Recently , Robert Hansen, chief executive of security consultant SecTheory, and Tom Stracener, senior security analyst with security testing software maker Cenzic Inc., demonstrated to the world how hacking was possible by using “gadget” by breaking into a website .A gadget , as promoted by Google is a small program that fits into a web page like a calendar . According to these researchers, hackers could place malicious code in an otherwise looking simple gadget to gain access to vital information.

This is one of the biggest problems of the Web 2.0, as this over sharing of gadgets could increase the security risks and open new doors for hackers. The users are creating their own customized applications and distributing it through Google, thus Google cannot be blamed for any security breaches. But users download everything from Google with complete trust. So do they have to fear?

According to the experts, since there is no moderation to the uploads, its almost impossible to know whether a gadget is legitimate or not.
According to Google, they scan all the gadgets regularly and that such gadgets being uploaded is very rare. In case such an instance is found, the gadget is immediately blacklisted. According to Google, no malicious gadgets were created in 2007. A quite impressive piece of statistics but the findings of Robert would certainly make me think twice next time I download something from Google.

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