Company News: Microsoft issues patches for security
Microsoft Corp. issued seven security patches in a regular update Tuesday, among them fixes for flaws that could let hackers hijack computers using a Web browser.
The software maker gave four of the security updates its most urgent “critical” rating.
Within that group, Microsoft used a single update to fix several separate flaws found in different versions of the Internet Explorer Web browser, including the most recent, IE7.
That patch blocks any attempts by attackers to put fake content into the address bar of a Web browser – a technique used in phishing scams to convince Web surfers that a fake site is actually their bank, for example.
The patch is also meant to prevent hackers from breaking into Web surfers’ computers using specially crafted Web pages.
Newmont Mining Corp. is reaching into the Arctic Circle for its next project, agreeing Tuesday to pay $1.53 billion for Miramar Mining Corp., which controls one of the largest undeveloped gold properties in North America.
One of the world’s largest gold producers, Newmont said the acquisition would pave the way for creation of a mining district in the remote region of Canada’s Nunavut Territory.
Newmont, which already owns a 9.9 percent stake in Vancouver-based Miramar, offered 6.25 Canadian dollars ($6.36) per share for the remaining shares, representing a 24 percent premium over Miramar’s Monday closing stock price of $5.15 a share.
Miramar’s board unanimously agreed to the takeover bid and is expected to recommend the deal to shareholders, the companies said.
Full details will be disclosed to shareholders by the end of October.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and Starbucks Corp. announced Tuesday that the coffee chain had recalled about 250,000 children’s plastic cups, manufactured in China.
The protruding face of the cups can break off and leave small parts and sharp edges exposed if the cup is dropped.
The flaw poses a risk of children choking or cutting themselves.
The company has received seven reports of cups breaking, including two where children started to choke, but no injuries have been reported.
The recall includes four styles of 10-ounce plastic cups, with designs including a red ladybug, a green turtle, a pink bunny and a yellow chick.