Average Rating: Rate this article:

Microsoft Warns of New Word Attack By Tim Gray December 6, 2006 9:07AM In the wake of the newly discovered Microsoft Word vulnerability, Microsoft is urging everyone to avoid opening Word files received from untrusted sources or received unexpectedly from trusted sources. The zero-day Word flaw affects all major versions of Microsoft Word, including Word for the Mac.   Related Topics Microsoft Windows Microsoft Word Trojans Hackers Latest News Endeavour Inspected for Damage Autism Risk for Kids of Older Mothers Go Online and You Can Save the Planet In Haiti, Relief Gaps Are Spreading U.S. To Form Climate-Change Agency Microsoft has warned of a serious and as-yet-unpatched vulnerability in Microsoft Word that can allow malicious hackers to compromise computers remotely. According to the latest reports, hackers are actively exploiting the zero-day flaw. Microsoft said the memory-corruption error in the software was discovered from the limited number of attacks that are already exploiting it. The flaw affects many versions of Word, including Word 2000, Word 2002, Word 2003, Word Viewer 2003, Word 2004 for Mac, and Word 2004 X for Mac. Microsoft Works 2004, 2005, and 2006 are all potentially vulnerable, according to the company. Don't Open It "Do not open or save Word files that you receive from untrusted sources or that you receive unexpectedly from trusted sources," Microsoft warned in an advisory. Users duped into opening the malicious Word files are likely to discover that their systems have been compromised, because the vulnerability can be exploited by hackers to install spyware or dangerous Trojan horse programs. Perhaps the biggest danger, security experts are saying, is having the compromised computer added to a network of hijacked PCs known as a botnet. The compromised computer can then be used to send out spam, attack other computer systems, or engage in a variety of nefarious activities. Hack Trends Security experts have cautioned that zero-day attacks -- in which hackers are able to exploit a software vulnerability for which there is no patch -- provide a significant challenge, especially because the attacks typically begin only in very limited numbers, effectively flying beneath the radar. These "limited attacks" have proved to be a greater challenge to stop than widespread worms, viruses, or Trojan horses sent to millions of e-mail inboxes because they often go completely unnoticed by security companies until they have developed critical mass. Additionally, security experts have pointed to a trend in which many hackers have turned away from targeting operating systems and to software applications themselves, which also can help them fly beneath the radar of security companies. The trend to attack applications instead of operating systems has forced Microsoft to release a growing number of software patches in recent months. As for the latest bug, Microsoft is recommending that users only create Word documents for personal use, and limit sending content by e-mail, until the next scheduled round of patches, which Microsoft will roll out on December 12.   Tell Us What You Think Your Comment: Also Visit: iPad Info Center Billions of Bytes Mobile Device Now Apple Info Center TopTechWire.com Advertisement  Spam & Hackers 1.   China Busted Hacker-Training Site 2.   FBI Tackles Haiti-Relief Scams 3.   Climate E-Mails Hacked by Spies? 4.   Facebook: A Cybercrime Danger Zone 5.   Hacker Breaks Into 49 House Sites Google Considers Pulling Out of China Attacks prompt an end to censorship. Average Rating: China Busted Hacker-Training Site Heralds news amid Google-hack saga. Average Rating: FBI Tackles Haiti-Relief Scams Computer-based fraud more diverse. Average Rating:

Enterprise Hardware Spotlight

Nvidia Auto-Switches Notebook GPU To Save Battery Life Nvidia has taken the wraps off a notebook technology that chooses the best graphics processor for any given application and automatically routes the workload to Nvidia or Intel processors.   Microsoft Says Battery Woes Not Caused By Windows 7 Battery problems on Windows 7 machines are not caused by the operating system. That's the position of Stephen Sinofsky, head of the Windows division, in a long posting on the Windows engineering blog.   IBM's New POWER7 Servers Save Energy with Big Loads IBM has unveiled high-capacity servers that are the first to be based on its new, multi-core POWER7 chip. It said the new line is designed "to manage the most demanding emerging applications."

Mobile Enterprise Spotlight

To Love or Not To Love: Apple iPad Pros and Cons Now that the iPad has officially been announced, opinions are rolling in on this device that combines the features of an iPod, e-reader, and tablet PC. Will the iPad turn fewer heads than the iPhone?   Analysts See iPad Price Drop, with Some Cannibalization Just weeks before Apple officially rolls out the iPad, financial analysts are making pricing predictions. But could the analysis itself hinder the initial demand for the pricey tablet computer?   Bar Codes Go Mobile, Get Hip Again For decades, retailers have used patterns of black dots and lines to encode data onto products. Now, bar codes are gaining favor as an easy way for cell-phone users to view ads and other data instantly.

Enterprise Technology Spotlight

Google May Add Facebook, Twitter Links to Gmail Google will reportedly roll more social-networking features into Gmail, the fastest-growing e-mail service. The new features could save users the trouble of switching to Facebook or Twitter.   IBM's New POWER7 Servers Save Energy with Big Loads IBM has unveiled high-capacity servers that are the first to be based on its new, multi-core POWER7 chip. It said the new line is designed "to manage the most demanding emerging applications."   IBM Opens Eco-Friendly, Cloud-Focused Data Center IBM has opened its latest data center in North Carolina. Big Blue said the $362 million facility in Research Triangle Park is designed to support cloud computing and other new computing models.

Navigation Sci-Tech Today Home/Top News | Computing | Digital Life | Discovery | Space | Innovation | Health | Science News Environment NewsFactor Network Enterprise I.T. Sites NewsFactor Technology News | Enterprise Security Today | CRM Daily NewsFactor Business and Innovation Sites Sci-Tech Today | NewsFactor Business Report NewsFactor Services FreeNewsFeed | Free Newsletters | Free Whitepapers | About NewsFactor Network | How To Contact Us | Article Reprints | Careers @ NewsFactor | Services for PR Pros | Top Tech Wire | How To Advertise Privacy Policy | Terms of Service © Copyright 2000-2010 NewsFactor Network. All rights reserved. Article rating technology by Blogowogo.