adobe

For most of us, opening a PDF (portable document file) means we're forced to use Adobe Reader, the most prominent application associated with viewing PDF files. Unfortunately, programs like Adobe Reader are often targeted by hackers, and one ... security expert believes Microsoft should offer an alternative for its users. According to Sean Sullivan, security advisor for Finland's antivirus firm F-Secure, Microsoft's competition has already beaten them to the idea. "Apple does this with its Preview [application], and Microsoft should, too," Sullivan said. (Source: computerworld.com ) Security ... (view more)

Adobe has issued a rebuttal in relation to recent comments made Apple CEO Steve Jobs, calling them nothing more than "smokescreens". In a blog last week, Jobs hurled a number of allegations against Adobe (and more specifically, their Flash product) ... claiming that iPhone and iPad users were better off without it. Initially, Adobe appeared to be taking the high road. In an early follow-up statement, President and CEO Shantanu Narayen stated that Adobe would be "committed to bringing Flash to any platform of which there is a screen". For all intents and purposes, Adobe seemed to be following the ... (view more)

Officials may soon investigate Apple amidst allegations that the company is too restrictive in its demands on developers producing applications for the iPhone and iPad. Criticism of that policy has been particularly strong over Apple's stance on ... using the Flash multimedia system. Apple recently changed its terms and conditions to give it the right to pull any application which does not use the company's specified programming and development systems, a list which doesn't include Flash. That prompted Adobe to abandon a tool that allowed Flash developers to easily convert their applications to ... (view more)

The Apple iPhone and iPad boast countless apps and features. However, according to Apple CEO Steve Jobs, there is one particular feature that will not be appearing on the aforementioned Apple devices: Adobe Flash technology. In a 1,685-word ... offensive against Adobe (titled "Thoughts on Flash"), Jobs mentioned that Flash has too many "bugs", drains batteries too quickly and is too oriented to personal computers to work on the iPhone or iPad. Jobs went on to state that Flash was designed "for PCs using mice, not for touch screens using fingers." (Source: yahoo.com ) Still, many believe that the ... (view more)

Security researchers are warning the Twittering world that their credentials may be vulnerable to hackers. The most disturbing news, however, is that the problem, which exploits Adobe System's Flash programming language, was first discovered almost ... four years ago. Mike Bailey, a senior security analyst with Foreground Security in Orlando, Florida has informed Twitter of the flaw. However, all warnings seem to have fallen on deaf ears. Most website operators have downplayed the severity of the situation, even though it could compromise many users. No Restorative Actions to Date Frustrating ... (view more)

An Internet Explorer (IE) vulnerability was used by hackers to get past the defenses of Adobe, Google, and about 32 other companies, says security firm McAfee. Until now, the IE flaw had been unknown to security researchers, while the attack had ... initially been blamed on an Adobe PDF (Portable Document Format) vulnerability. According to McAfee, hackers used a variety of tactics, including spear-phishing (email spoofing with a specific target in mind), to unleash an incredibly effective "cocktail of zero-day vulnerabilities," that exploited flaws in company systems and left backdoor loopholes ... (view more)

If you're still running an old version of Adobe's popular Flash player plug-in, you'd better update, says Microsoft. The software giant, which rarely tells customers to halt their use of another company's wares, has had it with the many bugs and ... security vulnerabilities in Flash Player 6.0, released several years ago. In response to multiple bugs and a slew of security vulnerabilities, Microsoft has through its most recent Security Advisory (#979267) told users that they should either uninstall Flash Player 6.0 or immediately switch to a newer edition of the plugin. Threats Include Remote ... (view more)

While most people in the media take this time to offer interesting retrospectives on the year that was, security company McAfee has prepared its predictions for hacker threats in 2010. It forecasts a troubling year for Adobe software, which McAfee ... believes will be heavily targeted in 2010. McAfee made the forecast in its 2010 Threat Predictions report, which argued that popular tools Adobe Reader and Flash would become big targets for hackers intent on spreading malware across the worldwide web. McAfee also predicts social networking sites and HTML 5 could be threatened, too. Adobe Offers ... (view more)

On the same day Microsoft unloaded a record-breaking 34 fixes , eight of which were listed as critical, Adobe has made a similar gargantuan patch offering. The company, best known for its Reader and Acrobat software, yesterday fixed a total of 29 ... vulnerabilities, including one labeled critical. That software covered by the fixes includes version 9.1.3 of both Acrobat and Reader, version 8.1.6 of Acrobat for Windows, Mac, and Unix, and version 7.1.3 of Acrobat and Reader for Windows and Mac. Adobe encourages everyone using its programs to download the update, warning users that if they fail to ... (view more)

Adobe has vowed to fix a critical security hole in its Flash software within a week. But the Department of Homeland Security (DoHS) has taken the extremely unusual step of advising users to switch off the feature until the patch is available. The ... hole can be used for so-called 'drive by' attacks occurring when a user simply visits an infected website. However, the relevant code is also shared with Adobe's Acrobat software, meaning it can cause security problems through PDF documents which have Flash embedded in them for greater interactivity. That technique had already been criticized as a ... (view more)