Archive for October, 2007

Sun Microsystems, the company behind Java Runtime Environment (JRE), has released an update that fixes many security flaws, indluding some that could allow hackers to compromise or steal data from unpatched systems. Java has long been known to be a means for e-criminals' to further their cause, since  an  estimated  600  million users worldwide use JRE. The update applies to Java 1. More...

Due to a programming flaw with the "reply" function, one reply became 2. 2 million replies, clogging federal inboxes of the USA. The flaw apparently had to do with "reply" and "reply to all" being mixed up, thus leading to one reply being sent to all subscribers in a particular department. More...

The recently infamous 13 month old QuickTime flaw, which Apple failed to patch in March, has finally been taken care of in Quicktime version 7. 2. The update fixes the flaw, which exists in Windows XP and Windows Vista. More...

Although China has been accused of government-backed attacks (against New Zealand in particular), China itself has been attacked: one of the country's internet security sites (or at least a few pages of it) contains malicious code. The particular malicious code in the website is an iFrame, or a hidden window, which allows code such as JavaScript to run on a web-surfer's PC. The CISRT (Chinese Internet Security Response Team) claims that the code works because of vulnerabilities in ActiveX, one of BaoFeng Storm media player's controls. More...

Storm isn't necessarilly the most ingenious or heinous malware circling around the net, but it is or will soon take the place of the most productive, with an estimated 1 million computers infected globally. The nature of Storm is not widely decided upon and even though most call it a worm, other say it is a trojan. The name "Storm" is a reference to it's spam mail content, which mentions Storms. More...

Certain modems, used by Eircom customers, are vulnerable to Wired Equicalent Privacy (WEP) software exploits. These exploits may allow outsiders to access private wireless connections by geting past the default setting of the WEP. The flaw exists in the WEP key used for Netopia 2247 and 3300 routers. More...

A new type of phishing scam has been noticed last week, which offers a tax refund from the US IRS (Internal Revenue Service). the e-mail states that the IRS has been monitoring the receiver's financial activities, and that he is elligible for a refund, the amount of which is cleverly set at "$309. 1" or some other uneven number so as not to seem fishy (phishy, in this case). More...

Secret update from Microsoft provoked anger and debates two weeks ago. It was a matter of honesty, but not a deal of possible security threat. And the discussion ran on either Microsoft had a right to update systems automatically. More...