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Thread ID: 70289	2006-06-28 03:51:00	M$ & WGA Hit The Fan Again:	SurferJoe46 (51)	Press F1

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
466786	2006-06-28 03:51:00	This is a good read..I don't advocate doing this...but you be the judge:::::::: By Matthew Broersma, Techworld A security analyst has released a tool that lets users remove Windows Genuine Advantage Notification, part of Microsoft's controversial campaign against software counterfeiting. The tool, called RemoveWGA, was released this week by Guillaume Kaddouch, a French developer who also makes a firewall utility called Firewall Leak Tester. RemoveWGA is a response to Microsoft's revelation earlier this month that the Windows Genuine Advantage Notification program frequently contacts Microsoft, according to Kaddouch. "That, along the fact that Microsoft used deceptive ways to make you install this tool... makes me call (WGA Notification) spyware," Kaddouch said in a note accompanying the release of RemoveWGA. Windows Genuine Advantage includes two main parts: WGA Validation and WGA Notification. Validation checks that an instance of Windows XP is properly licensed, and is required for some Windows updates. If the copy doesn't check out, Notification repeatedly reminds the user to upgrade to a properly licensed version of Windows. Microsoft maintains that users only install the programs by choice, but once installed, neither is designed to be removable. As Microsoft admitted this month, Notification also checks back with Microsoft once a day even if the licensing check is successful, something the company hadn't previously made public. Microsoft said the procedure is necessary in case something goes wrong with the program and it needs to be disabled, but has said it will modify Notification to check back only once every two weeks. It said the failure to make public the phone-home behaviour was an "oversight." "Once the WGA Notification tool has checked your OS and has confirmed you had a legit copy, there is no decent point or reason to check it again and again every boot," Kaddouch wrote. Kaddouch told Techworld he developed the tool based on proof-of-concept workarounds that have recently been released by security researchers. "All of the necessary information was already available in some security forums on the net, I've just had to compile them in one automatic program," he said. "You can easily disable the WGA notification manually, there are different ways." He noted that the procedure poses a risk for corporate networks, and that Microsoft slipped it onto many users' computers without their knowledge - the company classified it as a "critical" update, causing many to install it without knowing what it was. For the even more paranoid, RemoveWGA can also be set to run a periodic check in the background, notifying the user if it finds WGA Notification has been silently installed, Kaddouch said. Microsoft did not respond to requests for comment. Users have been industrious about picking holes in WGA, beginning a day after the system went into effect last August. WGA will be embedded within Windows Vista, Microsoft has said.	SurferJoe46 (51)
466787	2006-06-28 04:11:00	Oooops downloaded tool, installed and no difference, my bad. :D	intel hunter (6666)
466788	2006-06-28 05:18:00	SurferJoe, You may be interested in this little gem. blogs.zdnet.com "Is Microsoft about to release a Windows "kill switch"?	paulw (1826)
466789	2006-06-28 11:31:00	You should just trust Microsoft. They really know whats best for you :xmouth:	dolby digital (5073)
466790	2006-06-28 12:34:00	You should just trust Microsoft. They really know whats best for you pressf1.pcworld.co.nz Of course they do. Just like Government.	Sweep (90)
466791	2006-06-28 14:12:00	WGA has been installed 3 times now on my computer. Most recently just a couple of hours ago. It hasn't asked for permission to acess the web yet, except when it installed this last time.	Vince (406)
466792	2006-06-28 15:03:00	This is one reason why I recommend that the people on my mailing list DO NOT INSTALL Windows One-Care Live!.......... Friday, June 23, 2006 [IP] Interesting interaction with Windows OneCare Live Begin forwarded message: From: David Pollak <dpp@athena.com> Date: June 22, 2006 6:38:55 PM EDT To: Dave Farber <dave@farber.net> Cc: Annette Hurst <annette@lostlake.org> Subject: Interesting interaction with Windows OneCare Live For IP if you think it's appropriate: I installed Windows Live OneCare antivirus on my Windows machine. OneCare marks a system marks a system as "vulnerable" if you do not have automatic updates turned on. I like to review updates before they are installed. The only update that I have not installed is the latest WGA because of the security issues related to it. I called Microsoft support to see if there is a hidden option to say, "yep, I've got updates turned to manual... it's okay." The rep said, "No and why wouldn't you want to get the latest updates to Windows." I responded with the issues relating to WGA. He spent some time telling me that WGA was a good thing, etc. I reiterated that I have accepted all the updates except WGA and just want to review the updates before they're installed on my machine. He told me that "in the fall, having the latest WGA will become mandatory and if its not installed, Windows will give a 30 day warning and when the 30 days is up and WGA isn't installed, Windows will stop working, so you might as well install WGA now." I'm wondering if Microsoft has the right to disable Windows functionality or the OS as a whole (tantamount to revoking my legitimate Windows license) if I do not install every piece of software that they send it updates. Needless to say, I've removed Live OneCare.	SurferJoe46 (51)
466793	2006-06-28 16:26:00	Aha. So you didn't read the "little gem" recommended to you by paulw higher up in this thread..? It's all in there - plus more. And pctek has also linked to it in a thread by Oxie.	Laura (43)
466794	2006-06-29 01:06:00	Aha. So you didn't read the "little gem" recommended to you by paulw higher up in this thread..? It's all in there - plus more. And pctek has also linked to it in a thread by Oxie. Yes....I actually did read it, but thought this reference I posted was particularly annoying in content..the article, not the post! Sometimes people don't get all bothered by links and goto's, so I c/p'd a little excerpt from the links on that site that paulw posted. That's all....	SurferJoe46 (51)
466795	2006-06-29 03:29:00	Well, I decided last week that WGA won't be hitting MY fan :badpc: After the usual 6 month reinstall of XP I made the mistake of updating to SP2, then chaos, grumpiness and swearing ensued . 1 more reinstall and back to plain 'ol XP, but wanting the update for SP1 USB2 I made the further mistake of going to Windows update site after activating my copy . . . more drama as the update site could not validate my copy that I had activated a few minutes before . . . ie- no downloads allowed without validation . Don't Microsoft realise that they are alienating any intelligent person out there who buys their software? Of course I would not trust any company who would attempt to install psuedo spyware without making it clear that's what it is, I would trust them even less if they used it as a smokescreen for tactics like wanting to or being able to shut down a copy of their software remotely because it may or may not be legit . I won't even go into why they want to collect information regarding make/model of other hardware on a comp . As far as I am concerned I have purchased the rights to use a genuine software product, that does not give them the right to install a kill switch 'just in case' . It's easy for me, Microsoft won't get any money from me (or 10 other comps that we run in our business) for the pleasure of installing Vista . No more will they get to snoop in my comp and I will work on getting Linux up to scratch . I only hope they intend to make a LOT of money out of those who have pirated copies because I see their revenue stream shrinking fast :rolleyes:	Shortcircuit (1666)
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