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Security News
Avira protects against current PDF exploit
Tue, 12 February 2008
Tettnang, 12 February 2008 – Hackers tried to infiltrate systems with Trojans via a security flaw in Adobe Reader.
There have been an increasing number of websites containing manipulated PDF files. If these files are opened, they infiltrate systems with a Trojan via the Acrobat PDF Reader. The result of this infection is the disabling of anti-virus programs, falsification of search results and manipulation of advertising banners.
The security flaw relates to malicious Java scripts embedded in PDFs. These may cause a buffer overflow and thus infiltration of malicious code when a manipulated PDF document is opened. This malicious code then runs with the rights of the user. Experience with the last PDF exploit in October 2007 shows that such security flaws are exploited on a massive scale in a very short timespan.
Special attention should be paid to gateway security, as PDF documents are frequently allowed to go through controls without being scanned.
With the new version of the popular Acrobat Reader, the security flaw has been patched. Avira also reacted immediately after the first malware samples appeared. With the latest software update, users who have Avira AntiVir are protected against this and other malicious Java scripts.
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