01.17.10
Microsoft Takes Responsibility for Internet Explorer Chaos, Conficker Damage Carries on
Summary: Just as Microsoft pretends that the attacks on Google are no big deal it turns out that Microsoft’s Internet Explorer is the sole culprit
“Adobe Flaw Wasn’t Part of Attack on Google,” says this latest news report from IDG and Microsoft is almost accepting liability by admitting that Internet Explorer is the culprit. “Cyberattacks are an unfortunate way of life,” said Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to CNBC regarding these attacks after his own incompetence caused these issues. This sums up a discussion (and at times heated argument) that we had in previous posts on the subject, namely:
- Microsoft Flaws — Not Adobe Flaws — Responsible for China’s Attack on Google; Microsoft Takes China’s Side, as Usual
- Chinese Google ‘Attack’ Involves Microsoft Windows Flaws
- Germany’s Office for Information Security Warns Against Microsoft’s Internet Explorer After China Attacks
Germany is paying for Conficker through the nose, so it only makes sense to advise against the use of Internet Explorer (they should go further and recommend GNU/Linux). According to this weekend’s news from IDG, Conficker is still alive and it’s kicking hard:
• Conficker Still Striking Online
Russia and Brazil are now the top hotspots for global Internet attack traffic, Net giant Akamai has said in its latest threat report, placing most of the blame on the hardy Conficker worm.
• Conficker Worm Hasn’t Gone Away, Akamai Says
Variants of the Conficker worm were still active and spreading during the third quarter, accounting for much of attack traffic on the Internet, according to Akamai Technologies.
“Although mainstream and industry media coverage of the Conficker worm and its variants has dropped significantly since peaking in the second quarter, it is clear from this data that the worm (and its variants) is apparently still quite active, searching out new systems to infect,” Akamai said in its State of the Internet report for the third quarter of 2009, released Thursday.
For those who think that Vista 7 will change anything, we’re appending some links below. █
- Cybercrime Rises and Vista 7 is Already Open to Hijackers
- Vista 7: Broken Apart Before Arrival
- Department of Homeland Security ‘Poisoned’ by Microsoft; Vista 7 is Open to Hijackers Again
- Vista 7 Security “Cannot be Fixed. It’s a Design Problem.”
- Why Vista 7 Could be the Least Secure Operating System Ever
- Journalists Suggest Banning Windows, Maybe Suing Microsoft Over DDoS Attacks
- Vista 7 Vulnerable to Latest “Critical” Flaws
- Vista 7 Seemingly Affected by Several More “Critical” Flaws This Month
- Reason #1 to Avoid Vista 7: Insecurity
- Vista 7 Left Hijackable Again (Almost a Monthly Recurrence)
your_friend said,
January 17, 2010 at 4:07 pm
[Thanks to Windows] Cyberattacks are an unfortunate [prevalent, debilitating, increasingly unsustainable and successful] way of life. How much will society pay for Windows?
TheTruth said,
January 17, 2010 at 7:02 pm
HAHAH, and google is supposed to be the FOSS/Linux love child, yet they are still hacked, linux and all !!!!! oh dear, poor poor linux.
oh and what did the chinese steal, IP, I thought you hated IP ROY, you must be in great internal conflict.
Trying to spin this as a positive for Linux, it’s a hard job but someone has to apply the spin.
(how’s you job searching going, anyone willing to hite a zealot?).
I cant wait to email you boss, and inform him about what you spend you’re entire life doing .. But I would not stoop so low, but you would,,, dont you ROY..
Mikko Reply:
January 17th, 2010 at 7:46 pm
troll get out!
your_friend Reply:
January 17th, 2010 at 9:53 pm
People “hacked” several Gmail accounts, this is something that happens to Windows users every day. They also have their hotmail, yahoo, aol and bank accounts violated because Windows is so easy for criminals to break. The things that make it notable is that Google is accusing the Chinese government of targeting dissidents with malware and that the government has also used broken Windows machines for DDoS attacks against Google and other ISPs. All of these problems revolve around Windows, not GNU/Linux.
This is a positive development for free software because it shows off some of the downsides of non free software. The US has used the same tactics on a more limited scale. The large scale of the problems in China, their more blatant political use and the involvement of a large and powerful US firm all point to broader coverage of these issues in the western world. As people are exposed both to the weakness of Windows and the results, they will want something better. That will be good for everyone.
Finally, your talk about Roy’s job prospects are both ugly and poorly veiled threats.
your_friend Reply:
January 19th, 2010 at 12:05 am
Brilliant, blame Google for Microsoft’s security flaws. I have to hand it to you for knowing exactly how Microsoft friendly news sources would spin this issue. I don’t think it’s going to work as governments and everyone else with a clue gives credit where credit is due. I have to hand it to you for being so well connected to Microsoft spin.
TheTruth said,
January 17, 2010 at 7:22 pm
Imagine, if you house was broken into, you call the police, they come around they look at your house, and they see there are no locked on any of the doors and windows and they are left open.
The police say, yes you were broken into, but it’s you’re own stupid fault for leaving you’re house open. And putting huge adds all over you’re house saying “valuables held in here”.
What you’re saying is that if you’re house was broken into and the theif used a hammer to break in, then it’s the hammers fault for the break in.
Just mabey if you have critical data on you’re systems, you lock you’re doors, and make them so strong that a hammer will not break in.
There is ONE group at fault here, and it’s GOOGLE.
If you’re stupid enough to keep critical data on insecure systems, (in this case LINUX). that is YOUR fault.
Sure the criminals have done wrong, but you dont have to make it so easy for them by leaving you’re house unlocked.
But thats not nearly as interesting a spin as you would like ROY, that means you cannot blame you’re hate child MS for it.
Google are trying to break into OS’s, applications and cloud, and they cant even protect THEIR OWN data, would you trust them to protect YOUR data.
So you headline could read, “Man breaks into house, hammer found guilty of break and enter”.
As usual ROY, you’re the running joker of the FOSS world. nothing more…
(get a job).
Mikko Reply:
January 17th, 2010 at 7:48 pm
why are you here? stupid troll!
Yuhong Bao said,
January 17, 2010 at 9:03 pm
I already explained many of these, why you keep posting the links, particularly bad is “Vista 7 Security “Cannot be Fixed. It’s a Design Problem.””
Roy Schestowitz Reply:
January 17th, 2010 at 9:06 pm
Where did you explain this?
Yuhong Bao Reply:
January 17th, 2010 at 9:33 pm
Briefly in the comments, and a few times in IRC, in fact I just talked about it today on IRC.
your_friend Reply:
January 17th, 2010 at 9:40 pm
People believe that Windows will never be fixed because Windows has never been fixed despite repeated false promisses and lots of technical sounding BS. Roy pointed to an excellent article explaining the major design flaws. Can you point to a technical refutation of the points? Even if you did, it’s not worth anything because people have already broken Windows 7 like every other version of Windows.
Yuhong Bao said,
January 17, 2010 at 9:04 pm
In fact, one of the Conflicker’s exploit vectors did not affect Vista.
your_friend Reply:
January 18th, 2010 at 11:51 pm
The Microsoft spinners are busy defending microsoft business practices and Vista. Less spun sources recognize that all versions of Windows and all versions of IE are at fault. It looks like the latest round of security failure is being used by Microsoft to force upgrades. It is too bad for them that people are starting to realize that GNU/Linux is the practical upgrade path. Windows will never be secure.
Roy has done a nice job of keeping up with this story:
Germany Urges people to dump IE. It is too bad they did not go the Munich route.
Microsoft blames Adobe and ignores Communist China’s repulsive human rights abuses. More disgusting was their spinner’s attempt to claim Google was exploiting other people’s revulsion for business advantage.
China uses Windows botnets to harass dissidents, DDoS Google and other companies.
Reality Calling