BlackBerry users beware – manufacturer Research in Motion has released a security advisory to those customers using the BlackBerry Application Web Loader Version 1.0, and Microsoft Internet Explorer. A vulnerability in the Web Loader may allow a hacker to use codes remotely and cause Internet Explorer to crash.
“An exploitable buffer overflow exists in the BlackBerry Application Web Loader ActiveX control that Internet Explorer uses to install applications on BlackBerry devices,” RIM says.
“When a BlackBerry device user browses to a web site that is designed to install the BlackBerry Application Web Loader ActiveX control on BlackBerry devices over a USB connection, and clicks ‘yes’ to install and run the ActiveX control, the ActiveX control introduces the vulnerability to the computer.”
The vulnerability can be fixed by installing an updated version of the BlackBerry Application Web Loader, available from the Research in Motion website.
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
