Microsoft Pressures Testers After Software Leak

narramissic writes "ITworld reports that Microsoft is 'taking tough measures to find out who leaked a Community Technology Preview (CTP) of Windows Home Server to The Hotfix.net blog.' The software preview was posted on the site by a user named 'Richard' soon after it was released to a small group of testers. In an e-mail to MVPs whose names contain 'Richard,' Kevin Beares, the Windows Home Server community lead at Microsoft, wrote: 'For right now, you have no access to the beta until I can find the Richard who posted the WHS (Windows Home Server) CTP on this site.... I will work with the Connect Admin team to determine which one of you is the real culprit of this leak.'"

Comments

Prediction

[Anonymous Coward]

If this was Apple we would get many posts defending their right and need to do this. Since it is MS we won't. -Larry

Re:Prediction

[Jake73]

I think MS needs to root out the leak, that's just good business. But why exclusively ban people with the name Richard? I mean, if I were to do something like this, I wouldn't use my real name. That just doesn't make sense.

In fact, I'd probably think that a real Richard was less likely to have done this. But perhaps that's what Richard would have me think...

Wow...

[Etherwalk]

The leaker was arrogant/foolish enough to use his real name.

Probably, at least. Granted, you'd think he was just being a Richard and it needn't have anything to do with his name, but think about--someone leaked MS's follow-up email to people named Richard. Might it have been the Richard we're looking for? :)

Re:Wow...

[vertinox]

The leaker was arrogant/foolish enough to use his real name.

To be fair, it isn't that hard for a Robert to type in Richard instead.

Because clearly he *must* have used his real name

[tjrw]

Sheesh,
this is about as well-thought out as the no-fly list "algorithm". Well, Abdul looks a bit like Andrew so you're a suspect, eh?

If they didn't watermark, or put some other individual identifying marks in each of the CTPs handed out, then they have no clue who leaked it, and punishing the innocent is not going to improve their chances.

Why bother?

[Trailer Trash]

I hate to break it to you, MS, but the higher-end linksys routers (for about $100) now have a usb port where I can stick a hard drive and share it with all the network even if I'm not real computer literate. Likewise, the airport extreme from apple does the same.

I'm not sure what all your "home server" does, but coming from you it probably uses far more hardware than most people want to buy for the purpose and it probably locks me into using one of your buggy, insecure operating systems to access it. Put another way, you're going to have a tough time convincing people who want to have a hard drive shared on the network (probably 99.99% of all people who would want a "server" in the house) to go with your buggy crap rather than the linksys router.

I might be wrong, and laugh at me in 10 years if I am, but I really think you guys are getting in a huff because someone leaked your latest "Microsoft Bob" to the world.

By the way, the people who downloaded it probably didn't do so to use it; it was probably most hackers getting their paws on it to figure out how to break into it.

Meh

[Dunbal]

For right now, you have no access to the beta until I can find the Richard who posted the WHS (Windows Home Server) CTP on this site.... I will work with the Connect Admin team to determine which one of you is the real culprit of this leak.'

      It's great to know that a corporation always has plenty of funds for a witch-hunt even if product security is sacrificed due to "budget constraints"...