Sims 4, Battlefield and Fifa players' computers could be taken over by hackers
A MAJOR security flaw has been found in the Origin launcher that you have to install to be able to run EA games on your PC.
Tens of millions of people have the software installed, and you could be at risk even if you haven't used it for years.
Anyone who has Origin installed could have their computer taken over by hackers, be exposed to ransomware or just have all their personal information compromised.
As reported by TechCrunch, the flaw could also allow a hacker to gain access to your EA account without even needing to go to the trouble of stealing your password.
“An attacker could’ve ran anything they wanted,” security researcher Daley Bee told the tech blog.
The flaw was revealed after being fixed in a patch that rolled out yesterday, but still affects anyone running an older version of the software.
Potential victims include those who may have installed games using Origin in the past, even if they no longer actively use the software to run games.
Origin, normally used to run, buy and download games, is required by EA to play many of their games on PC, and was first launched in 2012.
The bug worked by exploiting the way the app is set to automatically open links some from the web that claim to be directed at something in the app, such as a product page in the built-in store.
This feature meant Origin could then be tricked into opening and running anything on your computer just by clicking that link.
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This includes launching built-in Windows tools, and potentially setting them to automatically download and run malicious software.
The researchers point out that users would not even need to click on a link to be affected as attackers could use another tool in their nefarious arsenal to open it automatically if you simply visited a web page on which it had been placed.
Elsewhere in gaming the first official details of the PlayStation 5 have been revealed, there is news of a new Xbox due to be revealed this week, a trailer and first look at Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order as well as news that the PS5 and Xbox 2 might be the last games consoles you ever need to buy.
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