Bonum Certa Men Certa

The Windows Security Theatre

Airport



Summary: Many security reports from The Register and little more of the rest

McAfee is far from a friend of Free software [1, 2] and its remedies for Windows may sometimes cause more harm than good. Here is a fresh new example of why this paradigm of sold-separately bolted-on security software simply does not work. To quote, "IT admins across the globe are letting out a collective groan after servers and PCs running McAfee VirusScan were brought down when the anti-virus program attacked their core system files. In some cases, this caused the machines to display the dreaded blue screen of death."



One of our readers says that "admins use Knoppix to fix borked McAfee antivirus" and he points to this new example where someone suggests: "For servers with BSOD we have used knoppix live cd to move files from quarantine to original place..."

In other news, Microsoft is preparing patches for flaws that enable hijacking of Windows, probably remotely. These flaws are very serious. Some of them are already being actively exploited (without a solution available).

Microsoft on Tuesday plans to release updates patching three critical Windows security vulnerabilities, two of which are already under attack.


Attacks must always precede reaction in Microsoft's case.

Why might this happen? Well, maybe because, according to some more news, Microsoft has knowingly ignored a serious flaw for a year. It is so typical.

Microsoft knew of nasty IE bug a year before attacks



The disclosure comes as attacks targeting the MSVidCtl ActiveX control vulnerability have increased exponentially. On Monday, online ads distributed by through the Giant Realm network on popular gaming websites began including code that exploits the bug, according to security firm ScanSafe. The ads mean that anyone using IE to browse sites such as diii.net and incgamers.com are risk if they run the XP or 2003 versions of Windows and have not yet installed a quick fix.


We have already shown that Microsoft deliberately hides its flaws. Victims of this careless, selfish behaviour are all of us who receive spam from hundreds of millions of Windows zombies. To rephrase the news (The Register again), spam levels have returned to normal.

Victims may include more hospitals too, according to this last bit of news from The Register.

The leader of a malicious hacker collective who used his job as a security guard to breach sensitive Texas hospital computers has been arrested just days before his group planned a "massive DDoS" attack for the July 4 Independence Day holiday.


Hospitals are hit by Windows viruses on a very regular basis this year [1, 2, 3, 4] and according to this article from Sam Varghese Microsoft is profiteering from it.

How Microsoft benefits from Conficker



Microsoft experts were among consultants called in by the council - and they took home some of the €£1.2 million which the body paid out to get the problem resolved. Exactly how much was paid to the different consultants was not divulged.


In reference to some of these shocking figures, one of our readers asks, "What can be bought?" He uses Manchester as an example:

There was a recent article about the UK city of Manchester which just paid nearly $2.5 million in clean up for the Windows worm Conficker. That's one worm in one city.

If we take some numbers for the sake of argument and play with them, what could we buy with $2.5 million.

Say for the sake of argument that top developers (in several fields of computing) and UI designers cost $100,000 apiece including insurance, pensions, equipment and work space rental. That would provide for a team of 10 for 25 years, or a team of 25 for 10 years, etc.

So for a decade, for the same price, Manchester could work out a re-packaging of Fedora and some needed applications:

5 development engineers 5 deployement engineers 5 HCI specialists 10 half-time support 3 full-time support 2 managers / marketeers

The magnitude of the money lost pursuing the Windows ideology is mind-boggling.


Contrary to common belief (mind the interesting comments), Microsoft could really use some money which is made through its own incompetence. The reality of the matter is that Microsoft has faltered for years (even financially) and it now amasses some debt.

But going back to this subject of security, Heise reports show that Apple is no role model either, not with its proprietary, DRM-locked phones.

iPhone 3GS cracked



[...]

The Dev Team are well known for their free iPhone jailbreaking and unlocking tools (QuickPwn, PwnageTool, Yellowsn0W, etc.), however, they have yet to release a tool that's compatible with the 3GS and version 3.0 of the iPhone software.


Symbian faces challenges too. Symbian is still proprietary (in phases of transition).

Security on Symbian mobiles: Early signs of crumbling



[...]

At the recent Pwn2Own 2009 security contest, none of the competitors succeeded in hacking a Symbian mobile.


Free Software Magazine has a good new comic on that subject of security.

Comments

Recent Techrights' Posts

"Bad Shim Signature"; So 'Secure' That It Overrides Users' Preferences and Turns Itself Back on (Coercive Measure)
This was a few hours ago
We Covered UEFI 'Secure Boot' Scandals. The World Listened.
To hell with UEFI 'secure boot'
Fake News With Fake Numbers About Microsoft
"This is what happens when the world's economy is governed by sick old men"
Slopwatch: "Google News" is Fast Becoming a Mashup of Slopfarms, Linux Journal ("LJ") is a Dump of LLM Slop
Well done, Google News. Google itself can flourish as a slopfarm mashup.
Torturing Users Who Just Want to Run GNU/Linux on Their Own PC
"Linux does not want to install"
European Authorities, Already Bribed and Infiltrated by Microsoft, Won't Help You Find BigBlueButton, Jami, Ring, and Jitsi
Because they're paid by Microsoft and are Microsoft 'addicts' themselves
Moving From Content Management Systems (CMSs) to Static Site Generators (SSGs) Saves You Time, Makes You a Lot More Productive
try to reduce the cost (financial and computational) of running your site
Leak: European Patent Office (EPO) is Now Attacking Amicale Clubs
corruption has become the norm and scientists are robbed of any dignity
Oracle Fraud (or Defrauding Shareholders)
"the obvious [lie] is that watts are (wasted) electricity [and] and FLOPS are computing capacity"
 
"Bad Shim Signature" (Microsoft 'Secure' Boot)
"Fresh install not booting"
What Microsoft Garrett and Microsoft Lunduke Have in Common
Similar tactics, different "wings"
Links 14/09/2025: US "Economy Sagging", "Michigan Economy Wobbles From Tariffs"
Links for the day
Gemini Links 14/09/2025: Minimalist Snippet Manager and Omarchy Linux
Links for the day
The Face of the Digital Far Right: Microsoft Lunduke
Microsoft Lunduke is an online extremist that belongs to and panders to the far right
20 Years Later and Academia Isn't the Same
"I never dreamed of being a professor"
'Cancel Culture' by the Right: Microsoft Lunduke Contacts People's Employers Trying to Get Them Fired
Microsoft Lunduke panders to extremists online
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, September 13, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, September 13, 2025
Microsoft is Rapidly Dropped From Web Servers, Shows Survey
Microsoft lost about 8% "market share" in just 3 months
Many GNU/Linux Users Report MOK (Machine Owner Key) Issues in Recent Days
many people don't report this online and never post in Reddit
Links 13/09/2025: Escalations in East Europe and POTUS’ Health Cover-Up
Links for the day
Gemini Links 13/09/2025: Lagrange Turns 5 and Lagrange 1.19.2 Released
Links for the day
Microsoft Inside Your Linux: "Security vulnerability that allowed an attacker to bypass UEFI Secure Boot."
2 hours ago
A New Low for "Linux Journal": Promoting MICROSOFT WINDOWS Using LLM Slop
They've just jumped the shark entirely
The Register MS Still Takes Money to Hype Up "AI" in Articles by Microsoft Resellers With the Term "AI" 30+ Times in Them
Notice how many times they mention "AI"
The Apache Logo News is VERY Old, Racists and 'Anti-Woke' Bigots Look for Something to Incite Other Bigots With
Nothing to see here, move along
Linux Mint 9/11: "4th One Today..." (in Reddit)
Remember that not everyone having an issue reports it to social control media like Reddit
Nepal Will Fall Without a Single Shot Fired, Thanks to Social Control Media
Or very few shots (by the authorities)
European Corruption in the European Patent Office (EPO) Targets Culture
"In reality, the project includes a new “legal instrument” shifting administrative burden and liability on EPO staff while creating new uncertainty and externalising Amicale activities."
UEFI Secure Boot Failing, as Expected for Nearly 15 Years Already (Techrights Said This Since 2012)
in the media
Debian 9/11
people report this issue
Gemini and Web Links 13/09/2025: MElon's Slop Grift and "Autonomous Trains"
Links for the day
Pursuing Peace Through Violence
You cannot "see" a person's mind, until the mouth opens
Can We Please Stop Celebrating Shooters?
"An important point to hammer on is that CoCs were never intended for uniform or symmetric application"
Geminispace is Growing Faster in 2025 Than It Did in 2024
What matters is that corporations haven't ruined it and LLM slop is extremely rare
Links 13/09/2025: China Punishes for 'Negative' Posts, US Police Unable to Find Shooter
Links for the day
Who's the Mystery Financier of SLAPP Against Techrights and Is That a Millionaire/Billionaire?
Whose idea was it to fund meritless lawsuits against my wife and I?
Slopwatch: Slow Slop Day
This distracts from or may take traffic away from the original articles, actually written by actual people
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, September 12, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, September 12, 2025
CoC Gone Wrong: Celebrating Murder OK, Complaining About the Celebration Gets You Banned
Hopefully the NixOS Foundation will have a word with (maybe replace) the moderator/s
Gemini Links 12/09/2025: Familiarity and Secondary Dominants
Links for the day
Explaining (in Length and Depth) the Damage Matthew Garrett Did to Linux and to GNU/Linux Users
no matter how many threats we receive
Links 12/09/2025: "Bad Reviews" as Extortion Weapon, "Free Speech At Risk in America’s Schools" According to ACLU
Links for the day
Only One Speaker Does Not Do Sharecropping for MElon (in X.com)
The man who puts principles before PR/optics
The Mind of the 'Hulk Hogan of UEFI'
in a nutshell
A Day After "UEFI 9/11": UEFI Secure Boot Bypass
In the news today (right now), as published in the past few hours
Links 12/09/2025: Slop Code as Liability, Microsoft Outlook Down for Many
Links for the day
It's Still Not to Late to Turn Off "Secure Boot"
If people reboot their PC or server today, and it relies on "Secure Boot" on Sept. 12 or later, then depending on the firmware there may be trouble ahead
Links 12/09/2025: Shira Perlmutter is Back, “Software Per Se” Patent Rejections in In re McFadden
Links for the day
Slopwatch: Linux Plagiarism, Slopfarms Still Infesting Google News, Many Images Are Fake
Google is promoting plagiarism
"This Morning Might Turn Out to be an Interesting One for System Admins Who Haven't Updated Their Devices' Secure Boot Certificate" (If They Reboot)
Who asked for this anyway?
Gemini Links 12/09/2025: Metric System, Dumping Windows, and Software Architecture is Dead
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, September 11, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, September 11, 2025