Date: 08/13/2003 12:22 PM
From: Frank Batha ([email protected])
Subject: Worm Exploits Weak Link: PC Users
Microsoft is full of it regarding this problem ("Worm Exploits Weak Link: PC Users," Aug. 13, 2003).
I'm using the firewall built into Windows XP, which -- by the way -- required me to get rid of the McAfee firewall I had been using because of incompatibility issues. I also use two antivirus programs. I still got hit with this worm. Ask Microsoft if it stands by its firewall that is built into XP to stop this problem.
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Date: 08/13/2003 01:24 PM
From: Derek Chatwood ([email protected])
Subject: Worm Exploits Weak Link: PC Users
One huge reason for not wanting to apply Microsoft updates wasn't even mentioned: We don't trust Microsoft ("Worm Exploits Weak Link: PC Users," Aug. 13, 2003).
With Microsoft spearheading Digital Rights Management technology, making deals with the music and movie industries, trying to make its audio and video formats the de facto standard, there's much to be wary of.
How do I know that the next update or patch I apply won't make all of my non-DRM-compliant (but still legal) MP3 files unplayable? Or make it impossible to legally rip or copy my DVDs or CDs? I've applied patches and updates that reset all of my third-party music and movie players, so only Microsoft players open my files. So it isn't really a great big paranoid leap to think they would take it a step further.
If you want to be paranoid, wonder if Microsoft masterminded this "blaster" virus. It affected hundreds of thousands of systems yet caused no real damage. It also garnered tons of press, resulting in an unprecedented number of computer users updating and patching their computers, which is exactly what Microsoft wanted in the first place. Might check to see if your MP3s still work.
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Date: 08/13/2003 01:34 PM
From: Tom DiStefano ([email protected])
Subject: Worm Exploits Weak Link: PC Users
Why do you say PC users are the "weak link" ("Worm Exploits Weak Link: PC Users," Aug. 13, 2003)? And why does Microsoft wonder why people don't download its patches? The weak link is Microsoft's software.
The big question is: Why does it need so many patches in the first place? Why should customers have to do anything to fix a product they bought with the understanding it would work properly?
Microsoft is not only mediocre; it is arrogant as well. It should work for its customers, not the other way around.
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Date: 08/13/2003 09:20 PM
From: Todd Hildebrand ([email protected])
Subject: Worm Exploits Weak Link: PC Users
Most of the articles about this worm, including this one, seem to place all of the blame on the users for not patching their machines ("Worm Exploits Weak Link: PC Users," Aug. 13, 2003).
I must point out that many times over the last few years, Microsoft has published a patch, only to withdraw it shortly thereafter because fixing the initial flaw created more problems.
An example is the patch for NT 4.0 issued a couple of weeks ago that broke RRAS. Anyone who administers any Microsoft products on a regular basis learns not to blindly apply its patches; you wait a few weeks to see what the patch does to someone else's network before you apply it to yours.
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