World’s leading Search Engine Company Google has closed a security hole in a recently released Chinese-input software tool that lies at the heart of a dispute with Chinese Internet Company Sohu.com Inc.
According to Google spokeswoman Cui Jin

‘We had found this problem and have solved it during the product upgrade on Friday,” wrote Google spokeswoman Cui Jin in an e-mail response to questions.”

Google released an IME (Input Method Editor) in China on April 4 this year.This software is used to convert english keyboard characters into Chinese Pinyin characters. For example, the Pinyin Chinese ‘mianbāo’ (bread) is ‘面包’ in simplified Chinese characters. An IME will typically accept the user to type the easier ‘mianbao’ without Pinyin’s accented characters, and then pop-up a selection box which you can navigate through and select with arrow and space keys to resolve the ambuigity of the ’simplified Pinyin’ input.

According to Google, Chinese IME will benefit from millions of searched keywords on Google to deliver more precise and versatile character combinations and it would save the time spends in correction when typing Chinese using standard alphabet keyboard. Another important feature of the Google Chinese IME is that you can linked this software to a Gmail account. Users can customize the Chinese IME and have a personal dictionary that could be used form other computers.

On Friday, Chinese Security Company Rising Co. Ltd. said Google’s Pinyin Input Method Editor (IME) presented a serious security threat to Windows Vista users and warned users not to download and install the software. It is said that hackers could gain access to computers using this software due to security flaw.

Via: www2.csoonline.com