesitate to write us in the contact section.
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BlueStacks is unquestionable, one of the most appreciated Android emulators out there, a fact is proven by its 400+ million user community. Although BlueStacks was designed for gaming, it’s also being used to test new Android apps before they’re published on Google’s Play Store – easier to test an app inside an IDE than downloading it on your smartphone. BlueStacks came out in the odd 2009 and, at that time, it had, more or less the same ‘legal status’ as Citra, Snes9x, or other Super Nintendo emulators – borderline legitimate.
Later on, that status became less cloudy, particularly because Android is (semi) open-source (i.e., some costs may apply to manufacturers who want to install Google Mobile services). For a while now, people have been wondering about the security aspects of this Android virtualization environment.
Is BlueStacks Safe? Well, since this is an Android emulator, BlueStacks may have had inherited the same security flaws as its mobile counterpart. In this article, I will be challenging the latter statement for the purpose of ‘round-tabling’ the cybersecurity concerns associated with using BlueStacks for anything from QAing to developing full-fledged, mobile-friendly applications. Enjoy and stay safe!
What is BlueStacks and how do you install it?
As I was saying in the intro, BlueStacks is a free Android emulator best suited for those who prefer mobile gaming without actually gaming on a mobile device. BlueStacks can be deployed on any Windows or Mac-compatible machine and has the same looks (and feel) as the real McCoy.
The emulator has many game-ready features such as mouse + keyboard tailor controls (e.g., MOBA mode, shooting mode, macros, etc.), multi-instance (i.e., allows you to run multiple apps at once), and eco mode, which helps you harmonize system resources while running multiple BlueStacks instances at the same time.
The latest version of BlueStacks (v4) comes with various pre-installed applications such as Google Play Store, Gmail, a file explorer that allows you to load custom (and often unsigned) .apk files, and much more. In other words, BlueStacks is the proverbial one-stop-shop for developers and users alike who want to enjoy the wholesomeness of Android without necessarily owning an Android device.
BlueStacks does not require special permissions in order to be deployed on a machine, provided that you’re running in admin mode. Just download the .msi package from BlueStacks’ official website and execute it on your machine. Additional configuration is not necessary with version 4 – every utility’s preloaded so, at this point, the only thing you’ll need to figure out is how you’re going to use it.
Personally, BlueStacks is a great addition to any virtualization software and, by far, the most stable. Sure, you can virtualize Android with just about any emulator you can get your hands on, but don’t expect performance.
I still have a hard time believing that Oracle’s VirtualBox, although capable of running dozens of emulated operating systems, still glitches when you try to run Android – and yes, I did ramp up the cores and RAM dials, but to no avail. Anyway, BlueStacks has been sufficiently well optimized as to allow both gamers and developers to reap its benefits. Yes, this Android emulator can be used for things like debugging, testing, patching, and everything in between. Developers tend to use BlueStacks in conjunction with some form of specialized IDE such as Eclipse.
No doubt, a very interesting piece of software and to think that this project was started simply because game players wanted to add that keyboard + mouse soft-touch to their Android experience.
Summing up: BlueStacks is open-source gaming and debugging Android emulator. It sports all kinds of cool features, from customizable gaming modes to DevOps tools. Now that we have this out of the way, let’s discuss about the cybersecurity concerns looming around this Android emulator. So, is BlueStacks safe?
Addressing Cybersecurity Concerns of Android Emulation Software
A quick Google search BlueStacks’ security concerns render some pretty interesting, if not confusing, results. Most of the websites I’ve consulted in order to piece this article together have the same ‘lighthearted’ conclusion – sure, your AV might flag the .msi package as malicious, but BlueStacks is 100% safe. And, my favorite – BlueStacks wants to mess around with your UAC policy. Sure, allow it; what’s the worse that could happen? The team behind the evergreen Android emulator put a lot of ‘elbow grease’ in order to plug all the security holes. Naturally, v4 of BlueStacks is far more secure compared to its predecessors.
CVE-2019-12936: IPC Misconfig
Now, in 2019, Nick Cano, a cybersecurity researcher, and ethical hacker, came knocking on BlueStacks’ door saying that the app has some major issues. One of these issues, which was nicknamed CVE-2019-12936, popped up in or around April 2019. With a severity score of 7.1 on the CVSS scale, this vulnerability, which was thoroughly documented by NIST, proved that BlueStacks was prone to cross-scripting via a defective IPC mechanism & interface which had no auth functions enabled.
Bluestacks Mac Permissions List
More specifically, using DNS Rebinding, the victim’s machine would start attacking targets on the same network. This vulnerability would have also allowed for REC (i.e., remote execution of code), lading to data leaks, backup theft, and other mishaps. No incidents were reported prior to Cano blowing the whistle on BlueStacks. One thing I forgot to mention: this vulnerability was discovered in versions lower than 4.0. BlueStacks’ latest build (4.90.0.1046) removed this vulnerability. So, if you’re still running older versions of BlueStacks, I strongly recommend updating your app ASAP.
CVE-2016-4288: Random code execution with system privileges
Thought that CVE-2019-1936 was the only vulnerability found in BlueStacks? Think again. In 2017, CVE-2016-4288 was published. The entry documented BlueStacks’ App Player local privilege vulnerability due to the creation of a Windows registry key with suboptimal protection. More specifically, the emulator’s App player would create a registry key that required very little permissions. This vulnerability would, in turn, allow a threat actor to execute random code with system privileges. CVE-2016-4288 would have affected version 2.1.3.5650 of the product or earlier versions.
CVE-2018-0701: Gain unauthorized access on the same network segment
Discovered in November 2018, this vulnerability would have allowed a threat actor to bypass normal restriction in order to gain access to resources hosted on a machine or network. As the CVE entry shows, the vulnerability was associated with the BlueStacks App player and affected Windows versions 3.0. through 4.31.55, as well as the second version Mac version of the emulator. The issue, which was flagged as “resolved” in the latest version of BlueStacks, would have allowed an attacker operating on the same network segment as the victim’s endpoint to gain unauthorized access.
CVE-2019-14220: Read unauthorized file by setting file name as a parameter in system service call
Earmarked in 2019, CVE-2019-14220 refers to a vulnerability that could be used to gain read-type access to an authorized file. This vulnerability’s been tied to a “local arbitrary file read through a system service call” and when executed with System admin privileges could have granted the threat actor access to an authorized file if the said file name was used as a parameter. CVE-2019-14220 affected versions 4.110 and 4.120 of BlueStacks. The vulnerability seems to have found its fix in the latest version of BlueStacks.
BlueStacks for Enterprise – Cybersecurity concerns
Software emulation solutions such as BlueStacks or even Oracle’s VirtualBox are open-source – free to use, deploy, expand, alter, etc. However, some of their more ‘advanced’ features are locked behind a pay-to-use wall. Haven’t heard about a corporate version of VirtualBox, but BlueStacks does have an enterprise plan and this exactly what we’re going to talk about in this section.
How To Open Bluestacks
So, why should you choose BlueStacks Pro/Enterprise over the regular one? Well, getting rid of repetitive ads would be a nice change of pace. Also, the enterprise version of BlueStacks has other cool features in stock such as improved performance, a couple of tweaks that lower your bandwidth usage, the SDK, 24/7 support, disable pre-loaded content, and much more. So, should you go premium?
Is BlueStacks safe in its premium form? Yes, it is. As I’ve mentioned in the section concerning BlueStacks’ past issues, all of the (discovered) vulnerabilities have been successfully resolved, making BlueStacks for business as safe as Fort Knox’s gold vault. Wouldn’t go that far, but it’s pretty secure as it is. Now, putting aside BlueStacks’ known issues, the only thing left now to tackle would be the security problems that may arise when running emulators on your machine. And, as it happens, most of them are related to the type of application you run in said environment.
Google’s Play Store is the Eldorado of Android applications – music, video, photo-editing, ethical hacking, code-learning, code implementation, testing, debugging; there’s an application for everyone and every need. However, hidden inside this treasure trove of unspeakable usefulness are some apps that you wouldn’t want on your machine, regardless if it’s physical, virtual, or container.
Unfortunately, Google’s having a very hard time policing the Play Store for malicious apps masquerading as legit ones. So, what happens if you come across such an app while messing around in your BlueStacks-emulated Play Store? Worst case scenario – you break the virtual machine and start the VM configuration process from scratch. The nightmarish scenarios – nothing happens to the emulator, but the malicious code claws out of the sandbox and infects your host.
Now, based on the malware creator’s TTPs, this jailbreaking piece of code can do anything from zombifying (botnet) your machine to using it as a launchpad in an attempt to cash in as many goodies (assets) as possible. On the topic of assets, the first thing they teach you in any CND (certified network defender) class is that the word “asset” is spelled with dollar signs (a$$et) instead of a double-s – you lose your assets, you lose your business. That’s it, game over, and there’s nothing more to be done.
So, pay extra attention when deploying tools on your BlueStacks machine. Look for anything that could question the legitimacy of the app: grammatical errors, spelling issues, no info about the developer, fake and repetitive feedback, and, ultimately, the app’s requested permissions. Use common sense on that one: if an app you’ve just downloaded, say a portable Java system properties library asks permission to access your address book or to make phone calls, then it’s definitely malware.
Parting thoughts and extra security tips
Is BlueStacks safe? I wouldn’t say 100% because that would imply that the emulator might have some sort of safeguards in place for the worst cyber-threat out there – the human factor. The app itself is as secure as any open-source virtualization software out there, but won’t do you any good if you execute malicious apps on it. As I’ve said, time and time again, common sense is the panacea of cybersecurity – no matter what you work on or what resource you’re trying to access, you should pay attention to the context. It’s as simple as that.
As to the extra protection bit, I wholeheartedly encourage you to deploy an antimalware solution on your machine, especially when you’re experimenting with things like BlueStacks.
Heimdal™ Security’s Next-Generation Antivirus & MDM is more than capable of dealing with anything that could try and claw its way out of your VM’s sandbox.
To end this article on a lighter note, if this is your first encounter with BlueStacks, do yourself a favor and play a couple of PUBG rounds or something before working on your projects. There’s no better way of testing this kind of software. As always, stay safe, and don’t forget to shoot me a comment if you have any questions about the app or topic.