Year: 2013

Predictions for 2014 and the December 2013 Security Bulletin Webcast, Q&A, and Slide Deck

by J.C. Hornbeck // 9 Comments

Today we’re publishing the December 2013 Security Bulletin Webcast Questions & Answers page.  We answered 17 questions in total, with the majority of questions focusing on the Graphics Component bulletin (MS13-096), Security Advisory 2915720 and Security Advisory 2905247. We also wanted to note a new blog on the Microsoft Security Blog site on the top… Read more

Omphaloskepsis and the December 2013 Security Update Release

by J.C. Hornbeck // 4 Comments

There are times when we get too close to a topic. We familiarize ourselves with every aspect and nuance, but fail to recognize not everyone else has done the same. Whether you consider this myopia, navel-gazing, or human nature, the effect is the same. I recognized this during the recent webcast when someone asked the… Read more

Security Advisory 2916652 released, Certificate Trust List updated

by J.C. Hornbeck // 3 Comments

Microsoft is updating the Certificate Trust List (CTL) for all supported releases of Microsoft Windows to remove the trust of a mis-issued third-party digital certificate, which could be used to spoof content and perform phishing or man-in-the-middle attacks against web properties. With this action, customers will be automatically be protected against this issue. Additionally, the… Read more

Advance Notification Service for December 2013 Security Bulletin Release

by J.C. Hornbeck // 3 Comments

Today we’re providing advance notification for the release of 11 bulletins, five Critical and six Important, for December 2013. The Critical updates address vulnerabilities in Internet Explorer, Windows, Microsoft Exchange and GDI+. The Critical update for GDI+ fully addresses the publicly disclosed issue described in Security Advisory 2896666.   This release won’t include an update for… Read more

Microsoft Releases Security Advisory 2914486

by J.C. Hornbeck // 0 Comments

Today we released Security Advisory 2914486 regarding a local elevation of privilege (EoP) issue that affects customers using Microsoft Windows XP and Server 2003. Windows Vista and later are not affected by this local EoP issue. A member of the Microsoft Active Protections Program (MAPP) found this issue being used on systems compromised by a third-party… Read more

Security and policy surrounding bring your own devices (BYOD)

by J.C. Hornbeck // 0 Comments

As the proliferation of devices continues to capture the imagination of consumers, and has ignited what is referred to as bring your own device (BYOD) revolution, many IT departments across the globe are now facing increased security considerations.  While organizations encourage BYOD for cost savings and productivity, it is also important to have robust security… Read more

Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5.1 coming to WSUS

by J.C. Hornbeck [MSFT] // 0 Comments

This post was authored by Vivek Mishra on behalf of the .NET Framework team. Hi WSUS Admins, The Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5.1 will be made available via Windows Server Update Services on 26 Nov 2013 and this blog highlights some of the key aspects. The .NET Framework is a development platform for building apps for Windows, Windows… Read more

MBSA 2.3 and the November 2013 Security Bulletin Webcast, Q&A, and Slide Deck

by J.C. Hornbeck // 0 Comments

Today we’re publishing the November 2013 Security Bulletin Webcast Questions & Answers page.  The majority of questions focused on the ActiveX Kill Bits bulletin (MS13-090) and the advisories. We also answered a few general questions that were not specific to any of this month’s updates, but that may be of interest. We’ve discussed the Microsoft… Read more

Authenticity and the November 2013 Security Updates

by J.C. Hornbeck // 0 Comments

If you haven’t had a chance to see the movie Gravity, I highly recommend you take the time to check it out. The plot moves a bit slowly at times, but director Alfonso Cuaron’s work portrayal of zero gravity is worth the ticket price alone. Add in stellar acting and you end up with an… Read more

ActiveX Control issue being addressed in Update Tuesday

by J.C. Hornbeck // 0 Comments

Late last Friday, November 8, 2013, a vulnerability, CVE-2013-3918, affecting an Internet Explorer ActiveX Control was publically disclosed. We have confirmed that this vulnerability is an issue already scheduled to be addressed in “Bulletin 3”, which will be released as MS13-090, as listed in the November Advanced Notification Service (ANS). The security update will be… Read more