While Google markets its Chrome OS based computers as safe because of cloud information storage compared to traditional PCs where the information is stored on hard drives, researchers have found some vulnerabilities that allow hackers successfully steal users’ data the same way they do when hijacking websites.

Matt Johansen, a researcher with WhiteHat Security, found a flaw in a Chrome OS note-taking application that he exploited to take control of a Google email account. When reported it to Google, the Mountain View fixed the problem and gave him a $1,000 reward for pointing it out.

Johansen said he has since discovered other applications with the same security flaw.

"This is just the tip of the iceberg," he told Reuters. "This is just evolving around us. We can see this becoming a whole new field of malware."

The main point that allows easily hacking Chrome OS is to capture data as it travels between the Chrome browser and the cloud, Johansen said. Hackers have until now mostly targeted data that sits on a machine's hard drive.

"I can get at your online banking or your FaceBook profile or your email as it is being loaded in the browser," he said. "If I can exploit some kind of Web application to access that data, then I couldn't care less what is on the hard drive."