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The Training Book, the handbook for trainers

The Training Book, the handbook for trainers

 

ITrain - International Association of Information Technology Trainers

MS Word Users Beware

RTF - macro security hole should be patched

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Microsoft Reports Word 97/2000 Security Hole

by Dave Murphy
ISSN 1535-3613

Dave Murphy, DGL President & ITrain founder A significant security hole affects Microsoft Word 97 and Word 2000 users.

Both Windows and Mac users are affected.

The Word macro vulnerability could allow malicious code to run in a Rich Text Format (RTF) document without warning. Under normal circumstances, you will see a warning in Word 97/2000 when you open a document attached to a template containing macros. However, it is possible for an RTF document to be linked to a template containing macros in such a way that a macro can run with no warning issued. This could cause damage to data or allow unauthorized retrieval of data from your system when you visit a website or open an email message.

The Word 97/200 security update prevents macros from opening without a security warning. After you have installed the update, you will be warned before you open an RTF document that contains a template or macro. After you have installed the update, you will still be able to use templates, macros in templates, or Rich Text Format (RTF) documents with macros.

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References

Word Macro Vulnerability Patch
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updated May 23, 2001
http://dgl.com/itinfo/2001/it010523a.html

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