Messenger Hole Forces Update
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Microsoft is forcing Messenger users to upgrade in order to patch a security vulnerability.
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(InfoWorld) - AOL is advising users of its ICQ instant message service to update to the latest version of the instant messaging software following the discovery of a bug in an older version of the product. Security researchers at Core Security TechnologiesÂ reported on ThursdayÂ that they had discovered the flaw in ICQ Pro 2003b, a version of the ICQ client that AOL still offers for download, billing it as a "veteran version" of the product for users who prefer the earlier look-and-feel. Although the bug doesn't affect more recent ICQ software like ICQ 5.1, it could mean serious problems for ICQ Pro 2003b users, according to Max Caceres, director of product management at Core, a vendor of penetration testing software. Core researchers have developedÂ proof-of-concept code that causes ICQ Pro 2003b to crash and they believe that this vulnerability could eventually be exploited to run unauthorized software on a user's PC. Hackers would attack a PC by sending a maliciously encoded instant message to any ICQ Pro 2003b user connected to the service. Victims "don't have to do anything at all," Caceres said. "Just by being there, someone can send them a message and they can be compromised." Core has also discoveredÂ less-critical issues in AOL's ICQ Toolbar 1.3 for Internet Explorer. These flaws could allow attackers to change the toolbar's configuration settings or possibly even run scripting code by sending victims maliciously encoded RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds. AOL said it was working to fix the bugs, but the company classifies them as "minor and low-risk," according to spokesman Andrew Weinstein. "Any users who are concerned can simply upgrade to the latest version of ICQ or not load suspicious RSS feeds," he said via instant message.
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Three different ActiveX vulnerabilities affect Yahoo Instant Messenger version 3.5,  and Yahoo Messenger versions 4.0, 5.0, and 5.5
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Update repairs a serious security hole that cybercrooks have been using to drop malicious software onto Windows PCs.
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(InfoWorld) - Microsoft is forcing Windows Live and MSN Messenger users to upgrade to the newest version due to a security update included in that release, according to a posting on a Microsoft blog. Anyone using 6.2, 7.0 and 7.5 versions of MSN Messenger or Windows Live Messenger 8.0 will be guided through the upgrade process to Windows Live Messenger 8.1 when they try to log in to their chat client, according to a blog posting by a security product manager at Microsoft calling himself "Anand." This will replace the option upgrade notice that users have been given when using those versions of the product since January, he wrote. "Some of you might feel this inconvenient, but in order to protect you and protect the health of the network, we have chosen to take this step," the blog entry said. The Messenger vulnerability, which let hackers embed malicious code in Web chat invitations to users, was disclosed in August. It affected MSN Messenger versions 6.2, 7.0, and 7.5, as well as Windows Live Messenger 8.0. Microsoft changed the name of its popular chat client from MSN to Windows Live with version 8.0. Microsoft patched the problem in older versions of Messenger as part of its monthly round of patches on Tuesday, which means users of affected versions of Messenger theoretically could install the patch and protect themselves. In its security bulletin for the patch, the company recommended Windows XP and Vista users upgrade to Windows Live Messenger 8.1, but only suggested in a vague way that they might order a mandatory update. "If you do not upgrade to a non-affected version of the MSN Messenger or Windows Live Messenger client, depending on your platform, you will be notified to upgrade on each attempt to sign on," the company said in Tuesday's security bulletin. "If you do not accept the upgrade, you may not be allowed access to MSN Messenger or Windows Live Messenger service." The company apparently changed its mind Wednesday, which is when the posting that disclosed the mandatory upgrade hit the Web. Users who commented on Anand's blog post had mixed opinions on the decision. One post complained that the user had "tried using Windows Live Messenger before and found that it simply takes up too much of my system's resources!" However, another said it was "a good decision," while still another said he was running Windows Live Messenger 8.5 in beta form and "it's not even that buggy." Microsoft's decision to force upgrades brings to mind complaints raised several months ago by users of AIM (AOL Instant Messenger) that AOL was encouraging users a little too insistently to upgrade from AIM 6.0 to 6.1. Users were angry about upgrade alert messages displayed on AIM screens that could not be turned off and would continue to reappear and interrupt current IM activity even after a user had closed the dialogue box.
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Update Slammed for touting unavailable but unlicensed content
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Antony Dovgal has pointed out the updated packages that have been released to the snaps.php.net website by Derick Rethans.   He also includes a list of things that will be included in this upcoming release like:   Namespaces Late static binding Accessing static members through $foo::myFunc() Improved OpenSSL extension PCRE 7.4   Grab your copy of these latest snapshots from the snaps website and get to testing them on your system to see what happens before the release.
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Update fixes crashes caused by incompatibility with hidden advertising app.
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No ETA yet on Yahoo Messenger for Vista public beta, which is three months late.
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Users will be able to receive news alerts and information via IM.
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Microsoft today released an out-of-cycle security bulletin and patch for a critical hole in Internet Explorer that is already being widely exploited by attackers.
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Blog: Here's a follow up to a blog of a few days ago outlining workaround until Google issues a patch.
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In a seeming replay of the uproar around last year's WMF vulnerability, a third-party patch has been released for the VML hole in Internet Explorer.
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"Highly critical" flaw patched in Cerulean Studios' multi-protocol chat software, which supports several popular IM services.
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As people spend more time online &#151; and logged into instant messaging services &#151; it's inevitable that there are times they just can't respond. That's why the "away message" &#151; set up to be sent automatically from someone's account &#151; has become so popular.
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Yahoo! has patched a flaw in the open source Portable Network Graphics (PNG) image format that is utilized by its real-time communications product Yahoo! Messenger. Yahoo! spokesperson Terrell Karlsten told BetaNews, "Beginning today, we are notifying users who are currently running Windows versions 6.0 to install the security update. Upon logging into Yahoo! Messenger, users will be prompted with a message window that invites them to update their service." Users may also download the new release separately.
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Some users more equal than others Sun Microsystems in the next few days plans to issue an update that plugs a serious security hole in the most recent version of its Java Runtime Environment, more than a week after providing a fix for the same vulnerability in an earlier version of the program. The lag has prompted a prominent security researcher to lambaste the effectiveness of the company's security team.â¦