Saturday, July 03, 2004
Microsoft's latest patch may not be a complete answer
Yesterday Microsoft put out a change to Windows to stop the latest round of bad guys taking over home computers.
The change simply turns off a feature most people don't use but which was very handy for bad guys installing malicious software on your machine.
Security experts are still arguing but they think they've already found a way for bad guys to do the same damage even if you've installed Microsoft's latest change.
The best answer for most people right now is to use a browser that's less promiscuous about running programs from strangers. I've recommended the free download of Firefox, but if you have a slow connection you might prefer the CD. The name on the CD is "Mozilla", which is the name of a project that also includes an email program and a chat program. The CD by itself is about $6, or you can get it with a manual (you really don't need one) for $26.
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The change simply turns off a feature most people don't use but which was very handy for bad guys installing malicious software on your machine.
Security experts are still arguing but they think they've already found a way for bad guys to do the same damage even if you've installed Microsoft's latest change.
The best answer for most people right now is to use a browser that's less promiscuous about running programs from strangers. I've recommended the free download of Firefox, but if you have a slow connection you might prefer the CD. The name on the CD is "Mozilla", which is the name of a project that also includes an email program and a chat program. The CD by itself is about $6, or you can get it with a manual (you really don't need one) for $26.
# posted by Frederick @ 6:25 PM Email to a friend:
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