Important new Microsoft patch release out of schedule

Chris Botterill

Heads up… M$ has released a patch out of the regular patch cycle.

This may not seem like a big deal, but if I know M$, this wouldn’t be happening if this wasn’t a big deal. Read on…

Microsoft’s urgent security update: What it means | News – Security – CNET News

Earlier today, Microsoft did something unusual. The company made an exception to its normal security processes and issued an “out-of-band” urgent update. The update applied is classified as critical for Windows XP and older versions and is considered important for Windows Vista.

After speaking with Microsoft earlier today, I strongly suggest that users understand the importance of this update and begin emergency patching procedures immediately. While exploits around this Windows vulnerability have been limited thus far, Microsoft concedes that it could be exploited by old-school Internet-based worms a la 2004 and do massive amounts of damage. In addition to patching Windows systems, I also encourage users to install the latest security signatures from endpoint and network security vendors.

I doubt we’ll ever see another blaster worm incident again, but this is still a little scary nonetheless.

To get the patch, visit http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/

Popularity: 11% [?]

Oct
10

Canada Identity Theft Stats Revealed for 2008

Chris Botterill

Hmm, this is a disturbing trend, although I suppose that the more people that use the internet the more it’s going to happen:

More online shoppers aiding identity thieves

According to statistics from Phone Busters and the Canadian Anti-Fraud Call Centre, which is operated by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Canadians have reported 8,048 cases of identity theft so far this year, totalling $7.3 million in losses.

In 2007, there were 9,971 cases of identity theft reported, totalling only $6.4 million in losses.

Amazingly enough, a lot of these identity theft problems are not just happening to “newbies” on computers – I just had a friend of mine who would be considered a high level computer user, well aware of how identity theft works have his credit card details stolen and put to use.

The sad part is that he could only trace the details back to one transaction he made at a U-haul depot.

This pretty much means that we are no longer in control of protecting our own identities. No matter what precautions you take, you may still be a vicitim if the companies you are doing business with are not careful with you personal information.

Popularity: 8% [?]

Oct
10

How to Remove Viruses and Spyware Manually

Chris Botterill
Categories: Virus and Spyware

I uploaded a video to YouTube about 8 months ago and it’s been a hit. It shows you how to remove viruses and spyware manually, using only free tools and utilities. Here’s part one and part 2. I would appreciate comments and feedback if you found this to be useful.

I invented this technique years ago and shamelessly named it after myself (or my nickname).

Introducing “The Botts Technique” to manually remove any virus or spyware – guaranteed to work!

Video 1 (Part 1) – How to Remove Viruses and Spyware Manually

Video 2 (Part 2) – How to Remove Viruses and Spyware Manually

Please recommend on your favorite social site, and leave comments!

Popularity: 19% [?]

Oct
10