Privacy, Security Archive

Study finds Windows more secure than Linux

Eugenia Loli 2005-02-17 Privacy, Security 78 Comments

Believe it or not, a Windows Web server is more secure than a similarly set-up Linux server, according to a study presented yesterday by two Florida researchers. The researchers, appearing at the RSA Conference of computer-security professionals, discussed the findings in an event, "Security Showdown: Windows vs. Linux." One of them, a Linux fan, runs an open-source server at home; the other is a Microsoft enthusiast. They wanted to cut through the near-religious arguments about which system is better from a security standpoint.

Researchers: Digital encryption standard flawed

Eugenia Loli 2005-02-17 Privacy, Security 11 Comments

An encryption standard widely used in digitally signing documents and programs has a flaw in it that could allow for the creation of forgeries, sources said Wednesday.

Is Windows safer than Linux?

Submitted by danjr 2005-02-11 Privacy, Security 78 Comments

Microsoft's Security Chief says that Windows is safer than Linux. Mike Nash made the comments while stressing that the company is making progress on security. He compared vulnerabilities in Windows with those in Red Hat or SuSE Linux. Update: Nick McGrath, head of platform strategy for Microsoft in the UK has claimed that 'Linux is not ready for mission critical computing.'

Microsoft releases “critical” patches; Tablet OS glitch

Submitted by danjr 2005-02-09 Privacy, Security 27 Comments

Microsoft has released the single largest number of patches since it has started doing monthly updates. The dozen updates include patches for Office XP, IE 6, and Media Player and MSN Messenger. Also, a glitch in the latest version of Microsoft's Tablet PC software is causing significant performance problems for those running the new operating system, the company has confirmed.

Access Control Lists

Eugenia Loli 2005-02-09 Privacy, Security 14 Comments

If you've used Linux for a long time, you're probably quite familiar with file permissions. Indeed, managing permissions is a critical part of managing a Linux system. In general, you should provide minimal access whenever possible. Every user (or group) should have just enough permissions and no more.

Darius’ Guide to Windows 2k/XP Desktop Security

Guest post by Darius 2005-02-08 Privacy, Security 143 Comments

As I have browsed this site and others like it, I have often seen comments like "The only way to secure a Windows box is to not connect it to the Internet!" and "How can you stand to use Windows when you have to run tons of apps such as spyware removers and spend hours trying to keep it secure?" Some people have even gone as far as to say that it is literally impossible to secure Windows. Well, I'm here to tell you that not only is it possible, it's actually quite trivial! It requires very little effort and you can do it without running a buttload of security apps and without spending a dime.

Clueless about cookies or spyware?

Eugenia Loli 2005-02-03 Privacy, Security 33 Comments

Spyware-removal tools are a fairly new commodity from Internet service providers, but some of the software may confuse people as much as it protects them, critics say.

Home User Security Guide

Submitted by LogError 2005-01-31 Privacy, Security 19 Comments

Many of you have new computers in your homes, but how many of you realize that this computer is already vulnerable? How can this be? How can a brand new computer be vulnerable? Read this article and find out more.

Linux security is a ‘myth’, claims Microsoft

Submitted by Tudy 2005-01-29 Privacy, Security 98 Comments

A senior Microsoft executive, speaking exclusively to vnunet.com, has dismissed Linux's reputation as a secure platform as a "myth", claiming that the open source development process creates fundamental security problems.

An Overview of GPG

Submitted by Terremce W. Zellers 2005-01-25 Privacy, Security 6 Comments

This is a quick overview of using GPG giving a little background material then illustrating its simpler uses. At www.ip-wars.net as An Overview of GPG.

The Whole Story: Hacker penetrates T-Mobile systems

Eugenia Loli 2005-01-13 Privacy, Security 31 Comments

A sophisticated computer hacker had access to servers at wireless giant T-Mobile for at least a year, which he used to monitor U.S. Secret Service e-mail, obtain customers' passwords and Social Security numbers, and download candid photos taken by Sidekick users, including Hollywood celebrities, SecurityFocus has learned.

Firefox Phishing Flaw

Submitted by Matt 2005-01-09 Privacy, Security 25 Comments

"A vulnerability in Firefox could expose users of the open-source browser to the risk of phishing scams, security experts have warned. " In a related note, security firm Secunia has discovered three very critical security flaws in IE.

Calling Components Safely

Eugenia Loli 2004-12-27 Privacy, Security 11 Comments

Clicking on a hypertext link while viewing a PDF file shouldn't be a security problem as long as you trust the viewer it invokes. But users of xpdf version 0.90 discovered that this assumption was an extremely bad one. When an xpdf user clicked on a hypertext link, xpdf started up a viewer (Netscape by default) and sent the URL to the viewer. So far, so good. But the xpdf developers decided to start up the viewer by using the system() call. That was the bad idea..

Exploits Released for New Windows Flaws

Submitted by danjr 2004-12-24 Privacy, Security 33 Comments

A Chinese company has released sample code that exploits new vulnerabilities in the Windows operating system. The LoadImage function and Windows Help program are both affected.

Security Risks In The Wireless Computing Environment

Submitted by LogError 2004-12-22 Privacy, Security 6 Comments

This article will address at a summary level the most significant security risks in the wireless computing environment. The purpose of the article is to introduce in a centralized fashion the scope of the problem and the most significant talking points on the issue of wireless security and to summarize where the industry is in addressing these problems and where it is going.

Building Linux Monitoring Portals with Open Source

Submitted by Don 2004-12-22 Privacy, Security 3 Comments

Faced with an increasing number of deployed Linux servers and no budget for commercial monitoring tools, our company looked into open-source solutions for gathering performance and security information from our Unix environment.

Microsoft To Offer Anti-Spyware Tool

David Adams 2004-12-18 Privacy, Security 52 Comments

Within 30 days, Microsoft will have a tool available to remove spyware from Windows PCs. The tool comes from a small company called Giant Company Software that Microsoft recently acquired. The anti-spyware tool will initially be free, but Microsoft has stated that it may eventually charge for the program. Update: It seems that another company has co-ownership of the code that Microsoft bought in this acquisition.