Opera has updated its browser to prevent its software been manipulated by would-be fraudsters to display a fake address to surfers.

A flaw in the "Shortcut Icon" feature of versions of Opera prior to version 7.51 made it possible for phishers to fool users into believing that they are in a domain they trust (their bank, web-mail, etc) while serving and receiving content in a hostile domain.

This alone is not enough to fool users completely as the real address will still appear to the right of the fake address. Unfortunately, this protection can also be circumvented by tricking Opera into hiding this clue.

The vulnerability opens up a mechanism for identity theft, credit card scams and more, according to security researchers GreyMagic Software, who first discovered the problem.

GreyMagic informed Opera of the vulnerability on 19 May. A new version (7.51) was released today (3 June) to address the problem. ®

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