Welcome to this weeks round-up. All articles in the NewsBot Centre are imported from blog and site feeds from the world of security and technology. This weeks top articles are:

• Malware SPAM: KB910721 officexp-KB910721-FullFile-ENU.exe
• Affiliate Fraud Cybersquatting Model More Lucrative than Pay-Per-Click
• Spam King Alan Ralsky Pleads Guilty
• Microsoft Security Essentials Beta is now available – (It also proves a hit)
• Twitter users offered security plug-in (SecureTwitter) – @Securitycadets
• Windows 7 pricing gets unveiled
• BING-VS-GOOGLE

There are more articles located within the NewsBot Centre. You can also add your feed to our NewsBot should you wish, details about it can be found here.

It appears that Microsoft Security Essentials, the new product released from Microsoft, is a straight hit:

The beta version of Microsoft Relevant Products/Services’s security Relevant Products/Services software is a hit. The software giant announced Wednesday on its Web site that it had reached the U.S. limit on downloads for Microsoft Security Essentials — which was only made available Tuesday.

The general release of the free software is expected this fall.

“Alert!” said a posting on the Web page for the security software. “Thank you for your interest in joining the Microsoft Security Essentials Beta. We are not accepting additional participants at this time. Please check back at a later date for possible additional availability.”

Limit Reached Within 24 Hours

The beta became available Tuesday morning and reached the limit for the U.S. and Israel within twenty-four hours. Microsoft had said it would allow 75,000 downloads for users in the U.S., Israel and Brazil.

According to news reports Relevant Products/Services, the limit for the U.S. and Israel was reached at about 5 a.m. PDT Wednesday. The limit of 20,000 downloads for Brazilian users hadn’t been reached, meaning 55,000 downloads were reserved for U.S. and Israel. – Source: Data Storage Today

Yikes! Let’s wait and see if Microsoft can specialize in this area. For me, decidated companies and organisations will always remain in a better position to deal with security as it’s their bread and butter. Chat about it here in full.

Welcome to this weeks round-up. All articles in the NewsBot Centre are imported from blog and site feeds from the world of security and technology. This weeks top articles are:

• Hackers claim T-Mobile breach after sensitive database info is offered for sale
• Spam drops 15 percent after FTC Pricewert takedown
• UK firm wins top prize for Chinese water cube
• Facebook usernames to be released
• ‘Millionth English word’ declared
• Will Microsoft’s Free Antivirus App be Worth the Price?, Free AV from Microsoft: It’s about time
• Anti-virus vendors fined ($375,000) over auto-renewals
• No IE onboard Windows 7 in Europe

There are more articles located within the NewsBot Centre. You can also add your feed to our NewsBot should you wish, details about it can be found here.

Welcome to this weeks round-up. We hope whatever you are up to on this holiday weekend, you have a wonderful time. All articles in the NewsBot Centre are imported from blog and site feeds from the world of security and technology. This weeks top articles are:

• Wolfram search engine goes live
• Microsoft MVP Mike Burgess respond to Comodos CEO on Comodo Certificates issued to Malware distributors
• Mike Nash: Ask Toolbar in Online Armor Free? Nearly!
• Sophos beams up free Klingon antivirus app to Star Trek fans’ PCs
• UK ‘worst electrical recycler’
• Security Tools: What works with Win 7, and what doesn’t
• Malware SPAM: Western Union MTCN_BB77122.zip

There are more articles located within the NewsBot Centre. You can also add your feed to our NewsBot should you wish, details about it can be found here.

Welcome to this weeks round-up. All articles in the NewsBot Centre are imported from blog and site feeds from the world of security and technology. This weeks top articles are:

• Shuttle blasts off to fix Hubble
• Malware SPAM: Western Union – MTCN_NR8621982.zip
• Pirated Version of Windows 7 Has Malware Built-in
• Google unveils new search tools
• Updates fix critical Adobe Reader and Acrobat Vulnerabilities
• Edelman: Google and its partners inflate advertisers’ conversion rates
• Hackers ‘destroy’ flight sim site
• Spammers hack New York Times account on Twitter (Follow us @Securitycadets)
• Hacker: Steve Jobs’ Amazon Account Details for Sale
• 3,000 email accounts compromised by hackers
• Comodo continue to issue certificates to known Rogue/Malware

There are more articles located within the NewsBot Centre. You can also add your feed to our NewsBot should you wish, details about it can be found here.

If you’ve been sleeping this week you’ve missed a few things. Just the other day Symantec Support wrongly suggested that WinPatrol was a virus and removed it from someones’ computer. Then to charge $99 for it.

A day later and Symantec respond:

I wanted to let you know that we’ve been in touch with Bill Pytlovany and have reached out to the original customer who called support.

Symantec does not classify WinPatrol as a threat, and we’re actively investigating this customer’s experience to learn more about why the support agent provided incorrect information and to ensure it doesn’t happen again.

Best,

Noah Edwardsen
Symantec

The comment was left over at Security Garden. I welcome this response. Let’s lay this to rest and work with each other so situations like this can be prevented rather than caused. Chat about the situation in our forum.

You know, it doesn’t happen often, but today it did. Symantec went from Fantastec to Screwtastec (you know what I mean by that) within the space of a flash.

Indeed strong words to use, but sometimes that is required to express a point. Our expert and Microsoft MVP Corrine blogged in February about the good, the bad and the ugly regarding Symantec. This included the partnership with IAC/Ask. One partnership which appears to be infectious to many legit companies in the web today.

Today I sit here and to inform you about another twist in the Symantec saga.

Symantec Support says Winpatrol is a virus. Yes, you read that correctly.

Bits from Bill – “This week I was surprised to hear that a Symantec support rep actually told a customer that WinPatrol was a virus and during a remote assistance phone call they deleted WinPatrol from their system.”

And for all of that they charged the victim $99. To put it into context. WinPatrol PLUS costs less than that and the standard version is free. To add, WinPatrol is probably, if not already, the best utility to have on a computer to assist with many problems we face. We even have an un-official support forum for it. And we’re not the only one with such a forum.

I know we’re in a tough economic times and perhaps the partnership with companies is understandable to balance the books. What isn’t acceptable is insisting WinPatrol is a virus, removing it and then charging for a simple task that should not have been done in the first place.

How are support staff at Symantec regulated and chosen? Because providing support like this staff member did shows to be poor and reflects on the company overall.

Similar Articles:

• Symantec Support says WinPatrol is a Virus
• Symantec Support Screws Up Again!
• Forum Mirror – Symantec! Fantastec? Screwtastec!

Welcome to this weeks round-up. Which is posted on a Monday due to the holidays.

All articles in the NewsBot Centre are imported from blog and site feeds from the world of security and technology. This weeks top articles are:

• Comodo Software Removed from Softpedia
• Scammers, Spammers Embrace Swine Flu News
• Conficker adds new weapon: spam
• Microsoft released Office Compatibility Pack Service Pack 2 (SP2)
• Windows 7 RC available for TechNet and MSDN subscribers
• LandzDown Forum Stops Updates for Security Products with IAC/Ask (Stay tuned for an announcement on our status)
• Comodo AV: Ask Toolbar is unclassified malware
• NoScript with Ask.com Toolbar?

There are more articles located within the NewsBot Centre. You can also add your feed to our NewsBot should you wish, details about it can be found here.

I’m sad to say that the Ask.com Toolbar fever is spreading to more programs. If the confusion with SpySweeper these last few months wasn’t bad enough, it appears BitDefender (which I currently use) has the Ask Toolbar included.

The guys a Wilderssecurity.com reported this in the last few days.

I am sad to hear this. Sad to hear that more legit and decent vendors are following the money trail instead of providing a standard they have that made them the way they are today.

Calender of Updates has a growing list of products with the toolbar.

I can only see this increasing as months go by. In tough economic times, drastic measures will be taken by vendors like BitDefender. However, it is a clear indication that the community like ours, does not support moves like this. Have an opinion? Share it here.

Similar Articles:

• Ask.com Toolbar is back with Webroot Software
• Webroot pull the plug on the Ask.com Toolbar
• Symantec – The Good, The Bad & The Ugly
• Comodo Disappointment
• AVG/Grisoft going into the “toolbar” game? Answer – Yes!
• Webroot Spy Sweeper Is “Out of Favor”
• CCleaner bundled with Yahoo ToolBar?

Two years ago we reported about CyberDefender and the bad practices it took at the time. Two years on and the comments on that article are still flowing as if it was published today. That is a worry because that indicates to me there still is some trouble surrounding CyberDefender. Still some discomfort surrounding the practices.

However, StopBadware.Org appear to disagree:

“After several months of ongoing communication, CyberDefender has released a version of its flagship suite, CyberDefender Early Detection Center, that appears to address all of the issues that led us to labeling it badware. We have therefore archived the alert. Thanks to the company for keeping the lines of communication open.” – StopBadware.Org

Not even a month ago and CyberDefender were still upto some old tricks by using Malwarebytes’ Anti-Malware to clean infections. Make your own mind up, but for me I wouldn’t recommend CyberDefender even two years on from our initial research.

Hat Tip – Donna’s SecurityFlash

Forum Mirror – Is CyberDefender still bad? Well StopBadware doesn’t seem to think so!