Post by sherlew99 on Mar 26, 2014 13:27:00 GMT -6
Microsoft Word Is Under A Hack Attack: Do Not Open Documents Named '.RTF'
By Julie Bort
March 25, 2014 2:41 PM
Business Insider
This is the worst kind of attack. A hacker who manages to get you to open a booby-trapped file can gain control of your computer. From there, the hacker can do all kinds of things. For instance, the hacker can turn your computer into a so-called zombie by putting it on an illegal botnet. That means hackers can use your computer as part of a bigger network of computers to do all kinds of illegal things — like send spam, spread viruses, and commit fraud.
Even scarier is that the hack could work in preview mode. That's where you don't actually open the file but view it in an email instead. Outlook, for instance, lets you preview attachments.
By Julie Bort
March 25, 2014 2:41 PM
Business Insider
This is the worst kind of attack. A hacker who manages to get you to open a booby-trapped file can gain control of your computer. From there, the hacker can do all kinds of things. For instance, the hacker can turn your computer into a so-called zombie by putting it on an illegal botnet. That means hackers can use your computer as part of a bigger network of computers to do all kinds of illegal things — like send spam, spread viruses, and commit fraud.
Even scarier is that the hack could work in preview mode. That's where you don't actually open the file but view it in an email instead. Outlook, for instance, lets you preview attachments.
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