Rootkit May Be Behind Windows Blue Screen

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Rootkit May Be Behind Windows Blue Screen

Posted by kdawson on Friday February 12, 2010 @05:31AM from the pre-owned dept.

L3sPau1 writes "A rootkit infection may be the cause of a Windows Blue Screen of Death issue experienced by Windows XP users who applied the latest round of Microsoft patches. It appears that the affected Windows PCs had the rootkit infection prior to deploying the Microsoft patches. Researcher Patrick W. Barnes, investigating the issue, has isolated the infection to the Windows atapi.sys file, a driver used by Windows to connect hard drives and other components. Barnes identified the infection as the Tdss-rootkit, which surfaced last November and has been spreading quickly, creating zombie machines for botnet activity."

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Re:Sounds like a good thing by Anonymous Coward · 2010-02-12 05:46 · Score: 2, Funny

That's one way of forcing users to take care of an infection.
Let me try to respin it into an anti-Microsoft jab:
Windows API is such a jumbled mess of spaghetti code that not even low-level processes related to accessing the hard drive are safe from updates!
Inadequate regression testing by Ralish · 2010-02-12 05:51 · Score: 5, Funny

Next time you might consider doing some backwards compatibility testing with popular rootkits, yes? Just a free tip Microsoft!
1. Re:Inadequate regression testing by shutdown+-p+now · 2010-02-12 06:03 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  Next time you might consider doing some backwards compatibility testing with popular rootkits, yes? Just a free tip Microsoft!
  But if we do, the makers of less-popular rootkits could sue us in EU for monopolistic preferential treatment! ~
"It's not a bug, it's a feature" by davidwr · 2010-02-12 06:08 · Score: 3, Funny

"Yes, our security update crashed your computer. We hope you enjoyed our anti-rootkit feature."

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Knowledge is how to play a game, intelligence is how to win, wisdom is knowing what game to play.
"Rootkit May Be Behind Windows Blue Screen" by thatskinnyguy · 2010-02-12 06:26 · Score: 4, Funny

Rootkit? I don't see it. Maybe it's because this damn blue screen is blocking my view.

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The game.
Re:Sounds like a good thing by SCPaPaJoe · 2010-02-12 06:37 · Score: 3, Funny

I sure am glad I have Vista!!!
Re:Sounds like a good thing by FatdogHaiku · 2010-02-12 06:50 · Score: 2, Funny

I sure am glad I have Vista!!!
I understand each of the words.
I can pronounce all the syllables.
Yet this string will not register in my brain...
It's as if this arrangement of characters should not be.
Like some great sacrilege has sprung into being.

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You have the right to remain sentient. If you give up the right to remain sentient, you will be elected to public office
Re:MOD PARENT UP by nschubach · 2010-02-12 07:25 · Score: 2, Funny

AC's don't get mod points! ;)

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Every time I start to have faith in humanity, I ruin it by driving to work between 7 and 8 am.
Re:Ah, well, that lets Microsoft off the hook then by rarel · 2010-02-12 07:26 · Score: 2, Funny

I have a scanner, it's an Epson something. Doesn't do a damn thing, always gives me just a picture. These things are such a ripoff... :/