Security

A: No, this is incorrect. PDF can contain embedded executable code (in a wide variety of ways), which can in turn contain malicious code like viruses, worms and trojans. However, executable code must first be extracted from the PDF file with Acrobat's built in tools or with some other tool, before it can be executed so the malicious code can activate itself.

That is why when you extract file annotations with Acrobat there is a warning window that appears letting users know of the potential for malicious code. Non Acrobat may or may not offer such warnings.

This is fully documented in the Acrobat online guide.

MacAffee now has virus detecting software specifically for PDF files.

Bryan Guignard (bryang@sympatico.ca) [A145]

A: ElcomSoft Co. Ltd. has released Advanced eBook Processor, a Windows ME/98/95/NT4/2000/XP program that makes it easy to remove both password encryption and usage restrictions from Adobe Acrobat PDF files and eBooks. The latest addition to ElcomSoft's family of password recovery software allows business managers to deal with lost and destroyed passwords, as well as with employees who, intentionally or unintentionally, are unable to edit and print password-protected PDF files.

Advanced eBook Processor lets users make backup copies of eBooks that are protected with passwords, security plug-ins, various DRM (Digital Rights Management) schemes like EBX and WebBuy, enabling them to be readable with any PDF viewer, without additional plug-ins. In addition, the program makes it easy to decrypt eBooks and load them onto Palm Pilot's and other small, portable devices. This gives users - especially users who read on airplanes or in hotels - a more convenient option than using larger notebooks with limited battery power to read their eBooks.

PDF protection can prevent users from changing or printing information, adding or changing annotations and form fields, or even selecting and copying text or graphics. With Advanced eBook Processor, these PDF files can be decrypted, opened, and used without any of these restrictions. Once protection has been removed, PDF files created with Adobe's Acrobat program can be opened in any PDF viewer, including Adobe's Acrobat Reader.

Advanced eBook Processor protects businesses from losing control of their eBooks, technical articles, documentation manuals, presentations, and all PDF documents that could be rendered unusable by improperly managed passwords and licenses.

Advanced eBook Processor costs $99(US) and may be purchased securely online at http://www.elcomsoft.com/aebpr.html. You can download a free trial version of the software at the same web address.

Vladimir Katalov (kitten@elcomsoft.com) [A157]

A: The Anti-Piracy Enforcement Team at Adobe Systems has notified ElcomSoft, a software company based in Russia, that its Advanced eBook Processor software program violates the copyright of materials -- primarily PDF-based eBooks -- published by Adobe. ElcomSoft has five days to meet Adobe's demand that the commercial product be removed, after which the matter will be "pursued aggressively" by the San Jose-based company. Watch for updates.

http://www.planetebook.com/mainpage.asp?webpageid=157&nl

Kurt Foss (kfoss@planetpdf.com) [A158]

A: Daily News 'Peachy' mass-mailing worm hides in Adobe's PDF files By Steven Bonisteel, Newsbytes. August 09, 2001

Virus-hunting companies are warning users of Adobe's Portable Document Format technology to beware of a new Internet worm that can launch a mass-mailing attack after arriving in such a PDF file. However, researchers at McAfee.com Corp., the virus-software subsidiary of Network Associates, say that the worm they are calling "Peachy" is a threat only to users of what's known as the full version of Adobe's Acrobat software - the version that can also create PDF files. Users of the ubiquitous - and feely available - Adobe Acrobat Reader software are not affected by the worm, McAfee.com said. The researchers said the worm is written in Microsoft's VBScript language and, once activated, seeks out Microsoft's Outlook e-mail software in an attempt to send copies of infected PDFs to contacts in a victim's address book and to addresses found in the software's various e-mail folders. McAcfee.com said the PDF arrives attached to an e-mail message whose randomly generated subject line may contain text like "Find the peach" or "Joke." The body of the message, also randomly selected from a variety of phrases, nay contain text such as "try finding the peach" and "I don't usually send this things, but..." The attached PDF files may have names like "peach.pdf," "joke.pdf," or "search.pdf." Recipients who open the PDF file will see a document with the message: "You have one minute to find the peach." Says McAfee.com: "A collage containing images of naked female buttocks is displayed, one of which is actually the image of a peach." Users who follow the instructions to "double-click the icon to show the solution" will launch the VBScript worm. Staff at Symantec's Anti-virus Research Center (SARC), the research arm of the company behind the Norton virus-scanning software, said in a bulletin that the distribution of "Peachy" is likely to be low because of the worm's reliance on the full version of Adobe Acrobat. Reported by Newsbytes.com, http://www.newsbytes.com

Rocker95 (Rocker95@excite.com) [A167]

A: Check out www.elock.com. We have a free Acrobat Reader plug-in that will allow you to verify digital signatures, the catch is that we will only verify the signatures put in with our product.

SYSADMIN (N / A) [A274]