Adobe has confirmed that a bug it patched over the weekend is being used by hackers to target Google's GMail users.

According to a Macworld report, 'Cross-site scripting flaws are often used by identity thieves to hijack usernames and passwords from vulnerable browsers. In this case, browsers themselves are not targeted; rather, attackers are exploiting the Flash Player browser plug-in, which virtually every user has installed. Adobe said that Google reported the Flash Player flaw to its security team.'

Adobe strongly recommends all users on all platforms with all browsers using Flash to update their Flash plugins. This also applies to Google Chrome users, which ships with Flash plugin already incorporated.

[ As a side-note, this is one of the reasons why Apple doesn't allow Flash on its iOS devices - the Flash technology is a plugin to the web browser, not a stand-alone application, and it would mean Apple would have to release a whole new iOS update each time Adobe bug-fixed or security-fixed their plugin. ]

Do you have the latest version of Flash installed? Check here!

Apple has released Security Update 2011-003 for Snow Leopard, in a bid to combat the increasing threat from trojan malware. The update requires Mac OS X 10.6.7, server or client. No other system versions have been released at this time.

The update adds a new item to the Security PreferencePane in System Preferences (Automatically update safe downloads list). This works to download a daily update to Mac OS X's built-in 'XProtect' malware detection technology.

I found it also reset Safari's preferences to check 'Open 'safe' files after downloading', which is the default setting. I usually uncheck this as a matter of course - but whether it needs to be checked for the update process to happen is not clear, as are other aspects of its functionality. More on that here.

In further developments, the authors of the MacDefender malware and its variants have ramped up their game by renaming their payload in different versions that coincide with legitimate anti-malware products, causing confusing for some users. All users should take extra care when downloading and installing software from the internet, especially anti-malware products.

UPDATE: The daily update process doesn't seem to be working for some people, for whatever reason. This utility will both check the version and last update time for your installation, and gives you the option to manually update.

Apple have released the Snow Leopard Font Update 1.0, which addresses the displaying and printing of certain OpenType fonts in Mac OS X 10.6.7.

Apple have posted updates for Mac OS X and iOS. Read More...

Apple have released iTunes 10.1.2 update for Mac and Windows, which 'improves stability and performance'.

Also new from Apple is Apple Remote Desktop 3.4 Client, MacBook Air (Late 2010) Software Update 2.0, iDVD 7.1.1, iMovie 9.0.2, as well as updated Snow Leopard drivers for Epson, Brother and Lexmark printers and AIO devices.

This week, Apple have released Mac OS X 10.6.6 Update for Snow Leopard Client and Server.

This release includes all the improvements in the previous 10.6.1, 10.6.2, 10.6.3, 10.6.4 and 10.6.5 updates (as well as the previous security updates), and
addresses a cropping issue with some postscript printing in landscape page orientation.

Probably the key component of this is the inclusion (by default) of the new Mac App Store feature, best described as an iTunes-like store for Mac apps. Developers can now sell their wares directly, and the process automatically installs the registered-to-you software and tracks future updates. Unlike buying software from the web as you have done in the past, this process does not give you a downloadable installer you can use to reinstall or backup. More the mac App Store can be found here.

Download the Mac OS X 10.6.6 Combo Update for Client (1.06GB) and Server (1.15GB) here. The Combo Updaters can be used on any 10.6.x installation.

Apple has released QuickTime 7.6.9 for Leopard and Windows. Read More...

The long-awaited unifying iOS release has finally been released! Read More...

Apple have released updates to Safari for Tiger, Leopard / Snow Leopard and Windows. Read More...

Apple release iTunes 10.1 and Security Updates for Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard. Read More...

Apple have released Mac OS X 10.6.5 Update for Snow Leopard Client and Server. Read More...

A couple of days ago Microsoft released updates to both Office 2004 (11.6.1) and Office 2008 (12.2.7) for Mac.

Whilst the Office 2008 update seems to have passed without incident, there have been numerous reports of users unable to open spreadsheets in Excel 2004 after applying the update.

Microsoft is apparently aware of the problem and investigating it, but until a fix is released the only option is to downgrade the installation by reinstalling from your original software disk, then reapplying the Office 2004 11.6.0 update (the last stable update), or restoring to a pre-update version from a Time Machine backup.

UPDATE: Microsoft have released the Office 2004 11.6.2 update to address this issue.