Apple Safari, a fault reveals information from address book

Safari browser security problems ?

The Safari browser 5 is affected by a flaw that allows the owner of a website to retrieve information from address book. This week Apple has also been endorsed by an unfavorable report from security experts from Secunia.

Hectic week for personal computer users concerned about safety. After a serious flaw affecting all versions of Windows and an important security patch for Firefox is the turn of Apple’s Safari browser to distinguish.

The versions of Safari 4 and 5 are affected by this vulnerability that could reveal information from address book via a vulnerability in the automatic filling. This convenient feature allows to quickly inform the form fields on websites to save time.

Normally it is the user who triggers the sending of information. We learned today that with this flaw a website could recover without the consent of the user through a special code placed on a single web page.

If no fix is available, however it is very easy to protect yourself from this type of attack and keep using Safari with manipulation in the options of browser. Go to the preferences window, tab “Rempl.auto.” then uncheck “Use the information in my address book”:

Apple bad student safety?

The flaw was unveiled by blogger Jeremiah Grossman on his blog. Yet he had taken care to put Apple aware of this problem it is more than one month, June 17 It’s a negative for Apple , which had already pointed out this week for its shortcomings in security.

Security experts Secunia had actually produced a report (pdf) that put Apple at the head of a ranking on companies with the most faults on their products. First place in perspective, the report judging the faults concerned less risky than those of Microsoft. The latter took third place in the standings behind second and Oracle HP and Adobe to fourth and fifth respectively.

One week before Microsoft customers were also invited to make a manipulation to protect against the vulnerability by applying a patch for XP systems, Vista and Windows 7.