Microsoft admits Internet Explorer flaw helped Chinese hack Google

Posted on 15 Jan 2010 at 15:01

Microsoft has admitted in a blog post that a vulnerability in its Internet Explorer 6 web browser was used by Chinese hackers to attack Google.

"Based upon our investigations, we have determined that Internet Explorer was one of the vectors used in targeted and sophisticated attacks against Google and possible other corporate networks," said Mike Reavey, Microsoft's director of security response.

The post goes on to explain how the flaw can be exploited by hackers to execute code on a remote computer. Microsoft has played down the significance of the flaw.

"Microsoft has not seen widespread customer impact, rather only targeted and limited attacks exploiting IE 6 at this time," said Reavey in his post.

Users of Internet Explorer 8 should be safe from the flaw, thanks to Data Execution Prevention (DEP). IE7 users need to enable DEP in the browser to get the same level of protection.

Author: David Ludlow

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