Symantec Antivirus Engine could turn on you. It has been reported that this security product has a serious flaw that can be exploited to make your machine crash. It affects all operating systems and most of the products by Symantec and Norton.
The vulnerability can be exploited if a malicious attachment or link in an email message is executed or if a user visits a specifically crafted website that allows the attacker to get through.
A fix for some products will be released via the product’s Live Update feature soon, as some products require a less complicated fix. However, it will not remedy the situation for all of them. In the meantime, look out for phishing email messages. Pay attention to the senders, which may or may not seem to come from Symantec. If you receive anything that asks you to click a link or open an attachment, resist it and instead go directly to the company’s website and check for updates. Alternatively, use the update feature in your Symantec or Norton product.
While using Symantec’s name to phish seems like the logical choice for a hacker wanting to get to your system using this flaw, it doesn’t have to be an email from that company that may be used to try to trick users. So pay attention to all email messages from unfamiliar senders or from anyone that seems to come out of the blue or that seems odd or even slightly suspicious. Hover over any links to make sure they go where you expect them to and if any doubt at all arises, don’t click them. Instead, place a separate call or send a separate email (do not reply to sender) and verify the link or attachment before taking any action.
Phishers are getting better at replicating logos and graphics of companies they use to try to pull the wool over users’ eyes, so look closely at those and consider any slight oddities as signs that it could be a trick. If there are typos or the language is not used properly, that is another clue that it may be phishing.
This bug is identified as CVE-2016-2208. Symantec plans to have a patch available soon via Live Update for the products that can be patched that way. However, for others a maintenance build patch is required which will take longer. So when you do see an update available for your product, apply it right away.
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