McAfee launches Google hack scanning tool

Security firm McAfee has released a new tool designed to detect and repair any threats related to the recent 'Operation Aurora' attacks on Google and several other firms which exploited a vulnerability in Internet Explorer.

McAfee chief technology officer George Kurtz explained in a blog posting yesterday that the tool is an updated version of the firm's Stinger virus removal application.

"The Aurora Stinger has been designed to specifically detect and repair all known variants of Aurora and associated threats," he wrote.

"It also includes a link to the cloud-based McAfee Global Threat Intelligence, which means that it will also pick up on newly discovered variants in real time without requiring an update to the signature files that come with the tool."

Microsoft said yesterday that it will release an out-of-cycle update to the flaw when it has finished internal testing.

However, Kurtz revealed that McAfee Labs has detected an unofficial patch to the IE flaw produced by a third party, which he urged security administrators to avoid.

"These unofficial patches may seem like a good idea as they appear to provide immediate protection, but applying a patch from an unknown source for software that was created by someone else just isn't a good idea," he wrote.

"It can create all kinds of compatibility and performance issues, and may be a security risk of its own."