Microsoft Unveils Live Communications Server 2005 (May 5)
Microsoft Corp. today announced the opening of the beta program for Microsoft® Office Live Communications Server 2005, or LCS 2005, previously code-named “Vienna.” LCS 2005, a next-generation enterprise instant messaging (IM) and presence-awareness server, will be a significant next step toward Microsoft’s vision of seamlessly connecting people, information and business processes in real time to increase productivity and enable better decisions faster.
LCS 2005 builds on the foundation of the current version, LCS 2003, which provides a standards-based enterprise IM solution and an extensible real-time collaboration platform. Foundation elements include these:
Presence. LCS incorporates presence capabilities into productivity and line-of-business applications within the enterprise. All participating users will be able to see whether someone is online and available.
Encrypted instant messaging. LCS provides easy-to-use and familiar text-based messaging within an encrypted and authenticated environment.
Microsoft Office System integration. LCS acts as a “presence engine” behind the Microsoft Office System, enabling out-of-the-box presence integration within Microsoft Office System applications, servers and services. LCS also enables the viewing of presence information directly from Microsoft Outlook® 2003, Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Word as well as team sites and portals, such as Windows® SharePoint (TM) Services.
Standards-based architecture. LCS is built using industry-standard protocols Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) and SIP Instant Messaging and Presence Leveraging Extensions (SIMPLE), enabling a broad partner and developer ecosystem.
View full Press Release: Microsoft Unveils Live Communications Server 2005
InfoPath 2003 Training: Hands-on Exercises (May 4)
The package contains practice files for use with InfoPath 2003 SP1 Training: Hands-on Exercises. To view the training labs, click the link available in the Related Resources section of this page.
This set of labs will help you learn how to design and deploy Extensible Markup Language (XML)-based forms in InfoPath 2003 SP1.
Download: InfoPath 2003 Training: Hands-on Exercises
Three Minutes: Will We Get a Do-Not-Spam List? (May 4)
Federal Trade Commissioner Orson Swindle, 67, chats about his agency’s popular Do-Not-Call list and the proposed Do-Not-Spam list. A former Marine aviator, Swindle spent more than six years in a North Vietnamese prisoner-of-war camp.
PC World: Isn’t the FTC’s Do-Not-Call telemarketing list one of the most popular citizen-participation programs ever
Orson Swindle: Certainly since I’ve been here. It’s made real heroes out of us. We see people with T-shirts on, saying, “I like Do-Not-Call.” In fact, one of our employees jogging one day had an FTC T-shirt on, and somebody stopped and said, “Thank you for Do-Not-Call.”
PCW: And now the FTC is considering a Do-Not-Spam registry?
Swindle: A part of [the federal CAN-SPAM Act of 2003] directs the FTC to take a very serious look at the possibility of a Do-Not-Spam list similar to the Do-Not-Call list. We are in the process of going through that right now. We expect to hear from an awful lot of people, and probably some spammers, too. We have a big task before us…to come up with a report to Congress by mid-June as to what might be done and whether or not it’s feasible.
View full article: Three Minutes: Will We Get a Do-Not-Spam List?
What You Should Know About the Sasser Worm and Its Variants (May 2)
Microsoft teams are investigating reports of a worm, identified as W32.Sasser.worm, and its variants, which are currently circulating on the Internet. Microsoft has verified that the worm exploits the Local Security Authority Subsystem Service (LSASS) issue addressed in Microsoft Security Update MS04-011 on April 13, 2004.
View: What You Should Know About the Sasser Worm and Its Variants
View: Microsoft Security Update MS04-011
Download: Sasser.A and Sasser.B Worm Removal Tool (KB841720)
Netsky Remains Big Dog In April (Apr 30)
The Netsky worm continued to dominate the virus charts for another month, security vendor Sophos said Friday as it released its April Top Ten list.
Seven of the ten viruses Sophos named to the monthly list were variations on Netsky, with Netsky.p, Netsky.b, and Netsky.d most prominent. That trio accounted for 23.2, 20.2, and 16.8 percent, respectively, of all viruses detected by the U.K.-based vendor.
Netsky.p, which in March accounted for a paltry 2.1 percent of all viruses, leaped to the top spot in April, while March’s leader, Netsky.d (at 30.2 percent) dropped by almost half to just 16.8 percent. Variants new to the list, including Netsky.q and Netsky.t, totaled just 3 percent, proof that newer worms are not always the most deadly. Netsky.q, for instance, had the entire month of April to run, since it was first discovered March 28, while Netsky.t hit the Internet a week later on April 5.
All told, Netsky variants made up 69 percent of all malware in April, a bump up from the 59.8 percent the worm family tallied in March.
The most likely explanation for the rise in Netsky was the release of the worm’s source code.
“With the original Netsky author claiming to have shared the viral code, it’s quite possible that other virus writers jumped on the bandwagon,” said Chris Kraft, Sophos senior security analyst, in a statement.
View: Netsky Remains Big Dog In April
View: latest virus threats on Symantec
First complaint filed under Can-Spam (Apr 30)
The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a criminal complaint against four Detroit-area men under the federal Can-Spam Act, in the first case sparked by the legislation.
In a filing Wednesday in the U.S. District Court of Michigan, federal attorneys contend that Daniel J. Lin, James J. Lin, Mark M. Sadek and Christopher Chung violated the terms of the Can-Spam Act by creating massive e-mail campaigns that marketed fraudulent weight loss products. The Can-Spam Act takes aim at individuals who create and dispense unsolicited and fraudulent e-mail.
Gina Balaya, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office of Detroit, said Chung and Sadek were arrested and appeared in court on Wednesday. The men were subsequently released on unsecured bonds of $10,000.
The two Lins have not yet been reached by authorities, she said. The criminal complaints are good for a period of 30 days, during which Assistant U.S. Attorney Terry Berg will decide whether to seek an indictment.
According to court documents, the four men are accused of generating hundreds of thousands of different e-mails that hid their identities and advertised a weight loss patch. The e-mails were sent out under a variety of company names, including AIT Herbal, Avatar Nutrition and Phoenix Avatar, identified collectively as the Avatar Companies. The e-mails were allegedly sent to millions of e-mail accounts over the course of several years.
View full article: First complaint filed under Can-Spam
TechNet Support WebCast: An overview of Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 Service Pack 1 (Apr 30)
Wednesday, June 16, 2004: 10:00 AM Pacific time (Greenwich mean time – 7 hours)
This Support WebCast session introduces Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 Service Pack 1 (SP1). It talks about the various changes that are included in SP1 and the benefits of installing SP1. The session also briefly introduces some of the Web release tools that will be released at the same time as SP1.
This is a Level 200 session that will be presented by Evan Dodds .
Evan Dodds has been supporting Exchange Server at Microsoft for four years and most recently was involved with the Exchange 2003 SP1 project.
View: TechNet Support WebCast: An overview of Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 Service Pack 1
Download: Add a reminder to your calendar for this event
Project 2003 Software Development Kit (SDK) (Apr 30)
The Microsoft Office Project 2003 SDK is designed for solution providers, value-added resellers, and other developers to help customize Project 2003, and to extend and integrate Project Server 2003 with other applications for Enterprise Project Management. It features articles, programming references, tools, and sample code, including extensive articles called Solution Starters.
Download: Project 2003 Software Development Kit (SDK)
Project Server 2003: Project Data Service (PDS) Usage and Methods Reference (Apr 30)
This reference explains how to use the PDS Application Programming Interface (API) to allow client applications to access Project Server portfolio data. Client applications can programmatically log on to Project Server and use SOAP to call PDS API methods. The PDS implements a SOAP listener, which receives method calls in XML format and returns an XML response.
Download: Project Server 2003: Project Data Service (PDS) Usage and Methods Reference
SharePoint Products and Technologies Resource Kit Chapter 28: Disaster Recovery (Preview) (Apr 30)
The most important step in solving critical problems is to think ahead and record your problem-resolving strategy in a disaster recovery plan. Before you can do that, you must be aware of the problem-solving tools available. This chapter covers operational tasks common in disaster recovery scenarios using the native tools provided by Microsoft® Office SharePoint™ Portal Server 2003 and Microsoft Windows® SharePoint Services. In addition, this chapter discusses how to leverage Microsoft SQL Server™ backup and restore processes to safeguard your data in Microsoft SharePoint Products and Technologies solutions.
Download: SharePoint Products and Technologies Resource Kit Chapter 28: Disaster Recovery (Preview)
Worms create rough ride for Symantec (Apr 27)
While a continual flow of new viruses boosts Symantec’s bottom line, the company risks being stuck without a revenue stream if the situation changes
The good news is that a series of worms, viruses and other security headaches has been a windfall for Symantec. That’s also the bad news.
Since arriving in 1999, Symantec chief executive John Thompson has tried to transform the security software maker, to make it less dependent on the volatile consumer market and more reliant on stable corporate revenue. Thompson made some headway in 2002 and 2003, but the recent rash of viruses threatens to undo that limited success, as analysts forecast that the consumer businesses will end the fiscal year as Symantec’s chief revenue source.
“The company has been told many times by Wall Street it was not growing its enterprise business fast enough. It has been showing some growth, but not to the degree people had hoped for,” said Tom Berquist, a Smith Barney Citigroup analyst. “There is risk in relying heavily on consumer sales. If virus attacks slow down and people have bought all the protection they need, then Symantec’s growth will slow down to the rate of IT as a whole. They need to step up their enterprise-security business that is not tied to antivirus, in case consumer antivirus slows.”
View full article: Worms create rough ride for Symantec
Microsoft Project 2002: System Policy Editor and Templates (Apr 27)
The Microsoft Project 2002: System Policy Editor and Templates download includes the Microsoft Project 2002 system policy template. You must install the System Policy Editor and the template on your computer before you can create a system policy file.
Using the System Policy Editor, you can control which Microsoft Project 2002 options are available to your users. You can create system policies and easily distribute the settings from a central administrative installation point.
This download is part of the Microsoft Project 2002 Resource Kit, which is available online at TechNet.
Download: Microsoft Project 2002: System Policy Editor and Templates
Coder serves up poetry with newest Bagle (Apr 27)
The author of the latest variant of the Bagle worm has gone beyond penning just a piece of code: The writer has also included a poem in the document attachment on which the worm piggybacks.
The malicious program, known as Bagle.Z, has not spread very quickly, said Vincent Gullotto, vice president of the antivirus emergency response team for Network Associates, which makes security software.
“I don’t anticipate this one to last long,” he said, adding that the variant has had some initial success because the worm attaches itself to e-mail in a control panel file, which is an executable not used by virus writers before. “It is not a file that most people would typically block, so it may penetrate into some environments.”
The release of Bagle.Z is the latest in what appears to be a contest between the writers of two worms: Bagle and Netsky. A recent version of Netsky, or Skynet, as the author calls it, included a promise by the writer to keep creating new versions as long as the creator of the Bagle worm keeps revising that program.
View full article: Coder serves up poetry with newest Bagle
Added to site: Setting Permissions on a Mailbox (Apr 25)
Setting the correct permissions on mailboxes and Outlook folders can be done in several ways when you are in an Exchange organization. The correct way for you depends on your needs. While some methods look quite the same the results can be very different. This guide explains in which way you can set permissions and what their results are.
View: Setting Permissions on a Mailbox
‘Osama Captured’ e-Mail is Malicious Trojan (Apr 25)
Those “Osama Bin Laden Captured” e-mails hammering your in-box today will attempt to download a Trojan if the embedded URL is clicked, anti-virus experts warned Friday.
Glendale, Calif.-based Panda Software said the URL embedded in the e-mail directs users to what appears to be an advertising page before exploiting a known security vulnerability in Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (IE) browser to download the trojan.
The fake news item, purporting to come from CNN or the BBC and promising photographs and video of Bin Laden’s capture, first appeared on instant messaging networks earlier this month. According to security analysts, it is yet another use of social engineering tactics by spammers to direct traffic to Web sites.
The “Small.B” trojan opens ports on an infected machine and can be used to hijack PCs for use as spam zombies. The trojan has the ability to listen on the open port for instructions and redirects traffic to other IP addresses.
A spokesperson for anti-virus firm Sophos told internetnews.com the malicious trojan will only affect users using an unpatched IE browser. Microsoft has issued cumulative patches the IE browser to plug known vulnerabilities.
View entire article: ‘Osama Captured’ e-Mail is Malicious Trojan
Run: Windows Update
