Please wait while the page is being loaded Skip this advertisement >
Sunday | 23 November, 2008
CIO
Microsoft warns of new Access attack
Microsoft is warning of active attacks that leverage a bug in its Snapshot Viewer for Access ActiveX control.
Robert McMillan (IDG News Service) 08 July, 2008 08:20:42

Cybercriminals are exploiting a bug in software used by Microsoft's Access database program in a new online attack, Microsoft warned Monday.

The flaw lies in the Snapshot Viewer ActiveX control, which ships with "all supported versions of Microsoft Office Access except Microsoft Access 2007," Microsoft said in a security advisory, published Monday.

Microsoft released few details of how the bug is actually being exploited, but said that it is investigating an ongoing computer attack that takes advantage of the problem. "The attack appears to be targeted, and not widespread," wrote Bill Sisk, a Microsoft spokesman, in a blog posting.

Attackers are trying to lure victims to a specially crafted Web page that tries to run the attack code within Internet Explorer. The bug gives attackers a way to run their malicious software on the victim's machine.

Microsoft's Security Advisory offers a number of possible work-arounds for the problem, but the company has not said when it plans to fix the underlying bug.

"We encourage affected customers to implement the manual work-arounds included in the Advisory, which Microsoft has tested," Sisk said. "Although these work-arounds will not correct the underlying vulnerability, they help block known attack vectors."

Snapshot Viewer lets PC users view a Microsoft Access report without having to run the Access software itself. It can be downloaded as stand-alone software.

Featured Whitepaper Sponsors
Market Place
 
Featured Whitepapers

Smart SOA World Tour

Discover how SOA can create smarter outcomes for your business.

Attend and learn:

  • How SOA is helping leading companies to become more agile
  • Where you should be applying SOA processes in your company
  • The top SOA implementation mistakes to avoid

Click here for more information.
  • +

    CIO Live Podcast #79: Brent D Taylor, author of The Outsider's Edge: The Making of Self-Made Billionaires Part II 05 October, 2007 06:00:00

    For his new book, The Outsider's Edge: The Making of Self-Made Billionaires, social researcher Brent D Taylor spent four years of intensive research investigating the psychological make-up and backgrounds of some of the world's richest men and women, including IT luminaries Bill Gates, Larry Ellison and Steve Jobs. Taylor discovered that, despite working in different industries and coming from different upbringings, they all have one thing in common -- they are all outsiders.
  • +

    CIO Live Podcast #78: Brent D Taylor, author of The Outsider's Edge: The Making of Self-Made Billionaires 28 September, 2007 17:34:25

    For his new book, The Outsider's Edge: The Making of Self-Made Billionaires, social researcher Brent D Taylor spent four years of intensive research investigating the psychological make-up and backgrounds of some of the world's richest men and women, including IT luminaries Bill Gates, Larry Ellison and Steve Jobs. Taylor discovered that, despite working in different industries and coming from different upbringings, they all have one thing in common -- they are all outsiders.
  • +

    CIO Live Podcast #77: Panasonic Speeds Up Trans-Pacific File Transfers, Part III 21 September, 2007 07:00:00

    Part three in our three-part special report from CIO's sister publication Network World in the US, as Paul Desmond reports from the Network World IT Roadmap Conference in Santa Clara, California. With development teams in the US and Japan, Panasonic needed a more efficient way to move very large files between the two locations. Iben Rodriguez, IT consultant for Panasonic Research and Development, explains how a storage-area network and virtual server technology helped speed up WAN performance.
  • +

    CIO Live Podcast #76: Panasonic Speeds Up Trans-Pacific File Transfers, Part II 14 September, 2007 07:00:00

    Part two in our three-part special report from CIO's sister publication Network World in the US, as Paul Desmond reports from the Network World IT Roadmap Conference in Santa Clara, California. With development teams in the US and Japan, Panasonic needed a more efficient way to move very large files between the two locations. Iben Rodriguez, IT consultant for Panasonic Research and Development, explains how a storage-area network and virtual server technology helped speed up WAN performance.
  • +

    CIO Live Podcast #75: Panasonic Speeds Up Trans-Pacific File Transfers, Part I 07 September, 2007 07:00:05

    Part one in our three-part special report from CIO's sister publication Network World in the US, as Paul Desmond reports from the Network World IT Roadmap Conference in Santa Clara, California. With development teams in the US and Japan, Panasonic needed a more efficient way to move very large files between the two locations. Iben Rodriguez, IT consultant for Panasonic Research and Development, explains how a storage-area network and virtual server technology helped speed up WAN performance.
  • +

    Chris Hoff on Virtualization and Cloud Computing 20 November, 2008 10:55:00

    Chris Hoff, chief security architect for the systems and technology division at Unisys and an advisor on the Skybox Security customer advisory board, is one of the biggest critics of virtualization security out there. Not because it isn't important - but rather because it is vital and needs to mature rapidly.
  • +

    Cybersecurity is focus of new start-up incubator 20 November, 2008 07:19:00

    Texas uni announces the Institute for Cyber Security.
    The University of Texas at San Antonio Tuesday announced a technology incubator aimed at fostering IT security-based start-ups within the state.
  • +

    Dilip Sarangan on Physical Security M&A 20 November, 2008 11:18:00

    Dilip Sarangan tracks physical security companies for Frost & Sullivan. He expects the industry's "need to have" products to weather the economic storm well, with the big players (now including IBM and Cisco) looking for value-priced acquisitions.
  • +

    International Challenges in PCI Security 20 November, 2008 09:15:00

    In a country that's seen many regulatory compliance challenges this decade, the headaches of PCI security tend to be analyzed from a largely American perspective.
  • +

    PCI council sharpens oversight of security auditors 19 November, 2008 10:53:00

    Quality assurance plan targets security assessors and scanning vendors
    The PCI Security Standards Council Monday unveiled a plan to sharpen oversight of the hundreds of security-service providers now authorized to evaluate merchant networks under the organization's Payment Card Industry data standards.
CIO Webcast Innovation #8 - What are the biggest roadblocks to IT's involvement in innovation at your company?
Watch the latest latest edition of CIO Innovation which is now available for download.
Watch the webcast
Sign up to the CIO Innovation update email


CIO Live Podcast #79: Brent D Taylor, author of The Outsider's Edge: The Making of Self-Made Billionaires Part II
Listen to the latest edition of CIO Live which is now available for download.
Listen to the podcast
Sign up to the CIO Live email
Whitepaper

Radicati Market Quadrant 2008 on Corporate Web Security

An Analysis of the Market for Corporate Web Security Solutions, revealing Top Players, Mature Players, Specialists and Trail Blazers. Read on to discover who makes the grade.