Tag: security

Download Windows 7 RC from a trusted source – via Microsoft –and avoid peer to Peer and save yourself the security risk

Post author By M3 Sweatt
Post date 30/04/2009
2 Comments on Download Windows 7 RC from a trusted source – via Microsoft –and avoid peer to Peer and save yourself the security risk

As I recommended today, friends don’t let friends download bad things from peer to peer. So wait until the official downloads to the Release Candidate (RC) of Windows 7 are available.

As noted online today, the Windows 7 RC posted today (April 30th) for TechNet and MSDN subscribers. Materials provided here include info on the official press release, Q&A and more. Learn what’s new in the release candidate and hear from Microsoft partners about how they’re preparing today for Windows 7.

Press Release: Windows 7 Release Candidate Is Available From Microsoft – April 30, 2009

Q&A: Helping Small Businesses With Windows 7 Professional and Windows XP Mode – April 28, 2009

Windows 7 Virtual Pressroom: Videos, Screenshots, Press Materials

MSDN and TechNet subscribers can get the bits at http://technet.microsoft.com. Broader public availability will begin May 5 on the Microsoft Download Center at http://microsoft.com/downloads.

A personal note: please don’t use P2P to get Windows 7 Release Candidate, as has been noted in the in the news. See this page for info on getting bits from Microsoft http://bit.ly/uJATN. As Roger Halbheer (in his blog on Security) offers reasons why you should not use P2P Windows 7 Builds…

“… I refrain from downloading it from any of the untrusted sources. The reason for this is pretty simple: You never know (and it is illegal).

“Years back (and I have told this story over and over again) we ran an event where we fixed PCs of consumers for free for a whole week. Pretty often, when we found an infected machine, we found P2P software on it. When we talked to the person owning the PC he/she usually told us the “my son/daughter installed that and uses it”. We know that P2P is one of the most dangerous source of malware.

“Read now, what happens with Windows 7: Leaked Windows 7 RC torrents infected with trojan“

Plan accordingly. And please remember to back up your files before installing the RC.

Tags: articles, blogs, Windows 7.

Clubhouse Tags: Clubhouse, how-to, Windows 7, download, backup, Challenge-Windows 7

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Also available at http://tinyurl.com/dkl8jm or http://bit.ly/L9PaO

Tags advice, customer satisfaction, Privacy, security, Windows 7

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Protect yourself from the Conficker computer worm

Post author By M3 Sweatt
Post date 31/03/2009
1 Comment on Protect yourself from the Conficker computer worm

Of interest today: Learn about the Conficker computer worm on Microsoft.com.

In short, most antivirus software could detect and prevent infection.

Here’s more info from the page Protect yourself from the Conficker computer worm:

The Conficker worm is a computer worm that can infect your computer and spread itself to other computers across a network automatically, without human interaction.

If you are an IT professional, please visit Conficker Worm: Help Protect Windows from Conficker.

Q&A:

Am I at risk of having the Conficker worm?

What does the Conficker worm do?

How does the Conficker worm work?

How do I remove the Conficker worm?

Where can I find more technical information about the Conficker worm and how can I stay up to date on the Conficker worm?

Also see my post on thinking about computer security and your family PC.

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Tags Announcements, security

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Concerned about online privacy? So is Microsoft’s Peter Cullen. Actually, it’s his job.

Post author By M3 Sweatt
Post date 30/01/2009
2 Comments on Concerned about online privacy? So is Microsoft’s Peter Cullen. Actually, it’s his job.

There’s a new article and interview up on Microsoft PressPass with my friend and fellow Canuck Peter Cullen from Microsoft on Data Privacy Day & online privacy. (Also available at http://tinyurl.com/pcullen013009.) The kids are in school today… did I miss a bank holiday somewhere?

When asked about some of the recent research on the concept of online privacy and the threats to online consumer safety, Peter had this to say…

"One big thing was that, while many consumers are very concerned about protecting online privacy, they typically have only a surface understanding of the threats they face. People take basic steps such as using spam filters, deleting cookies and installing anti-virus software, but they’re not necessarily aware of what these technologies do.

"People also have a perception that once their information is online, there isn’t much they can do to protect it. Many people aren’t aware of the controls they have, such as the ability to opt out of behaviorally targeted advertising or new tools in Internet browsers.

"In addition, specific concerns and risks change depending on how people use the Internet. For example, threats to privacy stemming from social networking sites are a large concern for young people and, increasingly, middle-aged professionals. Online finance issues, meanwhile, may affect older people more.

"What these findings tell us is that we must do more to educate consumers. People are making privacy decisions all the time and may not even know it. They must have the right resources from industry, government and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), so they can better educate themselves about privacy, threats to personal information and ways to safely navigate online. Much like a medical condition: consumers need to understand how the illness occurs, instead of just what medicine to take."

Back in 2007, Microsoft commissioned a survey to find out more about consumers’ awareness of online fraud and how to avoid being scammed and found that…

Nearly one out of five surveyed has been a victim of at least one Internet scam.
Of those people, 81 percent admitted they did something that led to the crime, such as opening an e-mail that appeared to be from a legitimate person or company.
Over half of respondents (58 percent) admitted they had little to no knowledge of current online threats and scams.

Pretty amazing results.

As noted in my post on Cybersafety and staying safe online, I recall from this article in the Seattle Times on cybersafety which included six tips for staying safe online:

Protect your privacy and personal information
Be alert online
Delete junk e-mail
Use strong passwords
Use antivirus software and a firewall
Be smart about downloading

Additional information:

Data Privacy Day Web site
Security and Privacy Newsroom on PressPass Web site
Fact Sheet: My Privacy: Safely Navigating Life Online (.doc file, 56 KB)
For Consumers – Microsoft Security at Home Web site
Windows Defender Web site
Windows CardSpace Web site
Information Card Foundation Web site
Concerned about malware? Run the Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool

As noted in the article, "Microsoft commissioned focus group research to determine which privacy issues are most important to consumers. The findings were captured in a short documentary that will be screened prior to the panel to inform the discussion. The video is available on Microsoft’s Data Privacy Day Web Site (http://microsoft.com/dataprivacyday)."

[Added 3:37PM] To answer my friend, Charles’, question…

"The 43% increase [cited in the article] in malware removed in the first 1/2 CY 08 – is that number collected from MSFT apps like Defender & services like OneCare or an industry number?"

This is from the Microsoft Security Intelligence Report volume 5 (covering the first half of calendar2008) and is available here for download from microsoft.com.

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Tags articles, Microsoft, People, Privacy, security, tips

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Advisory: Concerned about the Conficker worm? Run the Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool

Post author By M3 Sweatt
Post date 23/01/2009
1 Comment on Advisory: Concerned about the Conficker worm? Run the Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool

I noted on Twitter today that @nytimesscience reported on Worm impacting computers around the world (as noted here by John Markoff, January 22, 2009)…

"A new digital plague has hit the Internet, infecting millions of personal and business computers in what seems to be the first step of a multistage attack. The world’s leading computer security experts do not yet know who programmed the infection, or what the next stage will be.

"In recent weeks a worm, a malicious software program, has swept through corporate, educational and public computer networks around the world. Known as Conficker or Downadup, it is spread by a recently discovered Microsoft Windows vulnerability, by guessing network passwords and by hand-carried consumer gadgets like USB keys.

"Experts say it is the worst infection since the Slammer worm exploded through the Internet in January 2003, and it may have infected as many as nine million personal computers around the world."

Concerned? Be sure to run the Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool…

This tool checks your computer for infection by specific, prevalent malicious software (including Blaster, Sasser, and Mydoom) and helps to remove the infection if it is found. Microsoft will release an updated version of this tool on the second Tuesday of each month.

The Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool checks Windows Vista, Windows XP, Windows 2000, and Windows Server 2003 computers for and helps remove infections by specific, prevalent malicious software—including Blaster, Sasser, and Mydoom. When the detection and removal process is complete, the tool displays a report describing the outcome, including which, if any, malicious software was detected and removed. The tool creates a log file named mrt.log in the %WINDIR%\debug folder.

To download the x64 version of Malicious Software Removal Tool, click here.
This tool is not a replacement for an anti-virus product. To help protect your computer, you should use an anti-virus product.

New versions will be made available through the MSRT web page, Windows Update, and the Malicious Software Removal Tool Web site on Microsoft.com.

Also a link is http://preview.tinyurl.com/MSMSRT.

Tags: articles, security, blogs.

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Did you win One Million Euros in a Microsoft Lottery? Think again: it’s a phishing attempt

Post author By M3 Sweatt
Post date 16/01/2009
1 Comment on Did you win One Million Euros in a Microsoft Lottery? Think again: it’s a phishing attempt

In the last few weeks, I’ve noticed an increase in phishing and email fraud as I noted a few days ago in my post The new year rings in another bonus: a rise in bogus electronic greeting cards. (More on what a phishing scam looks like is available here on Microsoft.com.) Although one Microsoft study notes that phishing isn’t as profitable as originally thought, we still see it rampant on web pages and unsolicited emails.

As my associate Neil Holloway said, “Phishing is a crime. It undermines consumers’ trust in the Internet and is an impediment to European policy-makers’ and industries’ efforts to boost citizens’ use of innovative and valuable Internet services.”

And consumers are a significant target for these types of attacks, as my friend Adrienne Hall (in the Trustworthy Computing group) said to SecurityFocus: “For the broad swath of the consumer public, the attacks are fairly more simplistic, and yet, they are luring so many people, that they are still the largest threats.”

Well, today on the Microsoft section of getsatisfaction.com I saw this question on bogus Microsoft lottery winner notifications with customer Horváth asking…

“It is True?”

Let’s take a look (phone # redacted):

Microsoft Corporations:
Customer Service
Your Reference No: WA6FI-L/200-26937
Your Batch No: 20089SEPTL#22
OFFICIAL WINNING NOTIFICATION.
We are pleased to inform you of the release of the long awaited results of Sweepstakes promotion organized by Microsoft, in conjunction with the foundation for the promotion of software products, (F.P.S.) held this January 2009, in Espana. Where in your email address emerged as one of the online Winning emails in the 2nd category and therefore attracted a cash award of 1,000,000.00 Euros (One Million Euros).
To begin your claim, do file for the release of your winning by contacting our Foreign Service Manager:
Dr. Pedro Marios Ruben.
Tel: +34-634-###-###
Internet Fax: +1-831-###-####
Email: dr_pedromario*********@informaticos.com
The Microsoft Internet E-mail lottery Awards is sponsored by our CEO/Chairman, Bill Gates and a consortium of software promotion companies. The Intel Group, Toshiba, Dell Computers and other International Companies. The Microsoft internet E-mail draw is held periodically and is organized to encourage the use of the Internet and promote computer literacy worldwide.
Congratulations!!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Anna Marisa.
Promotions Manager.

Reminds me of the famous line: “one million dollars…”

Equally believable (not), email such as this one are likely fraudulent communications commonly referred to as a “phishing” email. We believe that the email is fraudulent and recommend that you do not respond. We take these reports very seriously and I forwarded this report to our security team.

This on the infamous Microsoft Lottery…

“You have won the lottery.”

The lottery scam is a common phishing scam known as advanced fee fraud. One of the most common forms of advanced fee fraud is a message that claims that you have won a large sum of money, or that a person will pay you a large sum of money for little or no work on your part. The lottery scam often includes references to big companies, such as Microsoft. There is no Microsoft lottery.

For more information on how to protect yourself from fraudulent emails, please see Microsoft’s Anti-Phishing Site, and my posts on Phishing: Don’t get caught and FYI: new scams featuring the IRS logo to get your PII.