WebApp Sec: Breaking Google Gears' Cross-Origin Communication Model

[Yair Amit <AMITYAIR () il ibm com>]

Hello,

I recently discovered a flaw in the cross-origin communication security
model of Google Gears that could allow attackers to break-out of the
same-origin policy and mount large scale user-impersonation attacks under
certain conditions.

After coordinating a fix with Google, I can now reveal the full details.
You are invited to read them at
http://blog.watchfire.com/wfblog/2008/12/breaking-google-gears-cross-origin-communication-model.html.

To make sure you are secure, it is advisable to verify that you have the
latest version of Google-Gears (currently 0.5.4.2) installed on your
system. If that is not the case, it can be obtained from the Google Gears
website (http://gears.google.com).

I would like to thank the Google Gears security team for their quick
responses and the efficient way in which they handled this security issue.

Best Regards,
      Yair Amit
      Senior Security Researcher
      IBM Rational Application Security


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