[Flac] Security exploit downloaded with FLAC?

Helen Glazer
Sat, 11 Dec 2004 16:38:55 -0000

As is my routine every couple of weeks, I ran Pest Patrol anti-spyware
software, and was disturbed to find it came back saying that the file
FLAC/COPYING.FDL was a security exploit known as "Virus Tutorial" or
VTool/jul2.  This has left me wondering if FLAC is to be trusted.  Here's
what PestPatrol's web site has to say about it:

Exploit: A way of breaking into a system. An exploit takes advantage of a
weakness in a system in order to hack it. Exploits are the root of the
hacker culture. Hackers gain fame by discovering an exploit. Others gain
fame by writing scripts for it. Legions of script-kiddies apply the exploit
to millions of systems, whether it makes sense or not. Since people make the
same mistakes over-and-over, exploits for very different systems start to
look very much like each other. Most exploits can be classified under major
categories: buffer overflow, directory climbing, defaults, Denial of
Service.
(see http://www3.ca.com/securityadvisor/pest/pest.aspx?id=12665 for the
entire document about this)

Can someone here explain what's going on?  I do no e-mailing on that
particular PC, and have it set to block all pop-ups.

--Helen