Ryan Naraine

Anti-virus vendors have raised the threat level on a double-barreled MSN Messenger worm that lures users with the promise of sexy image files. The worm, identified as W32/Bropia, arrives as a download link within MSN instant messaging sessions, but instead of sexy photographs, infected users get an image of a cooked chicken on a platter […]

Qualcomm has pushed out an update for its Eudora e-mail client to fix multiple security flaws that put users at risk of computer hijacking. The San Diego-based Qualcomm Inc., which offers a free version of the client alongside premium versions, said the new Eudora 6.2.1 corrects several vulnerabilities reported by research firm NGSS (Next Generation […]

Microsofts February Patch Day will be a busy one for IT administrators. The software giant on Thursday announced plans to release 13 security advisories on Feb. 8, including “critical” fixes for Microsoft Office, Windows Media Player and MSN Messenger. Also expected is a cumulative patch to plug known vulnerabilities in the widely deployed Internet Explorer […]

Security researchers have found a way to combine two unrelated—and unpatched—vulnerabilities in RealPlayer and Internet Explorer to launch malicious hacker attacks on PCs. According to an advisory from Secunia, exploit code that could be used for system bypass attacks has been released on the Web, potentially putting millions of RealPlayer users at risk. The RealPlayer […]

Worried that the credibility of the PHP scripting language is being hurt by high-profile security flaws in third-party applications, an international group of coding experts is taking matters into their own hands. The group, which includes Zend Engine developer Andi Gutmans, has formed the PHP Security Consortium with ambitious plans to promote secure programming practices […]

Microsoft Corp. on Monday confirmed it was investigating a claim by a Russian security researcher that two key security technologies built into Windows XP Service Pack 2 could be easily defeated. The weaknesses were highlighted in a research paper published by Alexander Anisimov of Positive Technologies and centers around XP SP2s heap protection and DEP […]

Last weeks sophisticated bot attack against Windows installations of the MySQL database engine has fizzled after DNS (Domain Name System) service authorities shut off access to IRC servers controlling the worm. The bot, which launched brute-force attacks on weak MySQL passwords, was infecting vulnerable systems at the rate of 100 per minute. At its peak, […]

Almost a year after the first Bagle worm started squirming through e-mail in-boxes, anti-virus vendors are reporting a new wave of attacks with new propagation techniques. Three new variants were detected over the past 24 hours, and because of the high rate of distribution, anti-virus firms have increased the threat level and have rushed out […]

America Online Inc.s Nullsoft unit has quietly rolled out a new version of the popular Winamp media player to plug multiple critical flaws that put users at risk of code execution attacks. The fixes were included in Winamp version 5.08c after a warning was issued last November by private research firm Security-Assessment.com. The bug was […]

Malicious hackers have launched a zero-day bot attack against default Windows installations of the MySQL database engine, infecting vulnerable systems at the rate of 100 per minute, security experts warned on Thursday. The bot takes advantage of the publicly released “MySQL UDF Dynamic Library Exploit” to break into the open-source MySQL package. Once a database […]

The nonprofit Internet Systems Consortium has rolled out fixes for a pair of denial-of-service flaws in its BIND (Berkeley Internet Name Domain) implementation of the Domain Name System protocols. The vulnerabilities were reported in BIND versions 8.4.4, 8.4.5 and 9.3.0 and carry a “moderately critical” rating from independent research firm Secunia. BIND is by far […]

Microsofts plans to clamp down on the way illegal copies of its flagship Windows operating system receive updates—including security patches—could have a major impact on the SOHO (small office, home office) market and increase the risk of malicious hacker attacks, experts warned Wednesday. The warning follows an announcement out of Redmond, Wash., that the “Windows […]