Computer "Tip of the Day" 11-09-09

Naked Windows 7 vulnerable to Malware if left in default state.
Sophos did some testing with a retail copy of Windows 7 installed on a clean system. Configuring it to follow the default settings for User Account Control (UAC), and leaving out any anti-Malware protection, Sophos discovered they were able to infect the system with Malware.
“Unfortunately, despite Microsoft's claims, Windows 7 disappointed just like earlier versions of Windows. The good news is that, of the freshest 10 samples that arrived, 2 would not operate correctly under Windows 7,” Sophos said.
UAC did block one sample, Sophos said, but failed to block anything else. “Lesson learned? You still need to run anti-virus on Windows 7,” wrote Sophos’ Chester Wisniewski.
Chester has a valid point, and the testing was done to prove that Windows 7, when left without layered security, is just as vulnerable as any other Windows operating system, including Vista, which had an infection rate 61.9-percent less than Windows XP according to Microsoft’s latest numbers in their Security Intelligence Report. The problem is that Vista has about a 20-percent market share, while XP is just over 70-percent.
"Chester Wisniewski's observations that, on a clean machine, Windows 7 became infected with eight out of the ten viruses tested sounds bad, but, in our opinion, this is indicative of the sheer volume of code that goes into operating systems today," said Richard Kirk, Fortify's European director.
"When you factor in the issue that there are often more than a million lines of code in a typical Windows application
, you begin to understand the scale of the problem for software developers.”
Kirk went on to say that since there are a range of free-to-use anti-Malware applications, as well as a plethora of low-cost pay-for IT security suites available, the problem is not a major one for most Windows 7 users.
The testing by Sophos, as mentioned, showed the exact infection level that can be expected when you use default settings and leave out layered security. Just because Windows 7 added in a good deal to make security easier to use and improved several elements, does not mean it is flawless or bulletproof.