A previously-disclosed flaw in Windows can allow an attacker to steal usernames and passwords of any signed-in user -- simply by tricking a user into visiting a malicious website.
But now a new proof-of-exploit shows just how easy it is to steal someone's credentials.
The flaw is widely-known, and it's said to be almost 20 years old. It was allegedly found in 1997 by Aaron Spangler and was most recently resurfaced by researchers in 2015 at Black Hat, an annual security and hacking conference in Las Vegas.
The flaw wasn't considered a major issue until Windows 8 began allowing users to sign into their Microsoft accounts -- which links their Xbox, Hotmail and Outlook, Office, and Skype accounts, among others.
Overnight, the attack got larger in scope, and now it allows an attacker to conduct a full takeover of a Microsoft account.
The flaw works because Internet Explorer and Edge (on Windows 10) allow a user to access local network shares but don't fully block connections to remote shares.
To exploit this, a hacker has to trick a user into visiting a specially-crafted web page in Internet Explorer or Edge (on Windows 10) that points to their own network share. The browser will silently send usernames and hashed passwords to the network share, which can then be scooped up and stolen...
Read more: Windows attack can steal your logged-in username and password | ZDNet