I'll be away for a bit visiting family.
See you soon!
Friday, July 27, 2007
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Windows Vista Won't Silence Scotty's Bark
I don't know what you do during your lunch break. What I like to do is catch up on my reading. Catching up today just led me to Bill Pytlovany's blog post, Bits from Bill: Vista Won't Silence Scotty's Bark.
Regular Security Garden readers (as well as folks I have helped on the forums) know that I am a long-time fan of WinPatrol. It was the first software I installed on my new Windows Vista machine.
Although WinPatrol works just fine on Windows Vista without Scotty's bark, I admit that I have missed hearing Scotty when launching WinPatrol to formulate a forum response to a user's question or to check settings on my own machine. So I will add my thanks to Larry Osterman for his assistance.
I will be on vacation next week when the new version of WinPatrol with Scotty's bark is expected. However, I will look forward to the update when I return as well as finding out what other surprises Bill has in store.
Regular Security Garden readers (as well as folks I have helped on the forums) know that I am a long-time fan of WinPatrol. It was the first software I installed on my new Windows Vista machine.
Although WinPatrol works just fine on Windows Vista without Scotty's bark, I admit that I have missed hearing Scotty when launching WinPatrol to formulate a forum response to a user's question or to check settings on my own machine. So I will add my thanks to Larry Osterman for his assistance.
I will be on vacation next week when the new version of WinPatrol with Scotty's bark is expected. However, I will look forward to the update when I return as well as finding out what other surprises Bill has in store.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Major Counterfeit Software Bust
Updated 25July2007 -- Link to Windows Genuine Advantage Blog article with samples of counterfeit Windows Vista DVDs: Biggest Counterfeit Bust ... ever. The included photographic sample illustrate why it is so easy to fool people with the counterfeit.
As reported by the FBI:
As much as I protested WGA (Windows Genuine Advantage) being added to Windows XP, I have no objections to it being included as a part of Windows Vista. My reasoning? WGA was not part of XP when the license was purchased and the initial software caused many headaches. However, with a brand new operating system in Windows Vista, it is known that WGA is included from the start.
Complete report at Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Via Todd Bishop's Microsoft Blog
As reported by the FBI:
"For Immediate Release
DATE: July 23, 2007
INTERNATIONAL INVESTIGATION CONDUCTED JOINTLY BY FBI AND LAW ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITIES IN PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA RESULTS IN MULTIPLE ARRESTS IN CHINA AND SEIZURES OF COUNTERFEIT MICROSOFT AND SYMANTEC SOFTWARE
A joint investigation conducted by the FBI and authorities with the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) Ministry of Public Security (MPS) has resulted in multiple arrests and the seizure of more than a half billion dollars worth of counterfeit software, announced J. Stephen Tidwell, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI in Los Angeles, and Steven Hendershot, the FBI’s Legal Attache in Beijing, China.
The operation, codenamed “Summer Solstice,” began in 2005 and since then, law enforcement in both countries have worked closely by sharing information to jointly investigate multinational conspiracies by groups who manufacture and distribute counterfeit software products around the world. This unprecedented cooperative effort led to the arrest of twenty five individuals, the search of multiple businesses and residential locations, asset seizures by the Chinese government worth over $7 million, and the seizure of over 290,000 counterfeit software CDs and COAs (certificates of authenticity) in China. The counterfeit software has an estimated retail value of $500 million. In addition, Agents with the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office executed 24 searches and asset seizure warrants, yielding approximately $2 million in counterfeit software products, in addition to assets seized by the U.S. government worth over $700,000.
Operation Summer Solstice encompasses multiple investigations currently being conducted by the FBI in Los Angeles and the MPS, Economic Crime Investigation Department (ECID), in which criminal organizations responsible for manufacturing and distributing counterfeit software have been identified in both Shanghai and Shenzhen; as were distributors located in the United States.
As much as I protested WGA (Windows Genuine Advantage) being added to Windows XP, I have no objections to it being included as a part of Windows Vista. My reasoning? WGA was not part of XP when the license was purchased and the initial software caused many headaches. However, with a brand new operating system in Windows Vista, it is known that WGA is included from the start.
Complete report at Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Via Todd Bishop's Microsoft Blog
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