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Howdy All,

Please be informed that the below article is copied from Network World for the purpose of to share the Warning Message to public. You may read the original article from here

By Robert McMillan , IDG News Service , 03/22/2008
Sponsored by:
Be extra careful when opening documents in Windows, especially if they are Word files.

Microsoft on Friday warned that cyber criminals may be taking advantage of an unpatched flaw in the Windows operating system to install malicious software on a victim’s PC.

The reported attack, now under investigation by Microsoft, involves a malicious Word document, but there may be other ways of exploiting the flaw, Microsoft said.

“Do not open or save Word files that you receive from untrusted sources or that you receive unexpectedly from trusted sources,” Microsoft said in a security advisory posted to its Web site late in the day.

The flaw lies in the Jet Database Engine that is used by a number of products including Microsoft Access. Microsoft is investigating whether other programs may also be exploited in this type of attack.

Although this kind of unpatched, “zero day” attack is always cause for concern, Microsoft downplayed the risk.

“At this time, we are aware only of targeted attacks that attempt to use this vulnerability,” the company said. “Current attacks require customers to take multiple steps in order to be successful; we believe the risk to be limited.”

Following its usual policy, Microsoft didn’t say when — or if — it planned to patch the bug. But in a statement sent to the press, the company did not rule out the possibility of an emergency patch, released ahead of its next set of security updates, which are expected on April 8.

Users of many versions of Word, including Word 2007, 2003, 2002 and 2000 are at risk, unless they are running Windows Vista or Windows Server 2003, Service Pack 2. Those two operating systems include a newer version of the Jet Database Engine that does not have the bug, Microsoft said.

For the technically savvy: this means that PCs with a version of the Msjet40.dll that is lower than 4.0.9505.0 are vulnerable.

There have been other reports of attacks targeting this database software recently. In December, the US-CERT (United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team) warned that attackers were sending out malicious Microsoft Access Database (.mdb) files in a similar type of attack. Security experts speculated that this exploit could have been based on a publicly reported flaw in the Jet Database Engine.

The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate.

Are you Skype users? If you are one of the Skype users like me, please beware of the new Trojan. I’ve been notified through email by Network World. Please read the whole article from them below

Trojan imitates Skype, steals login credentials
By Jeremy Kirk, IDG News Service, 10/17/07

Security analysts are warning of another malicious software program masquerading as an installer file for Skype.

The program sends the victim’s Skype credentials, as well as any other logins or passwords stored in Internet Explorer, to another server, wrote Villu Arak, a Skype spokesman based in Tallinn, Estonia, on a Skype blog.

Skype, the VoIP program owned by eBay, is frequently targeted by malware writers because it is widely used. Other attacks have focused on sending links to malware via Skype’s chat function as well as worms.

This Trojan horse appears as an installer with Skype’s logo and the name “65404-SkypeDefenderSetup.exe.” Once the program is executed, users see a convincing Skype login interface, although the graphic for the “sign in” button is different from that of the genuine Skype application.

Login credentials can be entered, but none of the other menu functions work, said Chris Boyd, security research manager for FaceTime Communications. Microsoft’s Internet Explorer can locally store passwords as a convenience for users as part of the browser’s “autocomplete” function, but it is possible for software to improperly access the information.

The Trojan has been spread through spam as well as through instant-message conversations with a link to the malware, Arak said.

“This piece of malware does not propagate itself,” Arak said. “Luckily, because the malware depends on the “human factor” to propagate, it is not widely spread. And we’ve received only a few complaints in customer support.”

One user complained last week on Skype’s forum of an infection, adding that his account was subsequently shut down.

“I was stupid,” the user wrote. “Please, please help.”
The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate. 

So, make sure that you are installing the software downloaded from the genuine Skype’s website.

There is a notice received this morning related to email service provided by Google called GMail. Please read the news below

Mail flaw could expose user data

A GMail vulnerability uncovered by “ethical hacking” group GNUcitizen could compromise the accounts of those who are logged in and make the mistake of clicking on a malicious link.

A flaw demonstrated in a proof-of-concept program exploits a cross-scripting vulnerability, and could empower an attacker to take over the Google session cookies and access information in the account.

“If someone picks up on this before Google fixes it — or if someone knew of the vulnerability before this guy published it — this could be very damaging to Gmail users,” Pure Hacking security researcher Chris Gatford told CNet. 

So, GMail user, please be alert. This is a common way for people to steal information.

This story appeared on Network World at
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2007/091007-skype-warns-users-of-windows.html
Skype warns users of Windows worm
By Jeremy Kirk, IDG News Service, 09/10/07

Skype users are under attack from a new worm that spreads through the peer-to-peer Internet phone application’s chat feature.

The attack begins when a user receives an instant message containing a link from someone in their contact list or an unknown Skype user, said Villu Arak, a Skype spokesman based in Tallinn, Estonia.

There are several versions of the chat messages, which are “cleverly written” to fool users, Arak wrote on the Skype heartbeat blog. The link appears to contain a JPEG photo file, but if clicked causes the Windows run/save dialog box to appear, which asks whether the user wants to save or run a “.scr” file.

The file is malicious software that can then access a user’s PC via Skype’s API (application programming interface). The malicious file has been named W32/Ramex.A.

“Users whose computers are infected with this virus will send a chat message to other Skype users asking them to click on a web link that can infect” their computers, Arak wrote.

To avoid trouble, users should not download the file. At least two security vendors, F-Secure Corp. and Kaspersky Lab Ltd., have updated their software to detect the worm, Arak wrote.

Instant message programs are another way hackers can try to gain control over PCs. Access to one person’s instant messenger or e-mail account can mean contact details for many others, allowing hackers to use malicious e-mails or instant messages to lure victims into downloading malicious software.

The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate.

Howdy All,

Recently there is an email sent by someone with the intention to send a Trojan horse attack to Windows users. The email looks like a legit email sent by Microsoft but in fact it is not. You may read the released news by ComputerWorld here or as pasted below.

Fake Windows patch e-mail leads to Trojan horse attack

June 27, 2007 (Computerworld) Messages insisting that users install a just-released Microsoft Corp. security update are bogus and actually lead to a site that plants malicious code on PCs, several security companies warned today.

The spam, which touts “Microsoft Security Bulletin MS07-0065 — Critical Update” as its subject and appears to come from “update@microsoft.com,” claims users should download a June 18 security patch and provides a link to a URL that looks legit.

“A new 0-day vulnerability has appeared in the wild,” the message reads. “The vulnerability affects machines running MICROSOFT OUTLOOK and allows an attacker to take full control of the vulnerable computer if the exploitation process is succesfull [sic].” It goes on to boast that 100,000 PCs have been hijacked so far by unnamed malware exploiting the bug.

However, the link takes users to one of several different attack sites that download a Trojan horse to the machine. “Security bulletins from Microsoft describing vulnerabilities in their software are a common occurrence,” noted Graham Cluely, a Sophos PLC analyst, in a statement today. “[But] by using people’s real names, the Microsoft logo and legitimate-sounding wording, the hackers are attempting to fool more people into stepping blindly into their bear trap.”

The SANS Institute’s Internet Storm Center and Symantec Corp.’s DeepSight threat network have also issued alerts on the fraudulent messages.

Playing the legitimacy card is an important “scam-spammer” technique, James Blascovich, a professor of psychology at the University of California, Santa Barbara, said yesterday in a just-released paper on the mind games attackers play to persuade people that it’s safe to open suspicious e-mail. The fake security alert, for example, refers to “Genuine Microsoft Software,” a phrase the company itself heavily promotes; uses the recipient’s first name in the body of the message; and includes a purported product registration key.

Alert users, however, will be immediately suspicious of the message — and not just because of the typical-for-spam misspellings — but because it labeled the update “MS07-0065.” So far this year, Microsoft has only reached MS07-035 in its numbering system.

So, always be careful before you open any email you received. Check the email header if you how to do so.