News

Microsoft Finds Excel Security Flaw

Microsoft Corp. said hackers have found a way to use some older versions of its Excel spreadsheet program to take over control of people's computers.

Microsoft Corp. said hackers have found a way to use some older versions of its Excel spreadsheet program to take over control of people's computers.

Microsoft said late Tuesday that it is investigating reports of such attacks, but has not yet determined whether it will patch the hole, or when.

People who open a specially crafted Excel file from an e-mail attachment or visit a compromised Web site could be inviting hackers to take over their PCs for malicious purposes such as stealing passwords and other personal information, or sending out spam. Microsoft Office Excel 2003 Service Pack 2, Excel Viewer 2003, Excel 2002, Excel 2000 and Excel 2004 for Mac all contain the security hole.

The software maker said in a statement that users of these programs can protect their computers by using a tool that scans the files for bad code before opening, called Microsoft Office Isolated Conversion Environment.

The most recent versions of the spreadsheet program, Excel 2007, Excel 2007 SP 1 and Excel 2008 for Mac, are not thought to be affected, Microsoft said.

Featured

  • Salesforce To Acquire Informatica in $8 Billion Deal

    Salesforce announced on Tuesday it plans to acquire data management firm Informatica for $8 billion.

  • An image of planes flying around a globe

    2025 Microsoft Conference Calendar: For Partners, IT Pros and Developers

    Here's your guide to all the IT training sessions, partner meet-ups and annual Microsoft conferences you won't want to miss.

  • Microsoft Gives Orgs More Power to 'Tune' AI Agents

    At its Build 2025 conference this week, Microsoft unveiled significant advancements aimed at empowering enterprises to create more sophisticated AI agents.

  • Build 2025: Microsoft Charts Wider Path for AI Agents

    At Build 2025, Microsoft unveiled its strategic vision for the future of AI agents, emphasizing the development of autonomous systems capable of performing complex tasks across various applications.