Computer Tips -Tech Info

So, I was formatting a drive the other day. It’s an external hard drive that will need to be readable AND writable by both Mac and Windows XP machines. So, the only choice (without paying for MacDrive to read/write to HFS+) is really FAT32. The drive is in the 250GB-300GB ballpark. So, I reference the […]

For starters, if you’re using Windows 98 or ME still in a production system, you REALLY need to be looking at migration options and you should realize that the architecture of those systems is NOT conducive to a good secure platform. No XP isn’t perfect, but it is an improvement in many areas. That much […]

I saw a comment somewhere else that zero-day was overused and in essense ANY previously unknown vulnerability in open source software is technically zero day… the intent here though is to use the word in this context…. “vulnerability has been released without giving the vendor an opportunity to patch…” Yes, the fun vulnerability weekend seems […]

Sometimes you feel like the little Dutch boy of myth/legend with his finger trying to plug the hole in a dam…. Incidents bring us this as well…. another powerpoint vulnerability seems to have been disclosed. MS has an advisory. All currently supported Office versions are vulnerable (even on Mac?) Workarounds include not opening powerpoint files… […]

Translation – Microsoft patched one vulnerability another surfaces…. Incidents.org brings us the frustrating news…. If you remember the month of browser bugs series of exploits back in July, there was a denial of service there that appears to have code execution after all. Coincidence or not, it got publicly released after the out of cycle […]

The big news this afternoon is that Microsoft HAS gone out of the routine patch cycle to release a security fix for the VML vulnerability that’s been actively exploited in recent days for everything from sneak keylogger installs to massive spyware installs. Sans has a few links, if you de-registered the affected DLL you should […]

Just catching up on the days VML vulnerability news from today…. It looks as though… the exploit is now MUCH more widespread this blog has some video of an infection, what’s notable is that the first take was VERY UNEVENTFUL, it was used to stealthily install a keylogger. (So that they can harvest paypal/bank/etc. passwords…) […]

Do you remember the big bruhaha a month or so back about the “apple wireless vulnerability” that everybody picked apart because in the video taped demonstration they used a third party card…. EVEN though the demonstrators stated that the same vulnerability existed in Apple’s own driver some on the internet tore one reporter up over […]

Sunbelt is still finding fake codec sites…. This most recent site is mpcodec.com and the ip address of 69.50.160.58 (I had to do a doubletake as THIS site (averyjparker.com) is hosted at 69.36.180.58 – I usually see the first and last numbers first and thought – “wait a minute – that looks familiar…” the middle […]

SO, there’s the second big vulnerability exploit for Internet Explorer making the rounds in about a week and Microsoft’s advisory says that the most recent flaw will likely be patched on October’s patch day (“unless the need arises…”) So, what would trigger that need? Lot’s of browsers being subjected to unwanted drive-by downloads? I suppose […]