This is a surprise to me, as Adobe is a very good provider of useful products.
As with all media coverage, we must be patient and not be alarmed by the initial identification of a 'problem'.
However, as it does seem to be a security risk (hackers can access your computer without your approval), it is prudent to disconnect Adobe reader now and reconnect it when it is confirmed to b secure.
The simple answer is to uninstall Adobe Reader for now ... it is easy to re-install when they have fixed the exposure.
The more vague answer is there is no positive proof of if/what hackers extract from your system without your knowledge ... but they appear to be able to access your system without your approval.
If you need to read a PDF files in the near future, you can install this PDF reader which is quite safe and can be used for all PDF files. I have tried it and it seems to be faster than Adobe Reader.
I WILL STAY WITH THIS TOOL INSTEAD OF RE-INSTALLING ADOBE READER, FOR THE FORSEEABLE FUTURE.
I will let you know when Adobe Reader is secure once again. Planned for JAN 12, 2010.
I have used this FREE PDF Reader for a couple of years and it is amazing with TAB viewing for multiple documents, Editing - Annotation, highlighting etc., with no problems.
ReplyDeletePDF-XChange Viewer
http://download.cnet.com/PDF-XChange-Viewer/3000-10743_4-10598377.html?tag=mncol
Download.com guarantees their downloads are virus and spyware free...)
PDF Creator is a FREE PDF Writer that now has a Tool Bar for Internet Explorer that allows you to create a PDF of the web page that you are viewing...great for sending to someone as an email attachment and preserving the content into the future if the web page ever goes away.
PDF Creator
http://sourceforge.net/projects/pdfcreator/
Not available from www.download.com
BC