Hole in Google desktop search
p2pnet.net News:- Fears that Google’s Desktop Search might open up privacy and security problems have been confirmed by researchers at Rice University in Texas.
The application, which other companies including Yahoo and Microsoft have desperately emulated, has a serious flaw that could allow hackers to access users’ search result summaries, “providing a sneak peek at part of the content of personal files,” says an IDG News Service report.
However, say the researchers, led by computer sciences professor Dan Wallach, you can see if have a safe updated version by selecting the “about” icon in the Google Desktop Search task bar.
“If it says version number 121004, indicating Dec. 10, 2004, or later, they are safe, the researchers said,” states IDG.
Google says it’s fixed the hole, reports ZDNet UK.
But, it adds, the disclosure, “comes just days after analyst firm Gartner warned businesses to steer clear of Google’s desktop search tool until a more robust, enterprise-ready version is released,”.
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See:-
serious flaw – Security hole found in Google desktop search, IDG News Service, December 20, 2004
steer clear – Google: We’ve fixed desktop search tool flaw, ZDNet UK, December 20, 2004
