Homeland Security urges users to get Microsoft patch

[sabra]

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/business/15235803.htm

Homeland Security urges users to get Microsoft patch

NEW YORK (Dow Jones/AP) -- The Department of Homeland Security issued an advisory Wednesday urging people to immediately apply a security patch for vulnerabilities in all supported versions of the Microsoft Corp. Windows operating system.

Windows is the No. 1 operating system for personal computers in the world.

``From time to time the Department of Homeland Security has issued advisories on Microsoft security bulletins,'' Microsoft said. So far Microsoft knows of only one or two attacks.

...

The advisories always involve patches for those situations that warrant a ``critical'' rating, such as the latest one. Anti-virus software maker Symantec Corp. concurred with Homeland Security by identifying MS06-040 ``as being the update of most concern this month.''

[MadMaddie]

1. Ummm....is the government intentionally attacking Microsoft?

Not clear why they would be involved at this level....

[Drum]

2. next come the chip implants... nt

[OregonBlue]

4. If Homeland Security wants me to get it, I would have to think twice!

[Frank Cannon]

19. No kidding

And I hear Charles Manson wants some of his "family" members to install new locks on my house.

[bluerum]

3. Ummmm - does the fix provide a hook for NSA and law enforcement?

[sofa king]

16. No need--the hook's already in there.

And has been since at least August, 1999.

The fun part about selling your soul to the NSA is that you're required by law to deny it, no matter how stupid you look doing it--witness our phone companies earlier this year.

As usual, with any public disclosure of NSA operations the truth is immediately protected by an onionskin of falsehood, so there is no real way of knowing for sure what _NSAKEY's purpose or potential use is, but it's still in every modern version of Windows, now renamed _KEY2.

[ixion]

5. which means: don't patch!!!

just sayin. :evilgrin:

[MadMaddie]

7. My thoughts exactly....

[mike_c]

6. hmmm, this must be the patch that sends all your keystrokes...

...to the NSA. :hide:

[Dont_Bogart_the_Pretzel]

8. I don't think I'll get anymore patches from micro$oft

If big brother wants me to get micro$oft's latest patch; then you know there's something in it for them( i.e. open ports or there own spyware)

[longship]

9. Longship recommends users get Linux

It's safer, more reliable, and much faster.
:evilgrin:

[kenny blankenship]

10. That was my "Microsoft patch" -just days to kick the MS-addiction 4ever!

and it cost me nothing.

[longship]

13. Free is nice, isn't it.

My favorite free app? MythTV which give me TV on any computer connected to my little network. Kind of like TiVo, but better, and free. Gotta have it so I can grab Keith every night, or anything else I want. I never watch live TV anymore. It takes a couple of minutes to burn any program on a DVD+RW disk which plays on my DVD players. It's ultra cool.

Of course, Firefox rulez, too.

BTW, Linux on dual 64-bit CPUs really ROXX!!!

[Canuckistanian]

11. ... or the terrorists win.

Don't want those Islamofacists planting penis enlargement ads on all our PC's, trying to sap our vital bodily fluids.

[drdtroit]

12. You betcha! NOT n/t

[liberaltrucker]

14. Terra, fear, terra, fear

:puke:

[Stargazer99]

15. If you think that is bad a poster on Ariannaonline

showed (picture) us the gizzards of his new lap top with a devise that would allow snooping. He is an electrical engineer and couldn't figure out what this devise purpose was for until he investigated. I am sick of those people who support this administration ...they are in denial or ignorant as hell.

[drfresh]

17. My CPU contacted Microsoft today after installing this patch

I maintain the network monitoring software X-NetStat (freshsoftware dot com) and intercepted UDP transmissions to Microsoft tonight that I haven't seen before:

Hostname: 207.68.178.16
IP: 207.68.178.16
Local port: 137
Remote port: 137
Protocol: UDP
Status: UDP Send
Aware since: 8/9/2006 9:59:27 PM
Age: 00:00:57
Process: System

The IP was found in ARIN's database as Microsoft:

OrgName: Microsoft Corp
OrgID: MSFT
Address: One Microsoft Way
City: Redmond
StateProv: WA
PostalCode: 98052
Country: US

NetRange: 207.68.128.0 - 207.68.207.255
CIDR: 207.68.128.0/18, 207.68.192.0/20
NetName: MICROSOFT-CORP-MSN-BLK


Unfortunately I didn't get to sniff the actual data sent. Port 137 is usually the NetBIOS protocol, but I don't know why my computer would be contacting MS. Like I said I have never seen this before installing the recent slew of Microsoft patches that came out today. Whether they are related, I don't know, but I will dig further..

[Kip Humphrey]

21. My ZoneAlarm has been blocking netbios sessions to this same IP for weeks.

[Vidar]

18. Probably loaded with their spyware. No thanks, Firefox is doing fine.

[Breeze54]

20. Is this the same HLS Alert from a week ago?? n/t

:shrug: