Tag Archives: Mark Baldwin

OpenX Promises Fix for Rogue Ads Bug

May 2, 2012

Hackers are actively exploiting a dangerous security vulnerability in OpenX — an online ad-serving solution for Web sites — to run booby-trapped ads that serve malware and browser exploits across countless Web sites that depend on the solution.

Security experts have been warning for months about mysterious attacks on OpenX installations in which the site owners discovered new rogue administrator accounts. That access allows miscreants to load tainted ads on sites that rely on the software. The bad ads usually try to foist malware on visitors, or frighten them into paying for bogus security software.

OpenX is only now just starting to acknowledge the attacks, as more users are coming forward with unanswered questions about the mysteriously added accounts.