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If you don't have an Internet connection and never share documents with others, stop worrying and enjoy your computer. You're safe from the Word file-theft bug.
  technofile
Al Fasoldt's reviews and commentaries, continuously available online since 1983

'Most devastating bug' in Windows can't be ignored


Sept. 29, 2002


By Al Fasoldt
Copyright © 2002, Al Fasoldt
Copyright © 2002, The Post-Standard

   How worried should we be about Windows bugs? I've been asked about this many times since I wrote about a new bug that cripples Microsoft Word 97. I consider it one of the worst Windows bugs ever discovered.
   The bug strips away any hope of privacy from everyone who uses Word 97. Anyone who wants to steal the files of a Word 97 user can do it merely by sending a Word 97 document containing hidden code and asking the Word user to change that document in some way and send it back.
   This sort of collaborative document exchange is common in universities and offices. Even kids who help each other with homework sometimes do it.
   Bugs are common in all software. We're all used to hearing about Windows bugs, and you might be tempted to treat this one like all the others -- as just another boring bug in Windows. After all, those of us who use Windows are tired of this sort of nonsense. Surely there is something better to write about.
   But this is not the time for that kind of response. The Word 97 bug has the word "SERIOUS" written all over it. Thieves who take advantage of this bug can steal any file you or your kids have access to. If you're in a school or office in which Microsoft Word documents are shared with outsiders, thieves could have easy access to hundreds or even thousands of files on your network.
   I consider this bug the most devastating flaw I've ever seen in any of Microsoft's programs. If you do any collaborative document exchanges and you use Word 97, you have no security whatsoever. No antivirus programs will catch Word 97 document thieves. No firewalls will catch them. This bug bypasses all your efforts to protect yourself.
   I don't have much inside information on this bug, but I suspect that it's not limited to Word 97. At this time, without assurances from independent experts about which versions of Word are buggy, I don't trust any Windows version of Microsoft Word for collaborative document exchanges.
   My advice does NOT apply to any of the Macintosh versions of Microsoft Word. If you have a Mac, whether old or new, and use a Macintosh version of Microsoft Word for collaborative work with others, you are safe.
   Likewise, you are safe if you use a word processor compatible with Microsoft Word. Safe word processors include ones that come with WordPerfect for Windows, Linux and Macs; AppleWorks for Windows and Macs; StarOffice for Windows, Linux, Macs and Unix computers; OpenOffice (also called OpenOffice.org), in any version, and a host of others designed mostly for Linux PCs.
   If you have a recent version of Microsoft Works for Windows, you probably are using Microsoft Word. It is just as untrustworthy. The fact that it seems to be part of Microsoft Works is irrelevant.
   If you have a Windows computer, should you trust Microsoft Word at all? The answer won't make some of you happy. It's not a simple matter.
   If you don't have an Internet connection and never share documents with others, stop worrying and enjoy your computer. You're safe from the Word file-theft bug.
   But if use Windows are are connected to the Internet, listen up: Never use Microsoft Word for e-mail, and never send back a Microsoft Word document to someone who sends one to you. Don't do it even if the document comes from the Pope. (It's not that you shouldn't trust the Pope; the problem is that the "From:" address on e-mail can be faked very easily, and something that seems to come from a trusted source might actually come from someone else.)
   This is even more crucial in schools and offices. Documents are shared routinely in these places. Stop sharing files as Word documents. Share them as messages. (Simply select the text of the Word document and paste it into a new, blank message to do this.) Those who demand that you share Word doucments should be politely reminded of the need for safety. (Mail them this article if you have to.)
   The other options are more attractive. Windows users should consider switching to a safer word processor. (StarOffice, from www.sun.com, is what I use, but OpenOffice is good also, from www.openoffice.org; OpenOffice is free and StarOffice costs less than $100.) Windows users who are shopping for a new computer should consider an iMac or a full-sized Mac; they use a Unix-based operating system and have an outstanding (and safe) version of Microsoft Office, including a superb and safe version of Word.