Tag: #Microsoft

Categories
Technology

200M users at threat from end of Windows XP

An estimated 200 million people still using Microsoft’s mothballed operating system Windows XP are at risk of cyberattack, experts warned.

The U.S. technology giant stopped support for XP in April, meaning users will not get critical security updates, leaving the OS open to hacking and attack.

Research firm IDC outlined the large number of consumers and businesses under threat, showing that 200 million users are still on XP, while the OS has 26.2 percent market share, according to Netmarketshare numbers.

Read MoreEnd of Windows XP leaves many companies vulnerable

“You’re talking about 200 million computers running XP, simply put, they are open,” Ernest Hilbert, former FBI agent and head of cyber investigations for EMEA at risk consultancy Kroll, told CNBC in a phone interview.

Heartbleed, IE threat

This comes amid a series of cybersecurity concerns over the past few weeks. The so-called “Heartbleed bug” was discovered by researchers last month in OpenSSL software—an encryption service used by around two-thirds of websites to protect information sent to and from web pages.

Chris Ratcliffe | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Microsoft also rushed to fix a bug in its popular Internet Explorer web browser after a computer security firm revealed the flaw, and it said in a blog post on Thursday that XP users would receive the update on a one-off basis.

“Just because this update is out now doesn’t mean you should stop thinking about getting off Windows XP and moving to a newer version of Windows and the latest version of Internet Explorer,” Adrienne Hall, general manager of Trustworthy Computing at Microsoft, said in an official blog post on Thursday.

Read MoreHeartbleed bug: Is changing your password enough?

“If you are on Windows 7, upgrade to Internet Explorer 11. Our modern operating systems provide more safety and security than ever before.”

Despite this, Hilbert warned that other aspects of Windows XP are still are risk despite the Internet Explorer fix.

“There are still people out there looking at XP to find a way to manipulate it and now they know that nobody is going to try to fix it.”

PLAY VIDEO
Windows XP users could face security risks
CNBC’s Josh Lipton and CNET Senior Editor Bridget Carey talk about the impact of Microsoft discontinuing support of its Windows XP operating system.

XP not ‘mission critical’

Earlier this year, concern over the end of support for XP spread to the banks as the majority of their ATM machines ran the OS. Several of the major banks told CNBC they had signed extended deals with Microsoft.

Read MoreNo more Windows XP means security fees for banks

But not all security experts agree the end of XP support could be fatal due to the outdated nature of the software.

“A lot of them will be old PCs and not being used for critical stuff. They are grannies and granddads keeping in touch with distant grandchildren,” Bob Tarzey, analyst and director at Quocirca, an IT analysis firm.

“The bottom line is XP doesn’t have the horse power to do a lot of the things people want to do on PCs nowadays. I doubt that computers running Windows XP are mission-critical.”

h/t – cnbc

Categories
Technology

Meet The New Microsoft CEO – Read His Letter to The Employees

Bill Gates did his part, now Microsoft has a new CEO.  His name is Satya Nadella, and this is his letter to the company.

From: Satya Nadella
To: All Employees
Date: Feb. 4, 2014
Subject: RE: Satya Nadella – Microsoft’s New CEO

Today is a very humbling day for me. It reminds me of my very first day at Microsoft, 22 years ago. Like you, I had a choice about where to come to work. I came here because I believed Microsoft was the best company in the world. I saw then how clearly we empower people to do magical things with our creations and ultimately make the world a better place. I knew there was no better company to join if I wanted to make a difference. This is the very same inspiration that continues to drive me today.
It is an incredible honor for me to lead and serve this great company of ours. Steve and Bill have taken it from an idea to one of the greatest and most universally admired companies in the world. I’ve been fortunate to work closely with both Bill and Steve in my different roles at Microsoft, and as I step in as CEO, I’ve asked Bill to devote additional time to the company, focused on technology and products. I’m also looking forward to working with John Thompson as our new Chairman of the Board.

While we have seen great success, we are hungry to do more. Our industry does not respect tradition — it only respects innovation. This is a critical time for the industry and for Microsoft. Make no mistake, we are headed for greater places — as technology evolves and we evolve with and ahead of it. Our job is to ensure that Microsoft thrives in a mobile and cloud-first world.
As we start a new phase of our journey together, I wanted to share some background on myself and what inspires and motivates me.

Who am I?

I am 46. I’ve been married for 22 years and we have 3 kids. And like anyone else, a lot of what I do and how I think has been shaped by my family and my overall life experiences. Many who know me say I am also defined by my curiosity and thirst for learning. I buy more books than I can finish. I sign up for more online courses than I can complete. I fundamentally believe that if you are not learning new things, you stop doing great and useful things. So family, curiosity and hunger for knowledge all define me.

Why am I here?

I am here for the same reason I think most people join Microsoft — to change the world through technology that empowers people to do amazing things. I know it can sound hyperbolic — and yet it’s true. We have done it, we’re doing it today, and we are the team that will do it again.
I believe over the next decade computing will become even more ubiquitous and intelligence will become ambient. The coevolution of software and new hardware form factors will intermediate and digitize — many of the things we do and experience in business, life and our world. This will be made possible by an ever-growing network of connected devices, incredible computing capacity from the cloud, insights from big data, and intelligence from machine learning.

This is a software-powered world.
It will better connect us to our friends and families and help us see, express, and share our world in ways never before possible. It will enable businesses to engage customers in more meaningful ways.
I am here because we have unparalleled capability to make an impact.
Why are we here?

In our early history, our mission was about the PC on every desk and home, a goal we have mostly achieved in the developed world. Today we’re focused on a broader range of devices. While the deal is not yet complete, we will welcome to our family Nokia devices and services and the new mobile capabilities they bring us.

As we look forward, we must zero in on what Microsoft can uniquely contribute to the world. The opportunity ahead will require us to reimagine a lot of what we have done in the past for a mobile and cloud-first world, and do new things.

We are the only ones who can harness the power of software and deliver it through devices and services that truly empower every individual and every organization. We are the only company with history and continued focus in building platforms and ecosystems that create broad opportunity.
Qi Lu captured it well in a recent meeting when he said that Microsoft uniquely empowers people to “do more.” This doesn’t mean that we need to do more things, but that the work we do empowers the world to do more of what they care about — get stuff done, have fun, communicate and accomplish great things. This is the core of who we are, and driving this core value in all that we do — be it the cloud or device experiences — is why we are here.

What do we do next?

To paraphrase a quote from Oscar Wilde — we need to believe in the impossible and remove the improbable.
This starts with clarity of purpose and sense of mission that will lead us to imagine the impossible and deliver it. We need to prioritize innovation that is centered on our core value of empowering users and organizations to “do more.” We have picked a set of high-value activities as part of our One Microsoft strategy. And with every service and device launch going forward we need to bring more innovation to bear around these scenarios.

Next, every one of us needs to do our best work, lead and help drive cultural change. We sometimes underestimate what we each can do to make things happen and overestimate what others need to do to move us forward. We must change this.

Finally, I truly believe that each of us must find meaning in our work. The best work happens when you know that it’s not just work, but something that will improve other people’s lives.

This is the opportunity that drives each of us at this company.
Many companies aspire to change the world. But very few have all the elements required: talent, resources, and perseverance. Microsoft has proven that it has all three in abundance. And as the new CEO, I can’t ask for a better foundation.

Let’s build on this foundation together.

Satya

Categories
Domestic Policies

Safety in the Name of Surveillance

Hey, America, WE’RE AT WAR!!! This is No Ordinary War, but it’s still War just the same! Stop it with your Penny-Anny whining about “Privacy and Civil Liberties” being taken away. It was taken away after 9/11, less we forget. Immediately after we were attacked with the planes diving into buildings, the Bush Administration began wiretapping phone calls and emails because of potential threats from known and unknown al-Qaeda groups.

President Bush authorized a surveillance program in late 2001, allowing the NSA (National Security Agency) to monitor communications between the United States and foreign countries without court oversight when a party is believed to be linked to al-Qaeda. During the 2008 article that revealed President Bush’s tactics, Administration officials had acknowledged that the NSA program was broader, and intelligence sources had described a vast effort to collect and analyze telephone and e-mail communications that were later scrutinized by the government for desired information. Does this Ring A Bell? Fast Forward to Thursday, June 6th.

On Thursday, President Obama was slammed for doing the EXACT SAME THING George Bush did as President, yet Obama is being pummeled by some Right Wingers, some Democrats that seemed to have forgotten what Bush initiated after 9/11, by media outlets like the New York Times and Fox News (No Surprise There) and every day Americans who also have forgotten WE’RE AT WAR!!!

Collection of audio, video, email, photographic and Internet search usage of foreign nationals overseas who use any of the nine major Internet providers, including Microsoft, Google, Apple, Yahoo and others has also taken place.

Thursday was June 6th, the Commemoration of D-Day. On June 6th, 1944, the Great Theater of Battle was the Normandy invasion which was to liberate Europe from the stronghold of Adolf Hitler and the German war machine.

During WWII, we knew what the enemy looked like. Another battle was taking place thousands of miles away in Japan. We saw them coming in Big Ships across the oceans, hundereds of thousands of planes in the air and Tanks across the desert. Today, our enemy lives in caves but has the technological skills of a seasoned IBM’er.

They disguise themselves by blending in like you and me. By going to work everyday, or enrolling in schools, colleges, the Armed Services, they are unnoticed because they adopt our way of life. Then, without warning, the Fort Hood Shooting takes place. Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan opened fire on his fellow servicemen, killing 13 and injuring 30. Then Sen. Joe Lieberman opined that Hasan was under personal stress and may have turned to Islamic Extremism.

And how about the Boston Marathon Bombers? The brothers, Dzokhar Tsarnaev, 19 and his brother who was killed in a gun battle with police in Boston, 26- year old Tamerlan, killed 3 and injured over 260 with pressure cooker bombs. The purpose of the attack after investigation and interrogation of young Dzokhar, Extreme Islamist beliefs and the Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Don’t sleep America! There are many other ‘cell groups’ right here on our soil. And it takes a great deal of surveillance that WE Have No Idea About that HAS to be monitored.

To be sure, Obama didn’t launch the data-mining initiatives, which were started during the Bush administration, though he has expanded them. He had defenders Thursday ranging from California Sen. Feinstein, a liberal Democrat, to South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, a conservative Republican. “It’s called protecting America,” Feinstein said.

Obama called it “a false choice between the liberties we cherish and the security we demand.” Yes, we demand our Freedoms but do we sacrifice Freedom over our Safety?

Senior administration officials defended the programs as critical tools and said the intelligence they yield is among the most valuable data the U.S. collects. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said the Internet program, known as PRISM, can’t be used to intentionally target any Americans or anyone in the U.S, and that data accidentally collected about Americans is kept to a minimum.

At hearing of this story that NEVER SHOULD HAVE BEEN REPORTED, I asked several Verizon users their thoughts on the whole matter, one being my In-Law. She stated, “ I’ve got Nothing to hide so I’m not concerned”. A golf buddy stated he had concerns of how the government gathers our information but didn’t feel threatened since he was a law-abiding citizen. I always wonder why when it comes to things of this nature, people get all flushed and bothered. If you have Nothing to hide, why does it bother you so much?

In the name of Safety, I want All the Protection my Government can Provide for my family, friends and this Great Country. In the name of Freedom, We have to Allow some Inconveniences along the way.

The enemy has brand new ways of infiltration. We can’t always see them, but thank God we have people working to Cease and Desist ALL perpetrators who would do us harm.

And by the way, the reason I said this story should Never have been reported, it opens the eyes of the Enemy. Now, they have to regroup and change the way they were doing ‘business’. Because our government knew of their actions, their mode of communication, their habits, they too have heard this story. We’re back to square one. In that reporters zealous for getting a story out there, You may have just jeopardized the security of not just Americans, but the World as a Whole…I’m just saying…

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