Do you use Adobe reader for reading pdf files? The majority of our customers and friends do. I ran across this article and thought I would share with you guys in case you were not aware.
Adobe confirms PDF zero-day attacks. Disable JavaScript now
Adobe has a huge market share when it comes to Pdf editors and readers. It has been around and is well known and this makes it a big target for hackers and those who profit from writing malicious code.
There are two pretty simple ways to avoid this exploit and other exploits that are similar to it.
The first thing you can do is use a different PDF reader. There are other PDF readers out there and they work just as well and for somethings better than Adobe Reader. At Brenew.com we tend to avoid Adobe Reader as a general rule. One example of a free PDF reader that does not have the vulnerability would be Foxit Reader.
The second thing you can do is to disable javascript in Adobe Reader. Follow these steps to disable javascript in Adobe:
- Open Adobe Reader, on the top menu bar click on edit
- Click on Preferences
- Click on Javascript
- Uncheck enable Acrobat Javascript
I know with the holiday season approaching you will get emails from old friends and family with attachments, be extra careful about what your opening to keep you and your family’s data safe and secure!
Tags: Adobe, Brenew, virus alert