Microsoft warns of SQL attack

In today's podcast: Microsoft warns of SQL attack; Intel counters Apple stake in Imagination; and VC gives Palm $100M boost.

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Just days after patching a critical flaw in its Internet Explorer browser, Microsoft is now warning users of a serious bug in its SQL Server database software. Microsoft issued a security advisory late Monday, saying that the bug could be exploited to run unauthorized software on systems running versions of Microsoft SQL Server 2000 and SQL Server 2005. Attack code that exploits the bug has been published, but Microsoft said that it has not yet seen this code used in online attacks. Database servers could be attacked using this flaw if the criminals somehow found a way to log onto the system, and Web applications that suffered from relatively common SQL injection bugs could be used as stepping stones to attack the back-end database, Microsoft said.

One day after Apple took a 3.6 percent stake in Imagination Technologies, the company that developed the technology used in the 3G iPhone's graphics chips, Intel responded by increasing its own stake in the company to 3.04 percent -- and said it would consider an outright acquisition of Imagination if another bid emerged. Intel also uses Imagination'st echnology for its Atom processors, as well as designed for consumer electronics that are based on the Pentium M processor core. In a statement filed with the London Stock Exchange, Intel warned it may bid to acquire Imagination if another company tabled an acquisition offer -- an apparent reference to Apple's interest in Imagination.

Smartphone maker Palm received a cash infusion from a venture capital firm on Monday that could lift the company from its sagging fortunes. Under terms of the agreement, Elevation Partners will provide US$100 million and increase its investment in Palm. The investment comes at a time when Palm is struggling to remain a player in the mobile phone market, where it has been eclipsed by rivals Research In Motion and Apple. Palm's product offerings include the Centro and Treo smartphones.

Hewlett-Packard on Monday launched an application that allows users to print pictures wirelessly from an iPhone. The application, iPrint Photo, allows pictures stored on an iPhone to be printed using HP's inkjet printers attached to a Wi-Fi network. Users can launch the application on an iPhone, select a photo by touching it, after which a print command is sent to the inkjet printer over a Wi-Fi network. The software also runs on the iPod Touch device. The application is available for download from the App Store for free.

...And those are the top stories from the IDG Global IT News Update, brought to you by the IDG News Service. I'm Sumner Lemon in Singapore. Join us again later for more news from the world of technology.