crankygeek_tech_notes

THINK DRM WAS bad already? Think I was joking when I said the plan was to start with barely tolerable incursions on your rights, then turn the thumbscrews? Welcome to Windows Media Player 11, and the rights get chipped away a lot more. Get used to the feeling, if you buy DRM infected media, you will only have this happen with increasing rapidity.One of the problems with WiMP11 is licensing and backing it up. If you buy media with DRM infections, you can’t move the files from PC to PC, or at least you can’t and have them play on the new box. If you want the grand privilege of moving that content, you need to get the approval of the content mafia, sign your life away, and use the tools they give you. If you want to do it in other ways, you are either a lawbreaker or following the advice of J Allard. Wait, same thing. full story here

The newest zero-day flaw in the Microsoft Windows implementation of the Vector Markup Language is being used to flood infected machines with a massive collection of bots, Trojan downloaders, spyware and rootkits.

Less than 24 hours after researchers at Sunbelt Software discovered an active malware attack against fully patched versions of Windows, virus hunters say the Web-based exploits are serving up botnet-building Trojans and installations of ad-serving spyware.

“This is a massive malware run,” says Roger Thompson, chief technical officer at Atlanta-based Exploit Prevention Labs. In an interview with eWEEK, Thompson confirmed the drive-by attacks are hosing infected machines with browser tool bars and spyware programs with stealth rootkit capabilities. Full story here

In a further expansion of its anti-piracy program, Microsoft is building more ‘Genuine’ checks directly into Windows Vista, and is expanding the program to target not just consumers, but PC makers and system builders.

To date, with its Genuine Advantage anti-piracy programs, Microsoft has targeted consumers. Windows and Office users have been required to validate their products as “genuine” before being able to obtain many downloads and add-ons.

Come this fall, however, the Redmond software maker is planning to turn up the Genuine Advantage heat in two ways: By baking more Genuine Advantage checks directly into Windows Vista, and by taking aim at PC makers, system builders, Internet cafes and other sources of potentially pirated software.

Microsoft officials – whose Genuine Advantage Notification strategy came under fire earlier this summer — declined to share specifics about its new Genuine Advantage plans. But executives already have been setting the stage for the upcoming changes in recent keynote addresses. full story here