Summary: Microsoft quality at its best; Windows Update becomes malware distribution system

THE UNDER-REPORTED SUBJECT we alluded to very briefly the other day is Windows Update getting cracked, then (mis)used to infect PCs in a peer-to-peer fashion. To quote one report:

The Flame espionage malware targeting Iranian computers contains code that can completely hijack the Windows update mechanism that Microsoft uses to distribute security patches to hundreds of millions of its users, security researchers said Monday.

Here is another report:

According to new information revealed by researchers, three modules of the Flame malware – named Snack, Gadget and Munch – are used to launch what is essentially a man-in-the-middle attack against other computers on a network.

The Windows are open. Those who called Windows Update the largest "worm" out there finally have their case made. ⬆