Security News
The latest Windows Server updates are causing severe issues for administrators, with domain controllers having spontaneous reboots, Hyper-V not starting, and inaccessible ReFS volumes until the updates are rolled back. The most serious issue introduced by these updates is that Windows domain controllers enter a boot loop, with servers getting into an endless cycle of Windows starting and then rebooting after a few minutes.
Electric car chargers will have to include secure boot and automatic network disconnection if unsigned software runs on the smart devices - but only from 2023, the British government has said. New security requirements for smart chargers won't be enforced until the last day of this year, according to government papers reviewed by The Register.
Recently released Dell BIOS updates are reportedly causing serious boot problems on multiple laptops and desktop models. Impacted models include Dell Latitude laptops, as well as Dell Inspiron 5680 and Alienware Aurora R8 desktops.
Commercially developed FinFisher malware now can infect Windows devices using a UEFI bootkit that it injects in the Windows Boot Manager. "During our research, we found a UEFI bootkit that was loading FinSpy. All machines infected with the UEFI bootkit had the Windows Boot Manager replaced with a malicious one," Kasperksy researchers revealed today.
Microsoft has pulled an AMD driver from Windows Update after numerous people reported that it prevents Windows 10 from starting and displays an "INACCESSIBLE BOOT DEVICE" error. When hardware manufacturers release new drivers for Windows 10, they get added to the Windows Update as an optional driver update that users can install.
A Windows Defender bug creates thousands of small files that waste gigabytes of storage space on Windows 10 hard drives. The bug started with Windows Defender antivirus engine 1.1.18100.
GRUB, a popular boot loader used by Unix-based operating systems has fixed multiple high severity vulnerabilities. In 2020, BleepingComputer had reported on the BootHole vulnerability in GRUB2 that could have let attackers compromise an operating system's booting process even if the Secure Boot verification mechanism was active.
Microsoft has acknowledged an issue affecting Windows 10 customers who have installed the KB4535680 security update that addresses a security feature bypass vulnerability in Secure Boot. Windows versions affected by this vulnerability include multiple Windows 10 releases, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 R2, and Windows Server 2012.
A barcode scanner app, with over 10 million downloads, was booted from the Google Play marketplace after users began to complain of mobile-ad overload. The makers of the app, called Barcode Scanner, intentionally altered the code of the app via an update turning it from a benign app to adware, according to researchers. Tipped by a user, researchers at Malwarebytes explained, the publisher added new heavily obfuscated code to the app that directed the default mobile web browser to launch and serve-up ads - whether the barcode app was active or not.
Google has removed 164 apps, downloaded a total of 10 million times, from its Google Play marketplace because they were delivering "Disruptive" ads, considered malicious. The problem continues to plague Google despite numerous efforts by the company to prevent "Malicious developers" from submitting their apps to its Google Play marketplace.