Category Archives: Security

Kill your Windows XP systems, before they kill you!

Posted on August 6, 2013 by halberenson

Paul Thurrott just published The Coming Windows XP Apocalypse reminding us that support, including security patches, for Windows XP is coming to an end. For a more in-depth examination on why you need to run from Windows XP as fast as … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Microsoft, Privacy, Security, Windows | Tagged Microsoft Windows XP, Windows XP, Windows XP End-of-Life, Windows XP Support | 31 Comments

Google Reader and other customer tragedies

Posted on March 30, 2013 by halberenson

(This was written weeks ago but not published until now. I’m going to largely leave it as originally written, with an update at the end.) I’m pretty upset about Google’s decision to drop support for Google Reader. I think it … Continue reading →

Posted in Cloud, Computer and Internet, Google, Microsoft, Security | Tagged Forefront, Forefront TMG, Google Reader, Microsoft Forefront, Newsblur | 13 Comments

It’s a good thing I have anti-malware software installed

Posted on March 18, 2013 by halberenson

Along with those who believe NASA faked sending men to the moon and Holocaust deniers, is a group of people who argue that traditional anti-malware (or anti-virus) software is useless and unnecessary. These AV-deniers believe that simply by avoiding things … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Security | Tagged Anti-Malware, drive-by download, trojan | 10 Comments

Some Anti-Malware basics

Posted on December 17, 2012 by halberenson

This is not a blog post for the IT professional, unless you have little idea how anti-malware, reputation, etc. work. It is a small primer for those who don’t quite get all this anti-malware stuff. At its core anti-malware seems … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Security | Tagged Anti-Malware, Reputation | 4 Comments

Are evaluations of Microsoft Security Essentials unfair?

Posted on December 13, 2012 by halberenson

Microsoft Security Essentials has recently come under some criticism for poor test results. The obvious, or maybe not so obvious, question to ask is how much of this is about the performance of Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) and how much … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Microsoft, Security, Windows | Tagged anti-malware testing, Microsoft Security Essentials, Windows Defender | 26 Comments

Yes Virginia, Anti-Virus software is quite useful

Posted on October 1, 2012 by halberenson

Every now and then I come across an article or blog posting arguing that Anti-Virus software is near useless and shouldn’t be bothered with because it can only protect you against known threats and not emerging threats. First of all … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Microsoft, Security, Windows | Tagged Anti-Malware, Anti-Virus | 3 Comments

Goodbye Forefront, it was nice knowing you

Posted on September 15, 2012 by halberenson

My last job at Microsoft was as the “Chief Architect” of the Identity and Security Division (and briefly its successor organization, DAIP) and General Manager for Forefront UAG, Forefront TMG, Rights Management Services, Certificate Services, Windows NAP, and some other … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Microsoft, Security | Tagged DAIP, Forefront, Indentity and Security Division, ISD | 38 Comments

Beware Cloud Services bearing gifts

Posted on September 13, 2012 by halberenson

Last week I tried to access the web site of a company that a few of my former Microsoft colleagues work for and was shocked when Norton DNS blocked my access. Upon further investigation I realized the company’s site was … Continue reading →

Posted in Cloud, Computer and Internet, Microsoft, Phishing, Privacy, Security | Tagged 3322.org, cloud security, cloud services, user generated content | 3 Comments

Vendors are missing out on a malware fighting technique

Posted on September 2, 2012 by halberenson

There is a growing controversy over the business of selling zero-day exploits, that is bugs in software that can be exploited by malware. I say controversy because it is perfectly legal in the U.S. and many other jurisdictions for someone … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Security | Tagged 0-day exploit, exploit sales, security, vulnerabilities, vupen, zero-day, zero-day exploits | 20 Comments

You can’t defeat SPAM when legitimate mail looks like SPAM!

Posted on August 4, 2012 by halberenson

One of the subtle changes in Microsoft’s new outlook.com replacement for Hotmail is that the messages about suspicious mail have changed. In Hotmail messages are simply described as suspicious, in outlook.com it is now clearly stated that the “sender failed our … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Phishing, Privacy, Security | Tagged authenticated mail, DKIM, Sender ID, SPAM, SPF | 8 Comments