Reports of a Gmail security flaw are proven false

A recent rumor of a Gmail security vulnerability that reportedly led to people having their domains hijacked was proven to be false on Wednesday. The rumor claims that a flaw in Gmail allowed unauthorized users to access a user’s Gmail account and create a forwarding filter without their knowledge; effectively stealing all incoming email. The flaw, reported by Geek Condition, was brought to light on Sunday with several Gmail users complaining that their domain names were hijacked because of this vulnerability. Google launched their own investigation and announced on Wednesday that a Gmail security was not to blame. Rather, the people who reported hijacked domains were the victims of an elaborate phishing scam. The hackers sent emails to web domain owners encouraging them to visit fraudulent websites such as google-hosts.com whose sole purpose was to steal Gmail usernames and passwords. Once obtained, the usernames and passwords were used to create forwarding filters in compromised Gmail accounts and the information from the forwarded emails was then used to hijack the domains. Whew, Google dodged the bullet on that one and all Gmail users can rest easy now knowing that the reported Gmail security vulnerability is non-existent.

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