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Sophos posted a blog entry a few days ago about a Phish attempt regarding Facebook.

Some Facebook users received messages in their inbox which has a title that say, “Look at this!”. It contains a link to a domain, fbstarter.com.

The blog entry notes that at the time of posting the entry, the site does not have any content. Sophos suspect that it will be hosting a phishing site at some point on April 30. On that same day, it was the #1 hottest topic in Google trends.

Source: Sophos

 Microsoft spokesperson told betanews.com that, “Any SKU of Windows 7 will be able to run on netbooks, which means that the hardware limitations of a netbook won’t affect the functionality of Windows 7 regardless of SKU. With Windows 7, Microsoft is on track to have a smaller OS footprint, an improved user interface that should allow for faster boot-up and shut-down times, improved power management for enhanced battery life, enhanced media capabilities and increased reliability, stability and security.”

The spokesperson also responded on the issue of the Windows 7 Starter edition that it limits users to opening only three programs at a time. He  says that this issue and other specific limitation should not be perceived as encumbered or “defeated”.

Source: Betanews.com

A fix has been released by Microsoft about a critical image flaw that lets an attacker control a computer if a user viewed a poisoned image in a website or an email in an HTML format.

It is “probably of interest to all customers using Windows,” but that it “probably won’t be reliably exploited,” according to Mike Reavey of Microsoft who is the Security Response Center director of the company.

It involves how the operating system processes WMF and EMF files. The affected versions are Windows 2000, XP, Server 2003 and 2008, and Vista.

Source: PCWorld

Various websites have reported that Microsoft is adding Netflix in Windows Media Center for Vista computers. People with Netflix accounts can access over 12,000 videos on demand.

Media Center is only available to premium versions of Windows Vista. It uses Silverlight to deliver Netflix videos. It will be built into Windows 7 and it will also include new features according to Ben Reed. One of the features is called “Turboscroll”. It makes the software easier for users to find specific content.

A patch has been issued by Microsoft for its PowerPoint software. However, the patch is only for Windows users.

The flaw in Powerpoint lets an attacker plant a Trojan. The Trojan sends identification of the machine and its location. It also performs a search on the hard drive and downloads additional malware or update.

All versions of Powerpoint from version 2000 are affected. Mac users who have versions 2004 and/or 2008 will have to wait for a different patch.

The vulnerability is rated as critical by Microsoft.

Source: SecurityProNews

Neowin.net and other tech sites have posted articles about the technical preview version of the next version of Microsoft Office.

Office 2010 will be available in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions. It can run on Windows XP SP3, Vista, and 7 systems.

Parts of it have been optimized for Windows 7 with a new jump lists feature. The feature is pinned to the taskbar.

The article in Neowin includes a screen shot of it for Microsoft Outlook 2010. It notes that other programs in Office will offer the usual list of pinned and recent files.

Source: Neowin.net

Acer, a computer manufacturer once mentioned that the release date of the operating system is on October 23.

“Ultimately our partners will determine when their PCs are available in the market,” wrote Steven Sinofsky of Microsoft.

Windows XP was manufactured in the month of August and it was released in the month of October notes Gavin Clarke who is the author of the article at The Register.

Source: The Register

Posted: 10 May 2009 07:28 PM PDT

A software tool has been released by Microsoft that determines whether a computer can handle Windows 7.

It examines the graphics processor, chip, memory, and other components of a computer.

“For the people who want to upgrade their existing PC, they are often faced with the question of whether their PC can run the new Windows version or note,” wrote a Microsoft Windows blogger.

The Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor beta can be downloaded from the company’s website but the blogger did not state when a final version of it would be available.

Source: Information Week

The Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) anti-piracy technology will be renamed to Windows Activation Technologies (WAT) for the next Windows operating system.

“When we went out and talked to customers, we found that activation was the concept that resonated most strongly with them,” said Alex Kochis of Microsoft. He is the director of the Windows Genuine group.

WAT is a “more specific and technically accurate” name for WGA according to him.

The process will be similar to Vista when a copy is flagged as a fake.

Source: COMPUTERWORLD

Some computers that are capable of running Windows 7 may not be able to run in XP mode according to an article at PC World. These computers include laptops with older Intel Core 2 Duos and Pentium M processors.

To be able to run in XP mode, computers need a processor with Virtualization support.

The article notes that if a user’s PC can run software’s such as Parallels for Mac, VirtualBox, or Virtual PC, then it can run Windows 7 in XP mode.

Source: PC World

An Explorer flaw that exists in the past versions of Windows such as Vista and XP also exists in Windows 7, The flaw allows cybercrooks to hide extensions of files. “Virus writers used this “feature” to make people mistake executables for stuff such as document files,” wrote Mikko Hypponen of F-Secure in his blog.

“Additionally, virus writers would change the icon inside the executable to look like the icon of a text file or an image, and everybody would be fooled,” he added.

Microsoft will make the release candidate for Windows 7 available for everyone on next Tuesday, May 5th. Microsoft will be giving it away for one year. It will not expire till June 1st 2010. Microsoft says the real version will be available toward the end of this year and could ship as early as October. I think this pretty much means Microsoft is going to finally pony up and give us the OS we have been waiting for. Microsoft seems confident enough that everyone will be willing to pay for it after using it a whole year for free. Keep those fingers crossed! Meanwhile we can play with it for a year to see if we like it.

Source: Dvice.com

Windows users who have their automatic software update turned on will be notified that Internet Explorer version 8 is now available to be download.

The new version runs faster and smoother than version 7 according to the author of the article at The Washington Post.

One of the new features is called SmartFilter. This feature blocks phishing sites. The article mentions that this does not work well against sites that distribute rogue anti-virus products.

The process of installing it took 15 minutes according to the test that was made by the author.

Source: Washington Post

There is going to be an XP mode in Microsoft’s next operating system according to various websites. The XP mode will only be available to Professional, Enterprise, and Ultimate editions of Windows 7.

The way the it works is that XP will run under a virtual processor and applications designed for Windows XP can run without booting a virtual machine.

The article at CrunchGear notes that the applications that users installed under XP will show up in the Windows 7 start menu.

Two screenshots are included in CrunchGear. The first is about the Windows Virtual PC. The other one shows the start menu which shows the XP applications that are installed.

Source: CrunchGear

Various websites have reported that Windows 7 has an ‘unfixable’ exploit and that two researchers have found it. They claimed that they can access to any Windows 7 computer undetected by using a program called VBootkit 2.0 which is 3 kb in size.

It gives the hacker the ability to do anything he or she wants on an exploited computer.

Virus scanners will struggle to detect it according to the article at Gizmondo. The article also notes that the program can’t be installed remotely.

Source: Gizmondo

Details are released for the next Windows operating system, Windows 7. According to the article at Tom’s Hardware, the five components are Multiple Active Firewall Policies, DirectAccess, BranchCache, BitLocker To Go, and AppLocker.

“We’re really excited about Windows 7’s new security features. This next OS is built upon the proven security technologies in Windows Vista and provides a fundamentally secure computing platform. We not only utilized enhanced Security Development Lifecycle (SDL) process during planning, development and testing but we also have worked to make the security features more discoverable, usable and manageable,” said Paul Cooke of Microsoft.

Source: Tom’s Hardware

Microsoft will add 20 new third-party feed partners to Windows Live next week. This means that Digg and Facebook users can integrate their web activities to Windows Live.

Emil Protalinski, the author of the article at Ars Technica, notes that this news means that the company plans to turn Windows Live into a main hub of a user’s social life.

The list of new partners include Sweden’s Bilddagboken.se, France’s Fotolog and DailyMotion, Russia’s Yandex, UK’s Last.fm, and Italy’s Hevre.

Source: Ars Technica

Posted: 12 Aug 2009 05:43 PM PDT

If a user bought a basic version of Windows 7, they would be able to easily upgrade to a better version of the operating system just by entering a product key according to various tech sites that posted their reports today.

“A customer may purchase a netbook thinking they would use it primarily for e-mail. Over time, they find they are using that netbook as their primary everyday PC,” wrote Brandon LeBlanc of Microsoft in a blog.

Source: Information Week

Posted: 29 Jul 2009 05:08 PM PDT

Posted: 28 Jul 2009 09:55 PM PDT

Microsoft has released details of its next version of Office.

There will be five versions instead of eight different versions that the company released for Office 2007.

Some of the programs such as Word and Excel will also have a web-based version which will be free. These web-based programs are compatible with Mozilla Firefox and Apple Safari as well as the company’s Internet Explorer.

Like Office 2007 “home and student” version, Outlook will also not be included in this version of Office 2010.

Apple will support Windows 7 in Boot Camp mode that runs on Mac OS X Snow Leopard.

“Apple will support Microsoft Windows 7 (Home Premium, Professional, and Ultimate) with Boot Camp in Mac OS X Snow Leopard before the end of the year. This support will require a software update to Boot Camp,” the company said on its website.

Those who have Intel-based Macs that were manufactured in 2006 are out of luck since the company would not support them in this issue.

Source: The Register

Posted: 23 Oct 2009 09:27 PM PDT

The development of Microsoft Works software suite has been abandoned by the company. Instead, users can get Office Starter 2010. This is a stripped down version of Office and it contain ads.

“Office Starter 2010 will provide new PC owners with immediate exposure to the Office 2010 experience on new PCs right out of the box,” said Microsoft officials.

This version also includes the Ribbon interface.

The officials added that it “enables a faster path for consumers to begin using any of three full versions of Microsoft Office.”

Those who will upgrade from Windows Vista to Windows 7 may no longer access the recovery applications set by the original equipment manufacturer.

There is no way to resolve this issue at the moment.

Microsoft explained, “You have a computer that is preinstalled with Windows Vista by the computer manufacturer. After you upgrade from Windows Vista to Windows 7 on this computer, you notice that manufacturer-specific recovery applications are no longer available on the System Recovery

The XP mode for Windows 7 has been released as an add-on to manufacturing partners. It is up to them whether to include the add-on. If they do not include it, users could download it on their Windows 7 operating systems on the same day that it will be officially released which is October 22.

“We expect many Windows XP applications to be compatible with Windows 7. However, Windows XP Mode is meant to serve as an added safety net so small and mid-sized businesses can migrate and run Windows 7 without any roadblocks,” said Brandon LeBlanc of Microsoft in a post.

Source: InformationWeek

Windows users can now download Microsoft’s antivirus software called Security Essentials. It protects against malicious files such as Trojan horses and worms.

The beta version was released in June on some countries such as U.S., Brazil, and China.

The sofware can run on XP, Vista, and 7 machines. It is not meant to compete with other antivirus software such as the ones from McAfee and Symantec.

Microsoft has released a preview version of Windows Embedded Standard 2011. It is a Windows 7-based operating system (OS) for embedded devices such as point-of-service devices and kiosk, medical and multifunction printers.

Device manufacturers can choose which features they want to add in their devices because the OS is component-based.

The OS also includes enterprise features such as links to Active Directory and Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager. It also has the Windows Aero interface and other user-interface additions that Microsoft added in Windows 7.

Source: PC World

Over 50,000 users have downloaded a fix for the so-called “black screen of death” according to a security firm. This is an indication that there are much more people affected with this problem.

The Prevx CEO and chief technology officer said, “Following the issue of our fix, which continues to receive significant downloads, we believe that this problem is still affecting a very large number of users in a very diverse range of Windows environments.”

The problem occurs when users attempt to start their computers.

Source: Information Week

OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer)
OEM licenses for Windows XP are generally cheaper to buy than the retail version but OEM’s must be sold in conjunction with internal computer hardware. Typically, you will see OEM copies of Windows XP sold with new computers.
OEM copies usually come in a flat, shrink wrapped paper CD holder with a cardboard backing and will say something like “Only for distribution with a new PC” on it. Additionally, OEM versions are intended to be supported by the system manufacturer rather than Microsoft.

Do not sell OEM copies of XP without internal hardware like a motherboard or hard drive. Microsoft do pursue this and often bait computer businesses so they can fine them.

A OEM copy of Windows XP will only accept OEM Windows license keys.

Branded
If the disk is branded with a brand name like HP, Compaq or Dell it is most likely a OEM copy. The Windows XP case will say something like “For use on new (brand name) computers only” and the license sticker will usually have the brand name of the manufacturer on it. Other than the visual differences on the CD, license sticker and the “System Properties” area of the computer; They are identical to OEM copies.

Retail