![[WOW!]](gfx/wow.gif "WOW!"){kind=small}
URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2016/06/03/windows_10_upgrade_satellite_link/When you're stuck in the middle of the Central African Republic (CAR) trying to protect the wildlife from armed poachers and the Lord's Resistance Army, then life's pretty tough. And now Microsoft has made it tougher with Windows 10 upgrades. ... the staff was more than a little displeased when one of the donated laptops the team uses began upgrading to Windows 10 automatically, pulling in gigabytes of data over a radio link. ... "If a forced upgrade happened and crashed our PCs while in the middle of coordinating rangers under fire from armed militarized poachers, blood could literally be on Microsoft's hands"
![[Virus/Worm]](gfx/virus.gif "Virus/Worm"){kind=small}
![[Government]](gfx/fed.gif "Government"){kind=small}
URL: http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/flame-most-complex-cyber-attack-ever-discovered/78325A new 'data-vacuuming' piece of malware, which has targeted a number of Middle Eastern countries including Israel and Iran, has been discovered, which could mark the trilogy in advanced cyber-weapons after Stuxnet and Duqu. Kaspersky researchers said they believe 'Flame' is greater in scale than its apparent infamous counterparts Stuxnet and Duqu, and has been described as the 'most complex threat' ever discovered. ... Flame has the components a Trojan, a backdoor, and a worm, and is designed to attack Windows machines. It is also self-replication over local area networks though the entry point is currently unknown. Researchers are unaware as to how Flame enters networks, but have identified a Windows zero-day vulnerability which allows the remote code execuition of a core system file. ... Flame sniffs network traffic and has the ability to take screenshots, record conversations by microphone-enabled PCs, and intercepts all input data and so forth.
URL: http://www.networkworld.com/news/2012/042512-microsoft-security-report-258658.htmlCompanies are still plagued by the Conficker worm, used to create botnets and spread other forms of malware, according to the latest Microsoft Security Intelligence Report.
URL: http://www.techworld.com.au/article/376509/nsw_ambulance_computers_coming_back_online/Computers which co-ordinate NSW's ambulances are back online in three of the state's regions after a major virus forced staff to shut them down for more than 24 hours. The virus crept into the Ambulance Service of NSW's dispatch system at 1pm (AEDT) on Saturday, prompting staff to co-ordinate paramedics by telephone and handwritten notes.
![[Linux/Open Source]](gfx/linux.gif "Linux/Open Source"){kind=small}
URL: http://techblog.netflix.com/2010/12/why-we-use-and-contribute-to-open.htmlOur budget, measured in dollars, time, people, and energy, is limited and we must therefore focus our technology development efforts on that streaming video software that clearly differentiates Netflix and creates delight for our customers. These limits require that we stand on the shoulders of giants who have solved technology challenges shared in common by all companies that operate at Internet scale. ... We do utilize some commercial software but there is often the alternative choice of utilizing open source software, preferably open source software that implements an open standard. ... he great thing about a good open source project that solves a shared challenge is that it develops it's own momentum and it is sustained for a long time by a virtuous cycle of continuous improvement. At Netflix we jumped on for the ride a long time ago and we have benefited enormously from the virtuous cycles of actively evolving open source projects. We benefit from the continuous improvements provided by the community of contributors outside of Netflix. We also benefit by contributing back the changes we make to the projects. By sharing our bug fixes and new features back out into the community, the community then in turn continues to improve upon bug fixes and new features that originated at Netflix and then we complete the cycle by bring those improvements back into Netflix.
![[MS Internet Explorer]](gfx/ie.gif "MS Internet Explorer"){kind=small}
![[Security Hole]](gfx/hole.gif "Security Hole"){kind=small}
![[Privacy]](gfx/priv.gif "Privacy"){kind=small}
URL: http://www.dailytech.com/Microsoft+IE+Flaw+Exploited+by+Hackers+to+Steal+Info+From+Google/article17415.htmIn this case the flaw wasn't overly severe, but the attackers were unusually sophisticated and struck out at businesses, looking to steal their data. Writes Dmitri Alperovitch, a vice president of research with McAfee, 'We have never seen attacks of this sophistication in the commercial space. We have previously only seen them in the government space.'
URL: http://www.cio.ca.gov/Government/IT_Policy/pdf/IT_Policy_Letter_10-01_Open_Source_Software.pdfThe purpose of this Information Technology Policy Letter (ITPL) is to: Formally establish the use of Open Source Software (OSS) in California state government as an acceptable practice ... This policy provides guidance on the use of Open Source Software (OSS) ... The OCIO permits the use of OSS.
![[Bug]](gfx/bug.gif "Bug"){kind=small}
URL: http://technologizer.com/2009/12/11/office-2003-rights-management-bug-locks-up-files/It's a nightmare scenario: Imagine coming into the office and not being able to access any of your organization's vital documents. That scenario became reality today for an untold number of Microsoft Office 2003 customers who use Microsoft's Rights Management Service (RMS), a technology for controlling access to documents.
![[MS Outlook]](gfx/outlook.gif "MS Outlook"){kind=small}
URL: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE5B91G020091210A new email client unveiled by Mozilla this week contains code from an unusual source -- the French military, which decided the open source product was more secure than Microsoft's rival Outlook. ... France's military chose open source software after an internal government debate [...] culminated in a [...] directive requiring state agencies 'Seek maximum technological and commercial independence.' ... The French government is beginning to move to other open source software, including Linux instead of Windows and OpenOffice instead of Microsoft Office.
URL: http://www.networkworld.com/news/2009/112209-new-attack-fells-internet.htmlA hacker has posted attack code that could be used to break into a PC running older versions of Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser. ... Security consultancy Vupen Security has also confirmed that the attack works, saying it worked on a Windows XP Service Pack 3 system running IE 6 or IE7. Neither company was able to confirm that the attack worked on Microsoft's latest browser, IE 8. ... Together, IE 6 and IE 7 command close to 40 percent of the browser market.
URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/11/20/internet_explorer_security_flaw/The latest version of Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser contains a bug that can enable serious security attacks against websites that are otherwise safe. The flaw in IE 8 can be exploited to introduce XSS, or cross-site scripting, errors on webpages that are otherwise safe... Ironically, the flaw resides in a protection added by Microsoft developers to IE 8 that's designed to prevent XSS attacks against sites.
URL: http://www.networkworld.com/news/2009/103009-after-one-year-conficker-infects.htmlConficker first caught the attention of security experts in November 2008 and received widespread media attention in early 2009. It has proved remarkably resilient and adept at re-infecting systems even after being removed.
URL: http://linux.slashdot.org/story/09/10/27/2115243/New-DoD-Memo-On-Open-Source-Software'Misconceptions and misinterpretations... have hampered effective DoD use and development of OSS.' The new memo tries to counter those misconceptions and misinterpretations, and is very positive about OSS. In particular, it lists a number of potential advantages of OSS, and recommends that in certain cases the DoD release software as OSS.
URL: http://blog.internetnews.com/skerner/2009/10/ibm-and-ubuntu-roll-linux-for.htmlIBM and Canonical are now announcing the launch of Linux and cloud-based desktop software in the U.S. The effort was originally announced more than a year ago, in August of 2008 as the Microsoft-Free PC effort. The basic idea is to have an Linux OS, with IBM smart client applications called Open Collaboration Client Solution software (OCCS) (Lotus Symphony and Notes) for enterprise apps.
URL: http://blogs.zdnet.com/perlow/?p=11383Tony Maro, CIO of EvriChart, a hospital records management and archiving business, successfully migrated his company's Windows-based line of business document management extranet application and his employees' 40-odd Windows-based desktops to a 100 percent Linux-based server and desktop infrastructure.
URL: http://it.slashdot.org/story/09/10/16/189243[T]he 'Windows Presentation Foundation' plugin that Microsoft slipped into Firefox last February apparently left the popular browser open to attack. ... once installed, the .NET add-on was virtually impossible to remove from Firefox. The usual 'Disable' and 'Uninstall' buttons in Firefox's add-on list were grayed out on all versions of Windows except Windows 7... Several sites posted complicated directions on how to scrub the .NET add-on...
URL: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2009/10/09/mcmaster-medical-records-oscar674.htmlResearchers at Hamilton's McMaster University say they have devised an electronic medical records system that can be implemented by physicians across Ontario for two per cent of the money the provincial government has spent on eHealth Ontario. [...] Around 600 doctors across the country -- including 450 family physicians in Ontario -- currently use the software. The software is open-source, which means users are allowed access to its basic code. Users are free to add to or modify the software without fear of legal repercussions... Because it's open-source, OSCAR is free. The costs to set it up come in the form of servers, hardware and support staff. [...] [In] a report released Wednesday, Ontario Auditor General Jim McCarter said the province had wasted [a $1 billion investment] and eHealth had little to show for its work.
![[License]](gfx/lic.gif "License"){kind=small}
URL: http://www.mouseprint.org/2009/10/01/hidden-fees-discovered-for-free-windows-7-upgrades/Since June 26, retailers and computer manufacturers have urged shoppers to buy computers already on store shelves loaded with the much-maligned Windows Vista operating system because they would qualify for a free upgrade to Windows 7 when it was released in October. As it turns out... some computer purchasers will be asked to pay shipping, handling and other junk fees that total between $11 and $17 to receive their "free" upgrade [discs].
URL: http://www.linux-magazine.com/Online/News/IBM-Throws-Out-Microsoft-Office360,000 IBM workers have been told to stop using Microsoft Office and switch to the Open Office-based software Symphony. ... IBM's management have obviously decided to practice what they preach. 330,000 IBM workers already use Symphony...
URL: http://www.goodgearguide.com.au/article/313782/microsoft_acknowledges_linux_threat_windows_clientThe move is an acknowledgment of the first viable competition from Linux to Microsoft's Windows client business, due mainly to the use of Linux on netbooks, which are rising in prominence as alternatives to full-sized notebooks.
URL: http://it.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/07/14/1932234Attacks exploiting the latest Microsoft vulnerability are quickly ramping up in quantity and intensity, several security companies warned today as they rang alarms about the developing threat.
![[MS Windows XP]](gfx/xp.gif "MS Windows XP"){kind=small}
![[]](gfx/vista.gif){kind=small}
URL: http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/07/13/2359208Nearly six in 10 companies have no current plans to deploy Windows 7 by the end of next year, according to a new survey.
URL: http://ostatic.com/blog/u-s-postal-service-gives-stamp-of-approval-to-fossThe U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has switched 1,300 of the servers that manage its package tracking system to a Linux environment. The move has taken the better part of a year since all the original system code was written in Cobol and had to be converted for Linux -- a less expensive option than rewriting it altogether.
URL: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5icTKBW9_fm-oKDzns75BI-ykokSwD99A28U01A widespread and unusually resilient computer attack that began July 4 knocked out the Web sites of several government agencies, including some that are responsible for fighting cyber crime [...] Denial of service attacks against Web sites are not uncommon, and are usually caused when sites are deluged with Internet traffic so as to effectively take them off-line. Mounting such an attack can be relatively easy using widely available hacking programs, and they can be made far more serious if hackers infect and use thousands of computers tied together into "botnets."
URL: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/securityfix/2009/07/an_odyssey_of_fraud_part_ii.html?hpid=sec-techCyber criminals based in Ukraine stole $415,000 from the coffers of Bullitt County, Kentucky this week. The crooks were aided by more than two dozen co-conspirators in the United States, as well as a strain of malicious software capable of defeating online security measures put in place by many banks. [...] the unauthorized transfers appear to have been driven by "some kind computer virus." ... the criminals stole the money using a custom variant of a keystroke logging Trojan [...] [An] interesting feature of this malware... is that it creates a direct connection between the infected Microsoft Windows system and the attackers, allowing the bad guys to log in to the victim's bank account using the victim's own Internet connection.
URL: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5j5Xl8ruQxmd-Z9s0yQ96bBgNOacAD9996H7O0The vulnerability disclosed Monday affects Internet Explorer users whose computers run the Windows XP or Windows Server 2003 operating software. It can allow hackers to remotely take control of victims' machines. The victims don't need to do anything to get infected except visit a Web site that's been hacked. Security experts say criminals have been attacking the vulnerability for nearly a week. Thousands of sites have been hacked to serve up malicious software that exploits the vulnerability.
![[Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt]](gfx/fud.gif "Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt"){kind=small}
URL: http://news.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/06/30/1752220Detractors of free software like to point out it's not really 'free,' and claim that its Total Cost of Ownership is often comparable with closed-source solutions... [yet] they never include a very real extra that users of Microsoft's products frequently have to pay: the cost of cleaning up malware infections. For example, the UK city of Manchester has just paid out nearly $2.5 million to clean up the Conficker worm...
URL: http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/06/30/224233Microsoft pulled the plug on Windows XP a year ago today, no longer selling new copies in most venues. Yet according to a report from InfoWorld, various downgrade paths to XP are keeping the operating system very much alive, particularly among businesses. In fact, despite Microsoft trumpeting Vista as the most successful version of Windows ever sold, more than half of business PCs have subsequently downgraded Vista-based machines to XP...
URL: http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/06/16/1756229PCs bought after April 22, 2010, however, can only be downgraded to Vista — no help for XP-based organizations, which would be wise to wait 12 to 18 months before adopting Windows 7, so that they can test hardware and software compatibility and ensure their vendors' Windows 7 support meets their needs. XP shops that chose not to install Vista will have to either rush their migration process or spend extra to enroll in Microsoft's Software Assurance program...
![[Monopoly]](gfx/monopoly.gif "Monopoly"){kind=small}
URL: http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/06/10/1428220Groklaw is examining the possibility of an anti-ODF [OpenDocument Format] whisper campaign and the effects it has had on the ODF and OOXML [Microsoft's Office Open XML] Wikipedia articles. In the ODF article, Alex Brown [convenor of the OOXML BRM] bends the truth to make it seem like no one is supporting ODF, and that it is a flawed and incomplete standard.
URL: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/securityfix/2009/05/microsoft_update_quietly_insta.htmlA routine security update for a Microsoft Windows component installed on tens of millions of computers has quietly installed an extra add-on for an untold number of users surfing the Web with Mozilla's Firefox Web browser. ...'this update adds to Firefox one of the most dangerous vulnerabilities present in all versions of Internet Explorer: the ability for Web sites to easily and quietly install software on your PC.' ... Microsoft tells us that the only way to get rid of this thing is to modify the Windows registry, an exercise that -- if done imprecisely -- can cause Windows systems to fail to boot up.
URL: http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2009/05/22/tech-vancouver-open-source-standards-software-city.htmlVancouver city council has endorsed the principles of making its data open and accessible to everyone where possible, adopting open standards for that data and considering open source software when replacing existing applications. ... About 15 members of the public signed up to speak about the motion. All who spoke were in favour, Reimer said. "The only sort of negative [comment] was 'Can't you go further? Can't you do more?'"
URL: http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20090421111327711'Once Microsoft had achieved wide distribution for its own browser through these tactics, it then moved to "extend" (in effect, customize) industry standards for HyperText Markup Language ("HTML") and Cascading StyleSheets ("CSS") to ensure that users would become reliant on Microsoft's own web browser. Microsoft also introduced its ActiveX technology extensions, which allowed software written much like traditional computer programs to run in the Internet Explorer browser, but that only worked on Microsoft's monopoly operating system.' ... 'Even when Microsoft claims to be implementing a standard, the reality is that Microsoft's implementations routinely either only partially conform or else somehow extend the standard, so that software developed to work with Microsoft's version of the standard will not work with other vendors' implementations of the same standard.' ... '"We need to slaughter Novell before they get stronger....If you're going to kill someone, there isn't much reason to get all worked up about it and angry. You just pull the trigger. Any discussions beforehand are a waste of time. We need to smile at Novell while we pull the trigger."'
URL: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2342703,00.asp'I'm tired of dealing with Windows malware, patch Tuesday, and the never-ending deterioration of the OS as it clogs up like a drain in a greasy-spoon restaurant. I can't take it anymore.' ... 'the biggest differences between Ubuntu and Windows are the cost and the subsequent headaches, because Microsoft is constantly fretting over bootleg copies. The company monitors machines to make sure they are running legal copies of software. There have already been instances of computers shut down by Microsoft HQ because of some glitch in the cloud. This is simply unacceptable. I don't want to rely on a system like that.' ... 'If I had a small or mid-size company, I'd probably use only Linux and open-source software, just to stay out of the way of the software police and their onerous "audits" — another abhorrent situation that, to me, is intolerable.'
URL: http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/02/16/2259257The days of capturing an audio program on your PC seem to be over... Win7 allows programs like Photoshop to insert themselves stealthily into your firewall exception list. Further, that the OS allows large software vendors to penetrate your machine.
URL: http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9126478Microsoft Corp.'s advice on disabling Windows' "Autorun" feature is flawed, the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) said today, and it leaves users who rely on its guidelines to protect their PCs against the fast-spreading Downadup worm open to attack. ... The problem is that Downadup, which as of last week had infected nearly 9 million PCs worldwide, tries to spread using USB-based devices, typically flash drives. ... One security researcher said he was surprised that Microsoft didn't catch its recommendation errors, particularly in light of the ongoing Downadup attacks. "Seems unbecoming of Microsoft not to have been the one posting this information on a blog of theirs,"... He also bemoaned the need to edit the registry to disable Autorun. "Not only [is] editing the registry outside the [reach] of most people, but now we have learned that the information from the source is not complete."
URL: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7842013.stmThe worm is unusually clever in the way that it determines what server to contact... 'This makes it impossible and/or impractical for us good guys to shut them all down'... [The virus] has spread to an estimated 9m computers globally.
URL: http://it.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/01/16/142211The worm that has infected several million Windows PCs, Downadup or 'Conficker,' is having a field day because nearly a third of all systems remain unpatched 80 days after Microsoft rolled out an emergency fix.
URL: http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9123338[Microsoft] adds IE6 and IE8 Beta 2 to the list, recommends disabling .dll to stay safe. The unpatched bug in Internet Explorer 7 (IE7) that hackers are now exploiting also exists in older versions of the browser, including the still-widely-used IE6, Microsoft Corp. said late yesterday.
URL: http://ostatic.com/blog/hp-opens-up-open-source-for-small-businessesHP is approaching this market with both fists flying. Wednesday, it announced two new open source products, geared to small businesses and educational institutions.
URL: http://news.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/07/18/2255258Kaspersky Labs has discovered malware that inserts links to malicious Web pages within ASF media files, posing a danger to Windows users who download music files from P2P networks. Infected files launch IE and load a page that asks the user to download a codec. The download, a Trojan horse, installs a proxy program to route other traffic through the PC. The malware also has worm-like qualities, according to Secure Computing. It searches for MP3s, transcodes them to WMA format, wraps them in an ASF container, and adds links to further copies of the malware, all without modifying the .MP3 extension.
URL: http://www.pcworld.com/article/147879/move_your_business_from_windows_to_linux.htmlWindows XP is available only as a costly 'downgrade' from Windows Vista... If that feels like a waste of your small business's precious IT budget, and you're still looking for an alternative to Windows Vista, look no further than Linux. The latest distributions are free, easy to install, and highly customizable; they harness your existing hardware without overtaxing it; and they include a wealth of productivity applications and utilities. ... Linux is different from Windows, but it isn't an alien life form. The human investment you make in transitioning away from expensive Windows and Office licenses may pay for itself quickly. More important, you'll be free to run the desktop and server software of your choice, on hardware you can afford.
URL: http://www.networkworld.com/research/2008/060908-green-windows-linux.html?t51hbIndependent tests show that Red Hat Linux pulls as much as 12% less power than Windows 2008 on identical hardware. For this test, we examined power consumption as a way to judge whether Windows Server 2008 or Linux is, in fact, the 'greener' operating system. As the price of power hits record heights, power reduction mechanisms shipping within an operating system should play a key role in you energy conservation plan. Our tests point to Linux as the winner of the green flag by margins that topped out at 12%.
URL: http://it.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/05/1921232c... the criminal tells the victims that the file has been encrypted and offers to sell them a decryptor. Is this a look into the future where the majority of malware will function based on extortion?
URL: http://www.informationweek.com/news/windows/operatingsystems/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=207600950Within hours of its release, Microsoft's Service Pack 3 for Windows XP began drawing hundreds of complaints from users who claim the update is wreaking havoc on their PCs. The problems with XP SP3, according to posters on Microsoft's Windows XP message board, range from spontaneous reboots to outright system crashes.
![[Education]](gfx/edu.gif "Education"){kind=small}
URL: http://www.smbtechadvice.com/2008/04/kde-on-linux-now-de-facto-platform-for.htmlBrazil has made KDE on Linux the official computing platform of the primary education system. [...] [I'm] elated to see that 52 million young people will grow up in a free (as in freedom) environment where they will learn and flourish without the trappings of proprietary technology.
URL: http://ec.europa.eu/idabc/en/document/7576/6008About 70,000 students and their 7,000 teachers in the Geneva school district will gradually be moving to Open Source.
URL: http://www.computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;609377314Implementing a kiosk mode Kubuntu setup allowed Westall Secondary School, located in eastern Melbourne, to save money, exact greater control over security measures, and extend the life of older and discarded hardware without sacrificing performance. But according to [the school's IT support magager], the 'huge amount of flexibility' offered by the Linux operating system was the primary motive behind its adoption.
URL: http://www.itbusiness.ca/it/client/en/home/News.asp?id=47852&cid=12For two large school districts -- in Canada and the U.S. -- Linux and other open source software is the plat du jour on the education menu. ... The largest Linux implementation is running close to 200 diskless clients in a single school. ... 'We get better support with open source software: online wikis, forums, mailing lists etc are much faster and better to get support than phoning up Microsoft and listening to someone read off answers from flash cards.' ... 'We give everyone FreeNX access to their Linux desktop from home so they can get all the same programs without having to install Linux at home.'