Eudora Pro Security Hole for Windows Only

On the heels of last week’s CIAC advisory regarding possible MIME security problems in major Windows email clients, a different security issue has been revealed in Windows versions of Eudora, Qualcomm’s widely used email program. Eudora Pro 4.0, 4.01, and 4.1 betas for Windows can utilize Microsoft’s HTML viewer when displaying messages; that viewer can permit automatic execution of items included in the message, such as Java applets. In theory, other Windows applications which use Microsoft’s HTML viewer could also be vulnerable to these sorts of problems. According to Qualcomm, updates to Eudora products to prevent this automatic execution will be available today. As a workaround, disable Microsoft’s HTML viewer in the Viewing Mail settings panel of Eudora’s Options dialog box. Eudora Light is not vulnerable, and Macintosh versions of Eudora have been safe for years because they encapsulate any attached applications such that users must specifically choose to execute them. However, the bottom line remains unchanged: don’t run any email attachments unless you’re sure they’re safe.