Windows 8 Tells Microsoft About Everything You Install, Not Very Securely

Windows 8 Tells Microsoft About Everything You Install, Not Very Securely

gizmodo.com

There are a few serious problems here. The big problem is that Windows 8 is configured to immediately tell Microsoft about every app you download and install. This is a very serious privacy problem, specifically because Microsoft is the central point of authority and data collection/retention here and therefore becomes vulnerable to being served judicial subpoenas or National Security Letters intended to monitor targeted users. This situation is exacerbated when Windows 8 is deployed in countries experiencing political turmoil or repressive political situations.

This problem can however get

(visit the link for the full news article)

Everything is getting more Big Broherish by the day.

Soon every single click of our mouse or thing we typed will be logged and recorded somewhere.

The "If you don't have anything to hide" argument is a bunch of bull. I feel sorry for those who are mind washed into that.

What happened to the nation I grew up in? Now everyone blandly accepts more and more intrusions into our privacy.

When are we going to say "ENOUGH!"

I will with my feet. I will never buy this version of Windows. I still like XP and 7 good enough.

At least you can turn this crap off, but most people never will:

Windows 8 will, by default, inform Microsoft of every app downloaded and installed by every user. This puts Microsoft in a compromising, omniscient situation where they are capable of retaining information on the application usage of all Windows 8 users, thus posing a serious privacy concern. The user is not informed of this while installing and setting up Windows 8, even though they are given the option to disable SmartScreen (which is enabled by default.)

gizmodo.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Smart Screen can be disabled by the user, so no information gets sent to Microsoft.

Windows is used by all the world major businesses including all the worlds top defense contractors and most of them have secure networks, there are always options to switch off any communication with Microsoft, especially any communication that would result in passing identification of the source computer.

Switch to Linux and enjoy true "free" software. It's fantastic.

reply to post by pianopraze


Solution:
Linux, and older version of Windows like XP or 7, or MAC OS.

As long as we have choices, we can make whatever choice we feel suits our wants and needs.

Additionally, whatever the case with Win 8, There will likely be 3rd party software that disables this feature.
Plus, if one desired, they could edit their HOSTS file to direct all Microsoft or any other Corporate Concerned queries to 127.0.0.0.

reply to post by rigel4


Yes!
Even if it can be disabled on W8, since the source code for linux is open you can review it yourself. Or you can trust that your peers will spot mischief.

Unless your hardware is bugged by the authorities, but we can all trust they'd never do that right?

Originally posted by Druscilla
reply to post by pianopraze

 

Solution:
Linux, and older version of Windows like XP or 7, or MAC OS.

As long as we have choices, we can make whatever choice we feel suits our wants and needs.

Additionally, whatever the case with Win 8, There will likely be 3rd party software that disables this feature.
Plus, if one desired, they could edit their HOSTS file to direct all Microsoft or any other Corporate Concerned queries to 127.0.0.0.

Yes you can turn it off.. see last lines of my op for how

True about other OS's, and I love my macbook for all my painting/music and graphic design things I do. But world still operates on windows and I have my macbook dual booted with windows 7... Mac forces us to use Windows 7 now, how long till they force to use Windows 8?

Mac is increasingly getting doing the same things with privacy though, I can't find link but one of the newer versions of Mac OS is doing something similar.

Maybe it is time to learn linux.

reply to post by Druscilla


Host file blocking is not working in windows 8!

Linkey

You can still host your own dns server though.

[snip]

Saddly it seems you are right. The younger generations don't even seem to care...

I don't know know why they don't care, but it sure makes me sad. I can avoid most of it by just not buying the junk, but soon everythign is going to be using things... TV's watching us as we watch them (x-box Kinect already does) and Comcast cable is planning on it too in your cable box:

If you have some tinfoil handy, now might be a good time to fashion a hat. At the Digital Living Room conference today, Gerard Kunkel, Comcast‘s senior VP of user experience, told me the cable company is experimenting with different camera technologies built into devices so it can know who’s in your living room.

The idea being that if you turn on your cable box, it recognizes you and pulls up shows already in your profile or makes recommendations. If parents are watching TV with their children, for example, parental controls could appear to block certain content from appearing on the screen. Kunkel also said this type of monitoring is the “holy grail” because it could help serve up specifically tailored ads. Yikes.

link


Our society is fast becoming worse than anything Orwell could imagine in 1984...

Originally posted by tyfon
reply to post by Druscilla

 

Host file blocking is not working in windows 8!

Linkey

You can still host your own dns server though.

Further down in your Linky, it reads:

Update: Tom just pointed out that turning off Windows Defender, which basically is Microsoft Security Essentials, in Windows 8 will resolve the issue. It appears that the program has been designed to protect some hosts from being added to the Windows hosts file. To turn off Windows Defender press the Windows key, type Windows Defender and hit enter. This launches the program. Switch to Settings here and select Administrator on the left. Locate Turn on Windows Defender and uncheck the preference and click save changes afterwards. Please note that this turns off Windows Defender, and that it is recommended to have another antivirus program installed on the system to have it protected against Internet and local threats.

If you do not want to disable Windows Defender completely, you can alternatively add the hosts file to the list of excluded files and processes. You do that with a on Settings > Excluded files and locations. This basically blocks Windows Defender from scanning or manipulating the hosts file in the operating system.

Dont think im going to turn my 2,000 dollar gaming rig into an iphone, thanks anyway microsoft!

Steam are going to port all there game to linux, no longer see the need for windows, I only used it for games anyway now I dont have too.

reply to post by Druscilla


I didn't reread the article as I have read it before. At least you can stop that behavior it seems.
Sorry for giving outdated info.

I remember when Intel came out with either the P2 or 3, it had a tracking feature built into it. When the masses heard about it, they raised hell, which prompted intel to disable it by default.
People just dont seem to care now days,.

As far as i can tell no identifiable information is sent to Microsoft about the user.

Some people are saying that they also had the option to turn off smart screen when they installed windows.

No offense to the OP but I think this is just a sensationalist article.

Originally posted by PhoenixOD
As far as i can tell no identifiable information is sent to Microsoft about the user.

Some people are saying that they also had the option to turn off smart screen when they installed windows.

No offense to the OP but I think this is just a sensationalist article.

No offense to you but did you read my OP?

Or the link?

Yes you can turn it off, I put that in my OP:

Originally posted by pianopraze
At least you can turn this crap off, but most people never will:

Windows 8 will, by default, inform Microsoft of every app downloaded and installed by every user. This puts Microsoft in a compromising, omniscient situation where they are capable of retaining information on the application usage of all Windows 8 users, thus posing a serious privacy concern. The user is not informed of this while installing and setting up Windows 8, even though they are given the option to disable SmartScreen (which is enabled by default.)

There is lots of info in the link exactly what it sends (and this info was there when i made OP):

Update: According to Microsoft, SmartScreen sends a hash of the app installer and its digital signature, if any. A combination of the hash and the user's IP address is still enough to identify that IP address x attempted to install software y.

Update 2: Another researcher has discovered that a filename of the app you're trying to install is indeed sent to Microsoft. This severely strengthens privacy concerns.

link

The bigger problem is that this is being done in everything and getting worse and worse everyday.

How long till we can't turn it off?

The only way to have privacy on your computer is to never connect it to the net. And even then, they could break in and look at it while you are at work.

And it's all fine and dandy because big brother loves you.

Oh and in response to the people claiming they can keep their computers safe, I have to express my deep skepticism because there seems to always be a back door in.

Originally posted by muzzleflash
The only way to have privacy on your computer is to never connect it to the net. And even then, they could break in and look at it while you are at work.

And it's all fine and dandy because big brother loves you.

Oh and in response to the people claiming they can keep their computers safe, I have to express my deep skepticism because there seems to always be a back door in.

Yep,

Love is War.... or War is Peace or something like that...

right?

And I agree with your post.

reply to post by pianopraze


Smart screen has been apart of internet explorer for years. There will always be a option to turn it off otherwise big businesses and government would not use it.

Apple knows what you install, Google knows what you install. Windows just checks a file hash to see if the program is safe, it does not send your windows key so they don't know who you are. The most identifiable thing they could possibly know is the IP address of your internet service provider. I just did a trace on my IP and it geographically placed me over 100 miles away.

Heres from the original guy who decrypted what smart screen sends :

Armed with file names, Microsoft could — in theory — be building a database matching IP addresses to files downloaded/run, but let’s be real — it’s Microsoft. This is the same company that’s scared to fart in fear of litigation. (They won’t even defend their Metro design language naming for crying out loud.) I expect Microsoft to respond with a statement about how this data is anonymized internally. And if that doesn’t relieve the pressure, I expect an update to remove the file name reporting aspect of the service, given malware often mutates and changes file names.

But look, you have the power of choice. You can turn off Windows SmartScreen via Action Center -> Change Windows SmartScreen settings, and subsequently turn off annoying Action Center warnings by clicking Turn off messages about Windows SmartScreen in the same window.

Microsoft wont risk their market share by prying to much into peoples business on their OS its just not good for business.

Personally i wont bother to much about it. If the message to send gets to annoying ill switch it off

Originally posted by PhoenixOD
reply to post by pianopraze

 

Smart screen has been apart of internet explorer for years. There will always be a option to turn it off otherwise big businesses and government would not use it.

Apple knows what you install, Google knows what you install. Windows just checks a file hash to see if the program is safe, it does not send your windows key so they don't know who you are. The most identifiable thing they could possibly know is the IP address of your internet service provider. I just did a trace on my IP and it geographically placed me over 100 miles away.

Heres from the original guy who decrypted what smart screen sends :

Armed with file names, Microsoft could — in theory — be building a database matching IP addresses to files downloaded/run, but let’s be real — it’s Microsoft. This is the same company that’s scared to fart in fear of litigation. (They won’t even defend their Metro design language naming for crying out loud.) I expect Microsoft to respond with a statement about how this data is anonymized internally. And if that doesn’t relieve the pressure, I expect an update to remove the file name reporting aspect of the service, given malware often mutates and changes file names.

But look, you have the power of choice. You can turn off Windows SmartScreen via Action Center -> Change Windows SmartScreen settings, and subsequently turn off annoying Action Center warnings by clicking Turn off messages about Windows SmartScreen in the same window.

Microsoft wont risk their market share by prying to much into peoples business on their OS its just not good for business.

Personally i wont bother to much about it. If the message to send gets to annoying ill switch it off

I am glad we can switch it off, which I stated you could in my OP.

That all these companies are doing it is the very essence of the objection in my OP.

We need to stop this now while we still can, not only on computers but every aspect of our lives.

Stop buying products and supporting companies that do it, and get elected or support people who will pass legislation to stop this insanity.

The best way is to raise awareness now (like I am doing here) and stop buying the products. If enough people object and don't buy, companies will be forced to change.