Technical Tidbits

In honor of Patch Tuesday, August 12, 2008, ZoneAlarm (Check Point) will be offering ForceField browser security for FREE for only 24-hours!

In Microsoft’s Advance Warning notice that I receive, there will be 7 critical updates and 5 important updates.

Affected software will be: Windows 2000, Windows XP (SP2 and 3), Windows XP Professional - including x64 edition and SP2, Windows Server 2003 (including: SP1 & SP2, x64, and SP1 & SP2 for Itanium-based Systems),  Windows Vista (including: SP1, x64 and x64 SP1), Windows Server 2008 for 32-bit Systems, Windows Server 2008 for x64-based Systems, Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems, Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool (now there’s a surprise! NOT!), Non-Security, High-Priority Updates on MU (*Microsoft Update), WU (*Windows Update), and WSUS (*Windows Server Update Service), Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01 Service Pack 4, Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 Service Pack 1, Microsoft Internet Explorer 6, Microsoft Internet Explorer 7, Media Player 11, Microsoft Outlook Express 5.5 Service Pack 2, Microsoft Outlook Express 6 (including SP 1), Windows Mail (Vista), Windows Messenger 4.7, and 5.1. There is also supposed to be critical updates for Access, Excel, and PowerPoint but it’s not clear what versions they are yet.

So, first thing tomorrow morning, head over to ZoneAlarm’s special site here: www.zonealarm.com/patchtuesday and get yourself a copy of ForceField. I think we’re all going to need it!

written by Admin \\ tags: access, Check Point, excel, ForceField, free, free forcefield, Internet Explorer, messenger, Microsoft, microsoft update, OE, Outlook Express, Patch Tuesday, powerpoint, vista, windows mail, Windows Server, windows update, Windows Vista, Windows XP, ZoneAlarm

Microsoft has issued an advisory early this morning warning of a possible blended threat that can affect Windows XP and Vista computers when Apple’s Safari is installed!

According to the advisory, Microsoft is investigating public reports of a blended threat that allows remote code execution on all supported versions of Windows XP and Windows Vista when Apple’s Safari for Windows has been installed. Microsoft reports that they are working with Apple to confirm these public reports and to establish an action plan for patching if the reports are proven true.

Microsoft recommends that you restrict use of Safari as a web browser until an appropriate update is available from Microsoft and/or Apple.

The Safari installation on Windows issue also relates to our blog entry: http://mice.org/blog/the-apple-updates-safari-great-debate/

That discusses how you might have installed Safari with an iTunes or QuickTime update.

The full Advisory is located here:

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/advisory/953818.mspx

We’ve alerted our Alert subscribers and will be following this issue to resolution.

If you wish to subscribe to our Alerts Newsletters to be informed of up-to-the-minute security issues that may affect you as they happen, please visit our subscribe page located here:

http://mice.org/lists/subscribe.html

We get all early warnings from a variety (and number) of sources so we compile them into one alert for you! It saves inbox space!

written by Admin \\ tags: Advisory, apple, apple safari, blended threat, itunes, Mac, Microsoft, quicktime, safari, safari vulnerability, security advisory, vista, windows, windows safari vulnerability, Windows Vista, Windows XP, xp

According to the last count on InfoWorld’s “Save XP” petition, as of this morning, 202,557 people signed the petition.

Microsoft is expected to end OEM sales and shrink wrapped sales of Windows XP (WinXP) on June 30, 2008 despite the objections of 202,557 petitioners. So, the clock ticks with XPs life in the balance.

This whole issue was brought to my mind while I was doing some research for our upcoming eLearning portal launch and was entrenched in my new installation of Vista. I was looking through some of the files and the structure of Vista Home Basic that I installed on one of the partitions of my new PC drive.

If you don’t know me really well, let me tell you that I’m an odd sort of curious person. I have to understand and examine everything - almost to a flaw. That being said, it should be easy to understand that over time, I’ve accumulated quite a bit of knowledge and documentation on the Microsoft Operating Systems over the years. Not only as it relates to our former repair business, but as it relates to my own curiosity! And with all that close examination, I’ve managed to get some things just permanently stuck in my head as well as on paper.

Odd stuff. Like versions of operating system files, dates, sizes, and times of those files, and odd trivia like that.

Well, imagine my surprise when I noticed that the fresh install of my Windows Vista Home Basic has many of the same files and versions dated from my original installation of Windows XP! I can only give you a glimpse of this, because I’m really busy getting ready for our 10th anniversary celebration and our launch coming up in a few weeks. But I will follow-up in detail after our launch.

On a fresh Windows XP installation with my specific build, many of the system files are dated August 29, 2002, and contain a version number of: 5.1.2600.0. Included in these files are the services.exe file, the Background Intelligent Update Service (BITS), and many more.

Now, Vista just made it’s appearance recently, like somewhere toward the beginning of 2007 right? Well guess who found services.exe and BITS (only to name a few) in her new Vista installation with the same file date and version number? No, I’m not joking!

I’m sure you’ve read the news how Vista is nothing more than a security service pack for XP. (And I might add that it’s a very poor one at that!) Well, the bloggers who are saying that aren’t joking!

Occasionally, I’ll find a file version with the same date but an addition on the end showing that it’s been revised. So instead of seeing version 5.1.2600.0, I’ll see version 5.1.2600.1106. But for the most part, as far as the files are concerned, it’s XP in Vista clothing!

I just wanted to share this with you and put it out there for now. More on this later……

written by Admin \\ tags: inforworld petition, infoworld, Microsoft, petition to save xp, Save XP, Save XP Petition, vista, windows, Windows Vista, Windows Vista Home, Windows Vista Home Basic, Windows XP, WinXP