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Adobe issues patch for Acrobat and Acrobat Reader

by on25 October 2007

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PDF files are vulnerable to attack



Adobe
has released a critical patch for Acrobat and Acrobat Reader versions 8.1 and earlier of its software product.

Adobe issued a Security bulletin on October 22nd that states that, “Critical vulnerabilities have been identified in Adobe Reader and Acrobat that could allow an attacker who successfully exploits these vulnerabilities to take control of the affected system.” The platform affected for vulnerability is listed as Windows XP with IE7 installed, and affected software versions include all of the following: Adobe Reader 8.1 and earlier; Adobe Reader 7.0.9 and earlier; Adobe Acrobat Professional, 3D and Standard 8.1 and earlier versions; Adobe Acrobat Professional, Standard, 3D and Elements 7.0.9 and earlier.

In order for a criminal hacker to exploit the software vulnerabilities and launch a malicious code onto a system, a malicious file must first be loaded in Adobe Reader or Acrobat by the end user. Because malicious files are so easily sent and opened by unsuspecting users, Adobe is recommending that Adobe users install the patch to address the flaws cited in CVE-2007-5020 and then update to Adobe Reader 8.1.1 or Acrobat 8.1.1.

One of the malicious code exploits has reportedly been traced to the Russian Business Network (RBN). According to iSight Partners, the exploit installs two rootkit files from the UrSnif family. "Servers (81.95.146.1xx and 81.95.147.1xx) used in the attack have a history of malicious abuse including VML UrSnif attacks, animated cursor exploitation (ANI), and CoolWebSearch installations," said Ken Dunham of iSight Partners. He further added that the RBN attack arrives through e-mail with a subject title of "STATEMET indigene" and includes attachments "YOUR_BILL.PDF" and "INVOICE.PDF".

Read the security bulletin here.

 

 

Last modified on 25 October 2007
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