Subtitles can be a big help in enjoying videos. Sometimes the audio is too low or not mixed well or maybe the video is in a foreign language or features actors with heavy accents (as a fan of a lot BBC programming, I know how that feels). But you need to look out for the latest trick that crooks are using to get to you. If you use subtitles on Kodi, Stremio and/or VLC streaming media players on a computer, television or mobile device, hackers have found a way to corrupt subtitles. They create fake subtitle files and trick users into downloading them.
Since subtitle files are normally trusted by your computer, your antivirus might not even notice anything is up. But once these subtitles are loaded by the media players. Hackers can also potentially take complete control of any device and access your private information.. Some media players download subtitles automatically, so it’s really important to make sure to potect your computer.
Kodi, Sreamio, and VLC players have stated they’ve fixed this threat, but users must update their players to the latest version. VLC has stated their vulnerabilities (CVE-2017-8310, CVE-2017-8311, CVE-2017-8312 and CVE-2017-8313) have been patched.
Not if you’re using Popcorn Time to steal other people’s hard work, it probably serves you right. But because we care about your computer’s safety, you can get the patch by clicking here. Then you can run your anti-virus and malware program and promise never to use Popcorn Time again.
This is a perfect example of how hackers will use any means possible to get to you. So it’s important to keep every program on your PC up-to-date.
~ Michael Siebenaler