Newsletter Archives

• MS-DEFCON 4: Skip those Secure Boot scripts

  Posted on May 23, 2023 at 02:45 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 20.21.1 • 2023-05-23

  

  By Susan Bradley

  Deploy May updates — and nothing but the updates.

  I’m lowering the MS-DEFCON level to 4 to encourage you to install the May updates now.

  However, I do not recommend taking the optional steps recommended by Microsoft to revoke the vulnerable bootloader files, as I discussed in yesterday’s On Security column. I do not think these manual steps provide full protection for this vulnerability — or potential future ones.

  Anyone can read the full MS-DEFCON Alert (20.21.1, 2023-05-23).

  AskWoody Plus Alert, MS-DEFCON Alerts, MS-DEFCON, MS-DEFCON 4, Secure Boot

• Is Secure Boot important for security?

  Posted on May 22, 2023 at 02:42 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  ON SECURITY

  

  By Susan Bradley

  During the last few months, some chinks have appeared in Secure Boot’s armor as the result of various attacks and vulnerabilities.

  Let’s go back in history and understand how we got here.

  When a computer boots up, and before the operating system is launched, other code runs. For many years, that was the Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) pioneered by IBM in the original IBM PC. Unfortunately, inventive attackers found ways to permanently install malicious code as part of this launch sequence.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.21.0, 2023-05-22).

  On Security IPSec, Microsoft Outlook, Newsletters, Patch Lady Posts, Secure Boot, VPN

• May’s messy updates

  Posted on May 15, 2023 at 02:42 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  PATCH WATCH

  

  By Susan Bradley

  Although the May releases for both Windows and Apple have not introduced side effects or hiccups so far, they haven’t been as problem-free as they should have been.

  Apple released the first of its “rapid response” updates, announced last June and supposedly allowing the company to deploy important security-only software updates without demanding a reboot.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.20.0, 2023-05-15).

  Patch Watch Apple, Exchange Server, Newsletters, Patch Lady Posts, Rapid Security Responses, Secure Boot, Windows 10

• LangaList: Secure Boot problems and how to fix them, mirror your phone’s screen

  Posted on March 25, 2019 at 06:40 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  Fred Langa’s latest foray into the belly of the beast:

  • How to diagnose and fix Secure Boot timing problems
  • Free ways to mirror your smartphone’s screen on PCs and TVs

  All in the latest LangaList.

  Details in this week’s AskWoody Plus Newsletter 16.11.0, out this morning to AskWoody Plus Members.

  Other AskWoody Plus Newsletter, LangaList, Mirror smartphones, Secure Boot

• Recommended BitLocker patch KB 3133977 causes some ASUS motherboards to freeze

  Posted on May 4, 2016 at 13:19 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  Looks like ASUS set a bit in BIOS that engages Secure Boot – when they shouldn’t have. Combine that with KB 3133977, and you get a bricked system.

  InfoWorld Woody on Windows

  Windows Patches/Security ASUS, KB 3133977, Secure Boot, UEFI

• Windows 8: Not as unified as we thought?

  Posted on January 17, 2012 at 23:46 CST by woody • Comment in the Forums

  The kerfuffle over Windows 8 Secure Boot provokes two important observations.

  InfoWorld Tech Watch.

  Windows News Secure Boot, UEFI, Windows 8