Second bug threatens Internet Explorer users
For the second time in a week, hackers have discovered a previously unknown bug in Microsoft Corp.’s Internet Explorer (IE) browser that could be exploited to run unauthorized software on a Windows computer. This latest bug, reported Thursday, could be exploited to seize control of a Windows system and has been given a “high risk” rating by the FrSIRT security Web site. Although “proof-of-concept” code showing how this vulnerability could be exploited has been published, making the bug a more serious concern, there are some mitigating factors. Attackers would first need to trick users into visiting a specially coded Web page and then somehow get them to perform certain actions, such as writing “specific text in a text field,” before they could run their malicious software, FrSIRT said.