ITinfo: Microsoft Releases Free Security Analyzer

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Secure Your Computer

Windows 2000 & Windows XP users get free help

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ERROR: Random File Unopenable

The random file, as specified in the $random_file perl variable was unopenable.

The file was not found on your file system. This means that it has either not been created or the path you have specified in $trrandom_file is incorrect.

Microsoft Releases Free Security Analyzer

by Dave Murphy
ISSN 1535-3613

Microsoft has released a analysis tool that helps users keep tight reins on the security of their Windows 2000 (Win2K) and Windows XP (WinXP) systems.

The Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer (MBSA) searches for security vulnerabilities in Win2K and WinXP systems such as missing security patches, incorrectly installed hotfixes, password lapses, and zone misconfigurations. MBSA is available for free from Microsoft's website.

The tool gives both novice and experiences users a handle on their system security. It can check not only the system on which it's run but also other networked computers. Following a comprehensive system scan, MBSA offers a security report card listing security holes and suggestions for improvement.

The MBSA was developed with the help of Shavlik Technologies and was first announced at the RSA Security Conference in February.

Dave's Opinion

This is a must-have download for all users of Windows 2000 or Windows XP. Get it today and check your system. I was surprised to find four significant security holes in one of my Windows 2000 servers. With the help of MBSA, I patched the holes in less than 10 minutes.

Call for Comments

What do you think? Leave your comments on the message center.

References

Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer
Microsoft
Shavlik Technologies
Message Center

Cultural Trivia

In 1925 Allan Odell received $200 from his father, Clinton, to advertise their product on small wooden road signs. Eventually the Odells posted 7,000 red and white signs alongside American roads.

Test your knowledge of U.S. culture by completing the last two lines of this stanza:

The whale
Put Jonah
Down the hatch
But coughed him up

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http://itrain.org/itinfo/2002/it020409.html
updated April 9, 2002