Hi Listers,

Looks like we will be worse off in terms of accessibility to information if Bill Gates has his way.  Read article below to find out more!

Albert

New Microsoft security to include 'Active protection'
Business Times
26 Feb 2004
SAN FRANCISCO - Microsoft Corp Chairman Bill Gates, whose company's software is often
derided for being buggy and vulnerable to hackers, showed off planned features for
shoring up its programs and heading off cyberattacks.
Progress is being made against viruses, network attacks and sloppy code that make
systems vulnerable, said Mr Gates. But, he added, a lot more work remains.
'The people who attack these systems are getting more and more sophisticated,' Mr
Gates said on Tuesday. 'For every time we take a type of attack and eliminate that
as an opportunity, they move up to a whole new level. That's not an unending process
- we can make it dramatically difficult.'
Speaking to thousands of security experts at the RSA Conference, Mr Gates said Microsoft's
Trustworthy Computing Initiative - unveiled two years ago after several embarrassing
Windows flaws were exploited by viruses and hackers - is paying off.
In the first 300 days after the launch of the Windows 2000 Server operating system,
38 security bulletins were issued. The first major product released after the initiative,
Windows Server 2003, has had just nine bulletins in the first 300 days.
'Everything we're doing has been impacted (by the initiative),' Mr Gates said. 'Over
the past two years, we have made a lot of progress.'
Mr Gates showed off an upcoming Windows XP update that focuses on security improvements.
Service Pack 2, which will be available later this year, includes a centralised control
centre where users can automatically check their computer's security status, such
as whether all critical updates have been applied or whether antivirus software is
running.
Unlike earlier Windows releases, Microsoft's firewall software will be turned on
as part of the default installation. A firewall blocks intruders from entering a
system.
In the new service pack, the Internet Explorer browser will now have a pop-up ad
blocker as well.
Beyond the Windows service release, Mr Gates also showed off 'active protection technologies'
that will gird Windows computers against attacks by sensing changes in the network
that indicate virus activity. If a problem is detected, the computer's firewall will
dynamically ratchet up defences.
A number of companies at the conference were showing products similarly geared towards
detecting unusual activity in networks.
Microsoft isn't limiting its fixes to its operating system. The company also plans
to update its popular Visual Studio development software so that, for example, code
can be scanned for potential problems as it's being written.
Mr Gates also said e-mail spam - which often contains viruses or is sent from infected
computers - is being targeted. He proposed technology that would confirm the sender
of an e-mail is authentic. 'Caller ID for E-Mail' will be tested in the company's
Hotmail service, he said, without providing a specific time frame.
Mr Gates said Microsoft is working with governments and companies by sharing its
software source code, or blueprint. Thirty governments and thousands of companies
now have access to Windows code to look for problems.
This month's leak of a portion of the code to a previous version of Windows was not
the result of the Shared Source program, Mr Gates said.
Mr Gates also announced a deal with RSA Security Inc to make it possible for companies
to use a more secure system than simple user names and passwords to log into Windows
computers.
In addition to providing a password, users of the RSA system must enter a random
number that appears on a keychain or plastic card they carry with them. The number
changes every minute, generated by an algorithm that also resides on a server inside
a company's computing centre.
Microsoft's trustworthy computing plans are important, but they are a piece of a
much larger puzzle, said Robert Holleyman, president of the Business Software Alliance.
A broader understanding among users is necessary to ensure security.
'There's not a single solution to the problem of cybersecurity,' he said. 'It's a
range of solutions that need to be deployed collectively to raise the overall security.'
c


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