Microsoft had a rather hushed response to the latest massive vulnerability within Internet Explorer versions 6 through 11. This is known as Microsoft Security Advisory 2963983, and has also been dubbed “Operation Clandestine Fox” by the cyber security firm FireEye. Luckily, it’s been FIXED by Microsoft with an out-of-band update for Windows XP. Still it’s important to note that the timing of this issue couldn’t be worse, seeing as Microsoft officially resigned to stop supporting Windows XP and its respective service packs.
Could the malicious entities responsible for exploiting this vulnerability have waited until this moment to start the attack?
Microsoft’s abandoned Windows XP support. What does this mean? Possibly that Internet Explorer on Windows XP will be unusable from this point on.
Even the US Department of Homeland Security told wary users that IE should be off limits until further notice. Now that Microsoft has patched the issue, it’s fine, but the chilling warning does instill a sense of dread nonetheless. We are really supposed to be scared, right? How can we continuously protect data from IT disasters?
The vulnerability allows hackers to direct the user to a fake websites. The glitch then allows hackers to run malicious software on your computer, removing or adding data at will.
Luckily, Microsoft reacted quickly and released the aforementioned fix, so we can rest easy. Still, it’s important to note that it’s hard to be ever-vigilant, and it’s a sign of the times when things like this happen. One way to counteract such threats and have peace of mind is to install Rollback RX and use it to get out of the micro-disasters caused by security flaws such as Operation Clandestine Fox.