Microsoft warns of 'destructive cyberattacks,' issues new Windows XP patches

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Today is patch Tuesday, the following shows why the patches for all are critical. It's highly unusual for any company to decided to provide support for an out of support product be that a 50 year old Ford or a a 19 year old OS. For those not using XP this is still important, as it points to how important patching is to news systems as well.

Excerpt:

" Last month's devastating WannaCry ransomware outbreak was just a warning shot. In an unprecedented move, Microsoft today released critical security updates to block another wave of similar attacks, making those patches available on unsupported versions like Windows XP and Server 2003.

Citing an "elevated risk for destructive cyberattacks," Microsoft today released an assortment of security updates designed to block attacks similar to those responsible for the devastating WannaCry/WannaCrypt ransomware outbreak last month.

Today's critical security updates are in addition to the normal Patch Tuesday releases, Microsoft said. They'll be delivered automatically through Windows Update to devices running supported versions, including Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows 7, and post-2008 Windows Server releases.

But in an unprecedented move, Microsoft announced that it was also making the patches available simultaneously for manual download and installation on unsupported versions, including Windows XP and Windows Server 2003. Both of those operating systems are still deployed by significant numbers of business customers years after their official support lifecycles ended."

 

The rest of the article is a must read if you want to keep your data and computer safe:

http://www.zdnet.com/article/microsoft-warns-of-destructive-cyberattacks-issues-new-windows-xp-patches/?loc=newsletter_large_thumb_related&ftag=TREc64629f&bhid=19724681974700635514865380622813