On Thursday, Juniper Networks (JNPR) and Cisco Systems (CSCO) warned that some of their networking products are affected by the Heartbleed software vulnerability, which could expose encrypted data to hackers, the Wall Street Journal notes
A spokesperson for Juniper indicated that it is developing software patches to eliminate the Heartbleed vulnerability and has already released some patches for virtual private network software.
Cisco said that 16 of its products have been confirmed as having the Heartbleed flaw, while the company is examining another 65 products for the vulnerability. CSCO said it was working on software patches and would alert customers when they were ready. CSCO says that its customers can receive software that will allow them to identify any attempt by hackers to access their systems through the Heartbleed flaw.
Heartbleed is a flaw in the code for OpenSSL — the software that protects servers and network equipment from authorized access. The vulnerability went unnoticed for two years, but has stunned online security experts, and sent e-commerce website operators scrambling to patch the flaw. It remains unclear if any hackers were actually aware of Heartbleed or exploited the problem.
CSCO stock rose modestly in Friday morning trading, while JNPR stock edged lower.
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