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Google Releases More Windows Bugs

Posted by Soulskill on from the speak-softly-and-carry-a-big-bugtracker dept.

An anonymous reader writes: Just days after Google angered Microsoft by releasing information about a Windows security flaw, they've now released two more. "The more serious of the two allows an attacker to impersonate an authorized user, and then decrypt or encrypt data on a Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 device. Google reported that bug to Microsoft on Oct. 17, 2014, and made some background information and a proof-of-concept exploit public on Thursday. Project Zero is composed of several Google security engineers who investigate not only the company's own software, but that of other vendors as well. After reporting a flaw, Project Zero starts a 90-day clock, then automatically publicly posts details and sample attack code if the bug has not been patched." Microsoft says there's no evidence these flaws have been successfully exploited.

6 of 263 comments (clear)

  1. 90 days may be a little short by Lawrence_Bird · · Score: 5, Insightful

    but in principle I agree with what Google is doing. In effect they are trying to destroy the market for zero day exploits and forcing the companies involved to not site on their hands and hope nobody uses them.. like cybercriminals and the various three letter agencies.

    1. Re:90 days may be a little short by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      This is a situation where the "slippery slope" argument really does apply. If Google is just going to sit on bugs until the vendor patches... they're going to end up with bedsores. And no one likes bedsores.

      Instead, they embarass the vendors a couple times, and once heads are pulled out of asses and people realize they're not screwing around, they start taking these things seriously.

      That's my guess, anyway.

  2. Re:No evidence by RelaxedTension · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "Microsoft says there's no evidence these flaws haven't been successfully exploited."

    FTFY.

  3. Re:Hope the trend continues. by turbidostato · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "Except without the public posting of them."

    Except the menace of the public posting seems to be the only way for the vendor to move forward.

    Is my bet that if Microsoft were doing their best effort to patch the bug and keep informed Google about it and the expected resolution time, they wouldn't have released the information.

  4. Re:Evil corporation cage match! by jdawgnoonan · · Score: 4, Insightful

    But to my knowledge that is the only way Google makes any money at all, and, since Google has a higher market cap than Microsoft who also sells a lot of for profit software, I can only assume that Google sells a lot more information. Every tool Google provides for consumers is a data mining tool that is funded solely by data mining. Microsoft actually sells stuff that you can buy and use without agreeing to allow your data to be mined.

  5. Re:Hope the trend continues. by freeze128 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Google's system for making exploits public is *AUTOMATED*. This is like a passenger in an elevator trying to convince the elevator to go back down while it's already in the middle of its trip to the top floor. You can throw a tantrum, but it's just not going to make any difference.

    Microsoft was informed of the issue, and developed a patch, but it was due to Microsoft's own internal policies that the patch could not be included in the monthly update. There was probably some internal cut-off date or some other bureaucratic bullshit that prevented it. Google doesn't care about Microsoft's internal BS. Why should it?

    Microsoft could have released the patch as an out-of-band update. Google wasn't insisting that it be released on the monthly schedule.