Google is banning Javascript attachments from Gmail
Google has announced that it will soon prohibit users from sending Javascript files over email, according to a post on the official blog for GSuite, Google's business and enterprise tools.
In the name of security, Gmail will begin a permanent ban on attachments with .js file extensions on Feb. 13, 2017. If you try to send a Javascript attachment after that date, you'll get a prompt that the message is blocked for security reasons.
Currently, Google restricts certain attachments from being sent over Gmail to protect users from potential viruses. Other file extensions that are prohibited include .exe, .jse, .ade and .adp.
Recently, .js files have been used to carry out malicious cyberattacks. Last year, a vulnerability in Yahoo Mail gave hackers the opportunity to embed malicious .js code in emails. Once a user opened his or her email, the code would start working and allow the hacker to hijack the user's account. In April of last year, Microsoft also noticed that many spam campaigns were using .js attachments.
Users who still want to share .js files within Google's ecosystem will still be able to do so via other means, such as Google Drive and Google Cloud Storage.
Topics Cybersecurity Google
Anisa was a Tech News Intern for Mashable, based in New York. She recently graduated with an MA in Journalism from New York University and her bylines have appeared in Fusion, Business Insider and The Verge. Before taking the plunge into journalism, she worked briefly as a telecommunications, technology and media lawyer in New Zealand.
