 |
• October 10, 2003 •
In a speech at Microsoft Corp.'s inaugural Worldwide Partner Conference, Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer outlined new initiatives in Microsoft's ongoing security efforts designed to address the increasing threats faced by computer users around the world. Ballmer announced new programs and technology investments to be delivered over the coming months, all of which reflect a companywide focus on increasing the security of millions of users and critical business systems worldwide. Specific actions will include these:
"Our goal is simple: Get our customers secure and keep them secure," Ballmer said. "Our commitment is to protect our customers from the growing wave of criminal attacks."
Steve Ballmer provided the following details:
Improving the Patch Experience
Microsoft is planning significant improvements that will help reduce the complexity of patch management, including new processes for patch distribution. Microsoft will move to monthly patch releases, reducing the burden on IT administrators by adding a level of increased predictability and manageability.
Microsoft will also be releasing new tools, including Microsoft's free Software Update Services 2.0, which will be released in the first half of 2004 and will provide a seamless patch, scanning and installation experience for Windows, SQL Server™, Office, Exchange Server and Visio®. Microsoft is also committed to consolidating the number of patch installers to two for Windows 2000-generation products by the first half of 2004, introducing rollback capability for all new patches, and reducing downtime by requiring 30 percent fewer reboots during deployment in the same time frame.
Global Education Programs
Microsoft announced new security seminars and in-depth training courses worldwide for its customers. Examples of these education activities include the following:
Updates to Windows XP and Windows Server 2003
Ballmer announced Microsoft's new safety technologies designed to enable customers to more effectively protect their computers and systems from malicious attacks even if patches do not yet exist or have not yet been installed. These safety technologies will first ship in Service Pack 2 for Windows XP, planned for the first half of 2004, and subsequently in the Service Pack 1 for Windows Server 2003.
These security advancements for Windows XP will focus on protections against the four types of attacks that constitute the largest percentage of threats: port-based attacks, e-mail attacks, malicious Web content and buffer overruns.
For Windows Server 2003, the safety technologies will enable remote-access-connection client inspection and intranet client inspection to help protect corporate networks from potential infections introduced by mobile systems. These technologies are expected to be available in the second half of 2004.
