Security news14 May 2008
Windows and Apple Mac users warned of Microsoft security holes which could lead to hacker attack Vulnerabilities discovered, including critical flaws in Mac and Windows versions of MS Office
Microsoft has rated four of the vulnerabilities as 'critical'.
Experts at Sophos have advised businesses using Windows and Apple Macs to take action as Microsoft issues a warning of critical security flaws in its software.
As part of its monthly "Patch Tuesday" schedule Microsoft has issued a number of bulletins about six security vulnerabilities in its software. The list of affected software includes Microsoft Office (both Windows and Mac versions), Microsoft Windows, and Microsoft's security products Windows Live OneCare, Microsoft Antigen, Microsoft Windows Defender, and Microsoft Forefront Security.
Four of the vulnerabilities, which appear in Microsoft's Jet Database Engine and in nearly every edition of Microsoft Office, have been tagged as "critical", and could allow a hacker to gain remote control over a user's computer or install malicious code.
"As can be seen by this month's bunch of updates, Microsoft security patches aren't just important for Windows users. Apple business users would be wise to take heed of them too," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos. "As internet criminals become more organized and financially-motivated it is more important than ever to ensure that your business is properly defended with the latest patches."
Home users of Microsoft Windows can visit update.microsoft.com to have their systems scanned for Microsoft security vulnerabilities.
Sophos suggests that every IT manager responsible for security should consider subscribing to vulnerability mailing lists such as that operated by Microsoft at www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/notify.mspx.
How can Network Access Control help your business?
Network Access Control enables companies to control who and what is allowed onto their network; blocking unauthorized users, controlling guest access, and ensuring compliance with a business's security policy. By implementing NAC firms reduce the risk of unauthorized, guest, non-compliant, or infected systems compromising the network, ensuring that only correctly secured computers gain network access.
"NAC identifies managed, unmanaged and guest computers that do not comply with your security policy, and acts as a vital tool when dealing with newly reported security vulnerabilities such as these," explained Cluley. "It is possible to quickly assess, for instance, which computers are incorrectly patched or have their firewall disabled. You may then choose to automatically fix vulnerabilities before allowing the PCs to access your network, or simply block non-compliant computers."
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About Sophos
More than 100 million users in 150 countries rely on Sophos as the best protection against complex threats and data loss. Sophos is committed to providing security and data protection solutions that are simple to manage, deploy and use and that deliver the industry's lowest total cost of ownership. Sophos offers award-winning encryption, endpoint security, web, email, and network access control solutions backed by SophosLabs - a global network of threat intelligence centers. With more than two decades of experience, Sophos is regarded as a leader in security and data protection by top analyst firms and has received many industry awards.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.
