Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Latest Adobe Acrobat Reader Update Silently Installs Chrome Extension (bleepingcomputer.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the did-you-hear-something dept.

An anonymous reader writes: The latest Adobe Acrobat Reader security update (15.023.20053), besides delivering security updates, also secretly installs the Adobe Acrobat extension in the user's Chrome browser. There is no mention of this "special package" on Acrobat's changelog, and surprise-surprise, the extension comes with anonymous data collection turned on by default. Bleeping Computer reports: "This extension allows users to save any web page they're on as a PDF file and share it or download it to disk. The extension is also Windows-only, meaning Mac and Linux Chrome users will not receive it. The extension requests the following permissions: Read and change all your data on the websites you visit; Manage your downloads; Communicate with cooperating native applications. According to Adobe, extension users 'share information with Adobe about how [they] use the application. The information is anonymous and will help us improve product quality and features,' Adobe also says. 'Since no personally identifiable information is collected, the anonymous data will not be meaningful to anyone outside of Adobe.'"

7 of 145 comments (clear)

  1. Chrome is smarter than that. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    When you open chrome It will note the new extension and ask if you want to enable it or remove it.

    1. Re:Chrome is smarter than that. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Chrome may be smart, but the users may not be. A whole lot of people will just click "Yes" or "Enable" or whatever the dialog says.

  2. The good news ... by Langalf · · Score: 5, Informative

    The good news is when I fired up Chrome, it asked me if I wanted to remove this unwanted extension.

  3. Re:Funny by simcop2387 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    That'd be chrome protecting you from this shit. they've gotten pretty good at detecting and preventing these kinds of drive by installs.

  4. Re:Funny by fisternipply · · Score: 5, Informative

    That was it. My chrome did the same thing not more than two hours ago...which means Acrobat updated itself silently. Which pisses me off. Now, what pisses me off even worse is that it's hard to turn off auto-update in Acrobat Reader DC and requires either editing the registry or downloading and installing another adobe preference manager program (link to help article: https://forums.adobe.com/threa...). And even worse, the data collection was checked by default. A-holes.

  5. Re:Best News = No News by fisternipply · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Not an option for everyone.

  6. Re:Foxit instead by MeanE · · Score: 5, Informative

    Sumatra is fast, light and crap free.

    https://www.sumatrapdfreader.o...