Microsoft's browser flaw exposed Google to hackers

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(AP) -- Microsoft says a security flaw in its Internet Explorer browser played a role in the recent computer attacks against Google and at least 20 other companies.

In a Thursday alert confirming the weakness, Microsoft said the hole can be closed by setting browser's Internet security zone to "high." The world's largest software maker may also issue an update to fix the problem.

pinpointed the trouble spot after Google announced earlier this week that hackers in China had pried into the e-mail accounts of human rights activists opposing the Chinese government's policies.

The attack outraged . It plans to leave China unless the government backs off rules requiring Google's Chinese search engine to censor some results.

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Citation: Microsoft's browser flaw exposed Google to hackers (2010, January 15) retrieved 28 March 2024 from https://phys.org/news/2010-01-microsoft-browser-flaw-exposed-google.html
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