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Microsoft Talks Daily With Your Computer

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the what-could-go-wrong dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Microsoft Corp. acknowledged Wednesday that it needs to better inform users that its tool for determining whether a computer is running a pirated copy of Windows also quietly checks in daily with the software maker. The company said the undisclosed daily check is a safety measure designed to allow the tool, called Windows Genuine Advantage, to quickly shut down in case of a malfunction." The EULA is suppose to disclose this daily call-in feature. Lauren Weinstein, who is co-founder of People for Internet Responsibility, was one of the first people to notice the daily communications to Microsoft. Report from Yahoo.com"

6 of 686 comments (clear)

  1. What's up with the intercapping? by roger_ford · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    So what's up with the gratuitous intercapping of Microsoft in the story title? The summary doesn't use that, and Microsoft hasn't used that name for decades. Is it just a subtle way to mock Microsoft, or what?

    In any event, it's unprofessional for a tech site that aims to be taken seriously. (Not that that's new at Slashdot.)

  2. Defend This by duckbillplatypus · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    OK Windows-Loving, Apple/Linux-Hating, Users Defend This. Wow, I cannot wait to see what sort of secret communicating Vista does. I guess we will have to wait to find out that Vista ties in directly with the NSA?

  3. Thank God! by trolleymusic · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    I got really worried for a minute, but then remembered that the sole windows pc here in my office is actually a purchased version! Who would've thought it, eh?

    --
    "damnit, trolley I want in your signature." - Elburrito
  4. Silent Treatment by pete-classic · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    "MicroSoft Talks Daily With Your Computer"

    Yeah? Well my computer is better at the slient treatment than my ex-wife.

    # uname -o
    GNU/Linux

    -Peter

  5. Re:Surprise ??? by mrcaseyj · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    Ubuntu phones home at every boot (to ntp.ubuntulinux.org)

  6. Re:This happened to my moms computer yesterday by toddestan · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    What if that box had been controlling some critical military system? People could have been killed just for the sake of Microsoft's totalitarian anti-copyright-infringment system!

    The optimist in me would like to think that if Windows manages to disable some critical military system, it would end up saving a lot of lives.

    Go Microsoft!