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Vista Open To Current Trio Of Threats
David Utter
Staff Writer
2006-12-01
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Out of the Sophos list of the top ten malware threats the company has observed globally, three of them can evade the default security of the new Microsoft Vista operating system.
 | | "Vista not infallible afterall" |  |
Security concerns for Vista do exist, as Sophos found that some of the same problems that plague computer users today will still be an issue for those who make the switch to Vista.
Microsoft rolled out Vista to its larger volume licensing customers at the end of November, with company CEO Steve Ballmer calling Vista and other new Microsoft "the most advanced work that Microsoft has ever done."
Some unwanted old friends are waiting for Vista. The W32/Stratio-Zip worm, accounting for one in three instances of malware today, can infect Vista PCs if a user accesses a web-based email client containing the threat.
"There has been much speculation about whether Vista would render existing malware extinct, and the news is now in - it won't," said Carole Theriault, senior security consultant at Sophos.
This scenario comes into play with a PC with Vista's default setup and no third-party security software in place. Since volume licensing customers are likely to have such security programs placed on the PCs they deploy, the threat should be mitigated with the timely updating of signatures as new viruses emerge.
The problem comes in the form of zero-day exploits and the use of web-based email services by people who use them to check personal messages. If a malicious payload arrives through one of those, the system is at risk. Some companies have banned the use of those types of email services anyway, usually for productivity reasons.
However, by the testing Sophos performed, Vista's new mail client fared well. It identified and stopped all of the top ten malware threats from its default setup. That does not eliminate the need for complementary security software, but considering how Outlook has been exploited in the past it is an encouraging step for Microsoft.
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Tag: Microsoft Vista
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About the Author:
David Utter is a business and technology writer for SecurityProNews and WebProNews.
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