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MS to Launch Paid Security Subscription Service
user24 writes "MSN reports that Microsoft 'is launching a subscription service aimed at providing better protection for the Windows operating system, which has been vulnerable to Internet attacks.
Windows Live OneCare will protect up to three computers for about 50 dollars a year.'
From the OneCare website: 'Windows Live OneCare works continuously, automatically, and quietly in the background on your PC, ever vigilant against threats but never in the way, allowing you to have fun and be more productive:'"
Try fixing your operating system first.
They've found the second step!
1. Build buggy OS full of security holes
2. Charge 50 dollars a year to fix said bugs
3. Profit!
I gotta commend Microsoft, planning to make money of things that should be integrated into the system so that the threats never happen in the first place.
Prevention is less profitable than response, thus, they'll never try making a secure system now.
You will be baked, and there will be cake.
Only in the software industry, folks, can you buy a product and then buy another product to make the first product work. I suppose if you are making a bomb that could apply too.
I used the OneCare beta for quite a while (actually a good product IMHO).. But the subscription service started at the beginning of the month... Slashdot is a little late in reporting it.. On a side note; I did stop using OneCare when I tried to pay for the subscription (reduced rate for beta users) only to see (for the first time) U.S. Only, with international support at some point in the future (a year?). Anyways.. my $0.02
In other news, the Microsoft automotive line was revealed today. The cars run great when they run (which is occasionally) and come with an optional $50 annual subscription fee that provides seatbelts, a windshield, and doors.
It's a little like Apple trapping you in their shiny new glass elevator and then trying to sell you an iPod so they will let you leave the store in under two hours. Wait...that would never happen.
As you can see from the site http://www.windowsonecare.com/ they are offering antivirus, antispyware, firewall, performance tune-ups, and data backup and restore. At least 3 of those are dependant on their windows OS deficiencies.
It's obvious that they wouldn't be launching this service now if it won't also be needed for Vista. This was basically the last reason i needed to switch over to a Mac.
Ludwig Wittgenstein
When auto companies sell defective cars that will injure or kill or even just break down, they are REQUIRED to do a recall and fix them for FREE. When Microsoft sells a completely defective operating system that allows data theft, invasion of privacy, extortion and wholesale hijacking of the internet, at a cost of billions of dollars, they get to charge more money for the fix. The arrogance and irresponsible behavior toward the customer is breathtaking. Why are lawyers not lining up for the class action suits?
Dat's some awful pretty data youse got dere. Me an' Lefty would be heartbroken if sumthin wuz to happpen to it, huh Lefty? Maybe youse is need some prtection insurance?
Faith: n. -- That human impulse that drives them to steal appliances when the power goes out
Microsoft releasing operating systems with inadequate security is not comparable to repair of products that deteriorate through wear and tear (the software equivalent for that is such tools as defragmenters or registry cleaners). It is much more analogous to selling a car with a faulty brake system. Then you buy a separate braking system from another company. The problem with that is that this secondary braking system is not built into the fabric of the car. Thus, it leads to handling problems, will sometimes conflict with the original faulty braking system, and will occasionally even fail to stop the car when needed. The solution is to produce a car that has a properly designed braking system in the first place.
If you look at the features most of those come standard with OneCare and the windows equal.
50$ a year for a Fancy All-In-One gui to your basic windows programs sound like a lot to me. Doesnt even backup to an remote backup server. Sadly Mac suckers (em, users) have been paying for years, Redmond is catching up and getting in on the action.
Procrastinating life a way at a rapid rate of speed.
Not to be nitpicky and flamebait-ey, but Apple's got holes too, hackers just don't care about them. If it's 50/50 between MS and Apple (yeah, yeah, Linux, I know), you can expect that Macs will be targets too. Something tells me that the [generic mean people] aren't out to prove a point about Microsoft and Apple/*nix, they just go after whatever's easiest. As OSX is Unix-based, I'd imagine finding security holes would be considerably easier should one be looking to do so.
How are sites slashdotted when nobody reads TFAs?
"There's a sucker born every minute." Widely and falsely attributed to P.T. Barnum.
"A fool and his money are soon parted." Thomas Tusser.
MS is apparently hoping that lightning will strike twice in millions of places.
They've said repeatedly that Vista will be the most secure Windows ever, so why would Vista need any additional security software, from the creator of the OS or a third party? Obviously, the answer is that Vista isn't secure, and MS already knows it. They've even thought of a way to turn Vista's lackluster security into a secondary revenue stream.
To which the suckers and fools will gladly contribute.
There are many of us who have known the second step for ages: What do we do? We use Linux.
Spent the entire day dealing with the CFO's laptop - one of those that happens in a Fortune 100 company on occasion. XP on a Dell decided to stop handling IP - Outlook would seize, IE and Firefox were hosed. Other than a rebuild, the system was screwed. Whole damn thing was tired. Typical fscking Microsoft "This system is more than 2 years old - I'm ready to die" crap. As if SOX regulators thought that way.
Interestingly, the CFO asked about my teams laptops and what we use in the security dept. to make sure things run, Sarbanes Oxley auditors stay off our asses, etc. "Ah... that Linux stuff again, huh?"
Yea. Linux made the auditors go away happy, in spite of all the Windows nightmares. Tell me Microsoft isn't ready to fall and I'll invite you into any SOX-regulated shop that knows better. Run, don't walk.
The moment Linux can handle desktop apps, Microsoft is the next Osborne.
This may come as a surprise to you, but most viruses exploit flaws in Microsoft software to spread themselves.
Microsoft's initial product is defective, malicious people take advantage of the defects to create problems for users, Microsoft then charges users to remove the problems that their defective software allowed for in the first place.
Who you blame for viruses is debatable, but there's no doubt that Microsoft have a conflict of interests problem if they start selling virus scanner software. If they make their OS too secure, eventually they will kill the need for their new virus scanner product.
The fact that they intend for this service to be used mostly with Windows Vista is proof that they expect Windows Vista to have flaws for viruses to exploit.
If you had taken the class, the instuctor would have pointed you towards the maintaince and service contracts that have been part of the consumer marketplace for over one hundred years. He would have reminded you that Windows has ninety-five percent of the home market and self-service Linux less than three.
no rushing.. no rushing
place your bets here.. place your bets here..
Today's bet: When will MS bring out another paid service to make sure their Windoze Live OneCare service works as expected?
* lon3st4r *
Unfortunately, users can't be patched.
Sure they can - I slap a Mac on 'em. Then they can't click on anything stupid because there is nothing to click on yet that causes harm.
Yes there could be - but it's hard to ignore the plain fact that there isn't.
Like all patches, it may not last forever but it does fix the immediate problem.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Microsoft just gave Linux, MacOS X, and the BSDs a nice, juicy marketing point. There's no need for the DOJ on this one. Microsoft is shooting itself in the foot by coming out and saying that their product simply isn't usable out of the box. If I were RedHat or Novell, I'd jump all over this. I can picture the ads now: "So I need to pay another $50 EVERY YEAR just to keep my computer from getting trashed by viruses? Thanks, but no thanks, Microsoft!"
Read the EFF's Fair Use FAQ
As a Mac OS X user, I am not troubled by things like that, and I cannot be bothered with Windows, but I would be equally upset if Apple one day decided to CHARGE for security features! But they again, that would not be Apple's style, would it?
Same with Linux companies. They would never charge you for basic secrity, because a) it is built-in into the OS and b) a move like that would severely hurt the credibitity of the company.
So, in sum: shame, shame on you, Microsoft. You are a poor excuse for a technology company. You have NO credibility left in this world.
Beauty is in the beholder of the eye.
Pay us and we will protect you from ourselves?
Most (all?) antivirus companies have extremely harsh policy against employees writing viruses or other malicious code the software is to protect from.
What is there to stop Microsoft from putting a bug here, a hole there, purposedly, and "discover" it half a year later just to prove how essential the subscription service is to security of a company?
Anagram("United States of America") == "Dine out, taste a Mac, fries"
so how does the OS distinguish between malware vs non-malware? If the user is dumb enough to click install w/o knowing fully what he/she is doing (about 90% of how all malwares are installed these days), in the end, what you have is a compromised system.
HD Trailers
Love those mainframes.
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
I have a few windows machine.
One - a 2003 server has never crashed - as I mainly leave that happily running Apache, mailserver etc.
One - my big beast has bouts of flakiness - everytime it's down to a flakey driver for some obscure or cutting edge piece of hardware. (a problem MS has attempted to address with signed/unsigned drivers).
Now if a company produces a buggy driver for Windows, you can usually be pretty sure they put even less effort into the linux one (if they bothered at all).
In my country, we patch them regularly.
- Vladimir
Check out the description of "protection racket."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protection_racket
How is what Microsoft is doing any different?
My first support experience with Microsoft set the stage for later encounters.
... Usenet newsgroups. The kind of free software support you get for Linux. And was back up and running in a couple of hours.
...), but this has been my usual experience with Microsoft Support.
This was my first NT domain. Upgrading from NT 3.1 to the newly released NT 3.51.
Microsoft changed the licensing mechnism in 3.51. I don't recall the details now, but the result was that my network of ~100 PCs was having itermittent login problems. It was annoying, but we were able to live with it while I figured it out.
I called Microsoft, they made some suggestions, we went around a couple of times trying things, and on the third call they suggested it might be licensing and suggested I try making some changes to the licensing settings and call them back.
The changes completely broke the network. Nobody could log in. I called them back. "I'm sorry, you've used up your three free support calls for a new install. You'll have to buy a support contract..."
They wanted me to PAY for the damage THEY had done?
I went ballistic at them, and did what I should have done in the first place... went to my free software support
A week later I got a call from some muckymuck at Microsoft offering me another three free support calls. I'm afraid I got a mite sarcastic with him.
Since then, well, there have been exceptional brief bright pockets of clue (the Pocket PC group when Derek Brown was there, Windows Services for UNIX after they bought Softway Systems,
Paying someone else for support on Microsoft products is much more cost-effective.