Security Flaw Found in Eudora

A new security flaw was detected in Qualcomm’s industry-leading Eudora software that can enable a user to “booby-trap” an e-mail message, the New York Times reported Thursday.

The flaw makes it possible for attackers to send e-mail that links users to tainted Internet sites. Once a user visits the site, information on the person’s PC is vulnerable to tampering, the newspaper reported.

The problem was discovered earlier this week by a Massachusetts-based software company, but there are no known instances of anyone actually taking advantage of the weakness to send damaging e-mail.

According to the Times, the flaw is found only in Windows versions of Eudora 4.0 and 4.0.1. Analysts estimate that approximately half a million Eudora users are affected.

Qualcomm told the New York Times yesterday that a repaired version of the software is scheduled to be posted on its Web site by this afternoon.