Experts at SophosLabsâ„¢, Sophos's global network of virus, spyware and spam analysis centers, have advised computer users to ensure they are running the latest security patches following the announcement of vulnerabilities in Intel Centrino's wireless features. The flaws could, theoretically, allow hackers to spread malicious code such as a worm wirelessly between computers.

According to a statement by Intel, the security vulnerabilities exist in the Microsoft Windows drivers for certain versions of their Wireless Network Connection hardware.

"A hacker could exploit these wireless vulnerabilities to run malicious code on an innocent users' computer, giving them control over other people's PCs or spreading a wireless worm which could leapfrog from one laptop to the next," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant for Sophos. "The good news is that we haven't seen any attacks using this exploit yet, but that doesn't mean computer users should be laid back about applying fixes."

Intel has published a tool on its website to help users determine if they are running hardware which may be affected.

LAS VEGAS--Flaws in the software that runs wireless-networking hardware could let an attacker break into a PC over Wi-Fi, security researchers warned Wednesday.

An attacker could gain complete control over a laptop by sending malformed network traffic to a vulnerable computer, David Maynor, a senior researcher at security service provider SecureWorks, said in a presentation at the Black Hat security event here.

Maynor, along with researcher Jon "Johnny Cache" Ellch, showed a video of a successful attack on an Apple Computer MacBook. However, the attack is possible also on other computers, both laptops and desktops, and not just MacBooks, the researchers said.

"These driver flaws are pretty common," Maynor said. Researchers are starting to find those bugs as they shift their focus from hunting for operating system flaws to exploitable errors in drivers and in applications, he said. The reason for the shift is that operating systems are becoming increasingly more secure, he added.

There is no immediate threat to the millions of laptop-toting wireless users. Maynor and Ellch are not releasing the details of their attack, and they deliberately did not show a live demonstration to prevent anyone from copying their attack.