acrobat

Adobe Acrobat XI review

Developing and promoting PDF (Portable Document Format) files for over 20 years, Adobe Acrobat has constantly been feeling the pressure of raising the bar for its signature document-management software. Even after 11 versions, Adobe Acrobat XI shows that Adobe continues to advance the process for creating and managing PDF files.

For users who don't often handle or view PDF files, or fail to see the difference between PDF editors, creators, and word processors, here's the breakdown: Adobe Acrobat focuses on giving users control over formatting document features and design, whereas word processors focus primarily on the writing process … Read more

'MiniDuke' malware takes aim at Euro governments via Adobe

A new attack is targeting European governments through flaws exploited in Adobe's Reader software, according to security researchers.

Kaspersky Lab and CrySys Lab today detailed a new malicious program in the wild, called "MiniDuke," that has been attacking government entities and institutions across Europe. Government entities in the Ukraine, Portugal, Romania, and others have been targeted, according to the security researcher.

MiniDuke finds its way to infected computers through PDFs. The malicious hackers -- who Kaspersky believes might have been dormant for some time because of the technique's similarity to those from the late-1990s -- have … Read more

How to change the built-in PDF viewer in Firefox

While Chrome has had an internal PDF viewer for a couple of years now, Mozilla only just added the feature to Firefox 19. It's a feature that most people will find convenient as is, but if you're looking to take some control over how Firefox handles PDF files on the Web, here's how:

PDF file handling options The Firefox PDF viewer is enabled by default and will display PDFs within the browser when you click on PDF links. If they don't, make sure you've disabled any PDF plug-ins you may have previously installed. If you … Read more

Adobe patches critical security flaws in Reader, Acrobat

Adobe has issued a patch to plug up critical security holes in its Reader and Acrobat software.

Released yesterday, the security updates address flaws that could cause the applications to crash and potentially let an attacker gain control of an infected computer. Adobe confirmed last week that the exploits have already led to some targeted attacks against vulnerable systems.

The patches are directed toward the following products and versions:

Adobe Reader XI (11.0.01 and earlier) for Windows and Macintosh Adobe Reader X (10.1.5 and earlier) for Windows and Macintosh Adobe Reader 9.5.3 and earlier … Read more

Adobe confirms targeted attacks due to security hole in Reader

A zero-day security flaw in Adobe Reader and Acrobat is being exploited through a series of targeted attacks against vulnerable computers, Adobe Systems said yesterday.

In a security bulletin, Adobe confirmed that the vulnerabilities could cause Reader and Acrobat to crash, potentially opening the door for an attacker to gain control of the system.

"Adobe is aware of reports that these vulnerabilities are being exploited in the wild in targeted attacks designed to trick Windows users into clicking on a malicious PDF file delivered in an email message," the company revealed in the bulletin.

Adobe said it's … Read more

Adobe mends security holes in Flash, Reader, Acrobat

Security flaws in Adobe Flash, Reader, and Acrobat could have been the cause of computer crashes recently. The software company announced today that it sent out updates for these three programs, which are meant to patch security vulnerabilities that cause such system crashes.

"These updates address a vulnerability that could cause a crash and potentially allow an attacker to take control of the affected system," the company wrote in a security bulletin today. "Adobe recommends users update their product installations to the latest versions."

Adobe does not give any further detail on the security vulnerabilities but … Read more

Convert files -- five of them, anyway -- with DeskPDF Pro

There are any number of utilities out there that can quickly and easily convert a variety of file formats into PDFs, so there's no reason to settle for one that doesn't quite meet your needs. DeskPDF Pro combines an efficient drag-and-drop interface with some useful features, but the limitations of the trial version are significant, and there are free programs with many of the same features.

Once installed, DeskPDF Pro appears as an icon in the Windows system tray; clicking it brings up a small interface onto which users can drag files for conversion. This launches a window … Read more

Adobe launches new versions of Reader and Acrobat

Adobe Systems has kicked off a new version of its industry-standard Reader with several notable improvements.

Debuting this past weekend, Adobe Reader XI strengthens the commenting feature, so you can now add stamps, file attachments, audio recordings, and other items to a PDF. New markup symbols include text boxes, lines, arrows, circles, and other shapes. Further, you can fill out, sign, save, and send a marked up PDF without having to print it first.

Many of these features were formerly found only in Adobe Acrobat, so their addition to the free Reader is a nice bonus.

Adobe Reader has been … Read more

View your PDFs with Adobe's Reader X

Adobe developed the Portable Document Format to standardize electronic document handling. PDF, the file format that carries the business world on its back, is everywhere, from product manuals to legal documents. To open, view, and edit PDFs, you need a PDF reader -- for example, Adobe's free Reader. Despite competition from simpler tools, Reader remains the standard the others are judged against. We looked at the latest version of Reader, Adobe Reader X. With it you can view and annotate all PDF files, sign documents electronically, and access optional Adobe Online subscription services directly from inside its interface.

Reader … Read more