One Fix Expected for Patch Tuesday -- Redmondmag.com

One Fix Expected for Patch Tuesday

Microsoft's first security update rollout of 2009 may be a quiet one, according to an advance notification released Thursday.

By Jabulani Leffall
01/08/2009

Microsoft's first security update rollout of 2009 may be a quiet one, according to an advance notification released Thursday. January's Patch Tuesday will consist of just one "critical" patch.

The light release follows a December patch cycle that covered the most vulnerabilities in the history of Patch Tuesday, as well as included an out-of-cycle patch for Internet Explorer.

This latest bulletin addresses remote code execution and will cover Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003. Its severity has been deemed merely "moderate" for Vista and Windows Server 2008.

With a few known flaws left to be fixed from the end of 2008 -- one in WordPad Text Converter and another in the SQL Server database software, for instance -- there is a bit of speculation over which Windows component the upcoming patch will fix. Andrew Storms, director of security operations for independent security vendor nCircle, thinks Microsoft will fix a "known" Windows flaw rather than a zero-day bug.

"There are several exploits that have already been published, even some that may have been floating around for months on end," Storms said. "But we know the flaw is definitely something that allows hackers to gain unauthorized privileges through a workstation. We may even discover that what they fix is something more severe than previously thought."

According to the advance notification, Tuesday's patch will require a restart. Additionally, Redmond said it will issue one or more non-security (but high-priority) updates on Windows Update, Windows Server Update Services and Microsoft Update, as well as an upgraded version of its Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool. For more on these additional bells and whistles for Windows, Microsoft encouraged users to consult this Knowledge Base article.

About the Author

Jabulani Leffall is an award-winning journalist whose work has appeared in the Financial Times of London, Investor's Business Daily, The Economist and CFO Magazine, among others.

Featured

Cisco Warns of Brute Force Attacks Targeting VPNs and Firewalls

Cisco has revealed that a global increase in brute force attacks targeting Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) and other devices is currently taking place.
What's Inside Microsoft 365's Security Toolbox?

Microsoft provides plenty of native tools to secure Microsoft 365. IT pros just have to know where to look.
Microsoft Kills 30-Day Data Retention Policy for Copilot in Fabric

Microsoft this week announced several usability improvements coming to Copilot in Fabric in preparation of its general availability release later this year.
Using Microsoft Office to Build a Network Diagram 2

Now that we've set up our process, let's dig in with the actual execution.
Microsoft Graph 'Activity Logs' Feature Goes Live

Microsoft announced the general availability of the "activity logs" capability in Microsoft Graph, giving administrators more options to track user activity and identify patterns of potential misuse.