Trojan Targets Microsoft Shortcut Files, Installs Windows Drivers

Attack Uses Previously Unknown Exploit

The viral Windows drivers belong to rootkits, which install themselves undetected with the assistance of a legitimately signed driver that belongs to RealTek Semiconductors. The particular attack targets Siemens SCADA WinCC control systems. This niche software is used by power plants, leading security experts to conclude that this particular attack was designed to effect industrial espionage.

VirusBlokAda, a cybersecurity firm located in Belarus, first discovered the attack. The virus poses a serious security risk because it doesn’t rely on an autorun exploit, as most USB-borne attacks do. At the moment, there is no credible way to detect the attack as it is happening, and all Windows computer, even fully patched systems running Windows 7 are vulnerable to the attack.

The attacks are significant for another reason: until now, it was thought that .lnk files had no ability to do anything until the user clicked on the file. In this particular attack, the mere presence of the .lnk file is enough to trigger the infection. Apparently, no user action – other than connecting an infected USB drive to a system that runs Microsoft Explorer – is required to trigger the viral transfer. The malicious files are undetectable on the USB drives, leaving users completely vulnerable to the attack.

Security experts are warning users not to get complacent about the fact that this particular attack is directed toward a niche product. The major danger with this attack is that other hackers can use the same approach that the Trojan uses to target other systems. The likelihood of success is high because there is no inherent protection against this type of attack within Windows OS products at the moment.

This particular attack installs two apparently-legitimate Windows drivers called mrxnet.sys and mrxcls.sys, which in turn install two rootkits, Rootkit.TMPHider and SScope.Rootkit.TmpHider.2. Cybersecurity firms report that infections of these two rootkits have risen since the attacks began, leading them to speculate that the incidence of undetected infections is rising.

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64-Bit Drivers In Demand By Users Moving To Windows 7

What Makes The 64-Bit Version Of Windows Different?

Is there a substantial difference between the performance of a 32-bit system and a 64-bit system? The short answer is yes. The big advantage of the 64-bit system is that it can address more RAM. The more RAM you have available, the faster your computer can work (to a point) and the more simultaneous tasks it can manage (to a point). You may also benefit from having a 64-bit system if you use very computation-intense software, like engineering design software, graphic software, or gaming software.

The downside of running a 64-bit system is that you need to have 64-bit drivers for your hardware. If the manufacturer of a piece of hardware makes a 64-bit version of the driver you need, you’re in luck. Carry on!

On the other hand, if the manufacturer of a piece of hardware has made only a 32-bit driver, you’re pretty much out of luck. 32-bit and 64-bit drivers aren’t interchangeable. They’re not even a little bit compatible, either. 32-bit is 32-bit and 64-bit is 64-bit, and “never the twain shall meet,” so to speak. Microsoft does maintain a compatibility list, which has a comprehensive (though probably not exhaustive) list of 64-bit compatible devices. You can find this list at The Windows 7 Compatibility Center.

The site is divided into two tabs: Software and Hardware. The Software tab contains major functions (e.g., gaming, communications, graphics and printing, etc), so you may have to do a bit of guesswork to figure out how Microsoft views the software you’re looking for. Each major group also has a dropdown menu that activates when you “mouse over” the category heading.
The hardware tab, which is where you’d be looking for device drivers, is divided into major device types. You can also search the site using keywords, and limiting your text searches to hardware or software. You can also filter your search results by system type (64-bit or32-bit), and manufacturer. Microsoft even has some information on devices that are not currently 64-bit compatible, but will have a 64-bit driver in the near future. If your device isn’t on the list and Microsoft has no information about the device’s future 64-bit status, check with the manufacturer to see if they have a 64-bit driver, or if a 64-bit driver is in the works.

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Microsoft Cuts Support Options For Windows XP Users

Unsupported OS Can Be Tricky

Running an unsupported OS can be tricky, since users won’t be able to get patches and revisions. Although development on the XP OS ended long ago, Microsoft was still providing maintenance releases that closed holes and kept the system as up-to-date as possible.

According to Microsoft, Service Pack 3 can be applied only to computers running the 32-bit version of Windows XP. Prior to installing Service Pack 3, the computer must also have Service Pack 2 and Service Pack 1(a) installed. These service packs are still available from the Microsoft Web site.

If you’re not sure whether your computer is a 32-bit or 64-bit system, you can find out by taking the following steps.
Go to Start > Run
Enter sysdm.cpl and click OK.
This will open a dialog box that will provide additional information about your system. Within the dialog box, select the General tab. If your system is a 32- bit system, you’ll see the words “Windows XP Professional Version XXXX under System. XXXX will be a date, expressed as a year.
If your system is a 64-bit system, you’ll see a slightly different set of words under System: “Windows XP Professional x64 Edition Version XXXX.” Again XXXX represents a year.

Service Pack 3 isn’t used with 64-bit systems, so it’s important to know whether you need the service pack or not. Do not install Service Pack 3 if you have a 64-bit system. Microsoft has provided a different method for patching and updating 64-bit versions of the XP operating system.
The installed user base for Windows XP is still quite large, however more users are adopting Windows 7. Importantly, many of the new adopters are Microsoft’s corporate customers, most of whom have been working with XP for nearly 10 years. In the coming year, Microsoft will likely examine its plan to drop support for Windows XP altogether.

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TEKLYNX Rolls Out Windows 7 Drivers

New Drivers Are A Good Sign Of Windows 7 Adoption

As with regular printers, it’s generally a good sign when a manufacturer releases new drivers to extend the function of a device to a new operating system. Barcode printers are specialized pieces of equipment, and the availability of Windows 7 drivers is not likely to make a major splash among users who don’t have a barcode printer.

The availability of new Windows 7 drivers for a niche product, however, is a strong positive indication that more users (especially commercial users) are lining up to add Windows 7 to their list of supported operating systems. Unlike Windows Vista, which was a commercial dud, Windows users across the board are moving toward Windows 7 adoption.

With the advent of the new fiscal year, we should begin to see the many organizations that time their upgrades to budget cycles start moving toward Windows 7. The fact that Windows 7 doesn’t make major hardware demands on PCs, plus the added benefit of the Windows XP emulation mode, should make migration an easy decision.

Despite Microsoft’s best efforts, however, the question of driver availability, especially for older hardware and niche products is still open. If manufacturers and software publishers create a broad range of drivers for older and uncommon hardware, and if Microsoft can deliver on its promise of stability – so far it has – Windows 7 is likely to experience the wide adoption that Windows XP did.

For the remainder of 2010, users should expect to see additional driver rollouts for older hardware and niche hardware. Until the Great Driver Migration is complete, however, some users will be engaged in a “chicken and egg” conundrum: “I’ll upgrade if the drivers are available” will do battle with “We’ll write drivers only if we see a lot of people upgrading to Windows 7.”

Once Windows 7 has been on the shelf for a year, it’s unlikely that a large number of new drivers will enter the market. Instead, manufacturers will carry Windows 7 support forward in their product line, but won’t likely look backward, even for some of their more popular legacy products.

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Driver Hack Enables JooJoo Users To Run Windows 7

Third Party Drivers May Someday Be “Supported”

The JooJoo tablet is a touchscreen device with iPad-esque styling, size and shape. It retails for about USD$500 and has just a single accessory… a stand that enables the pad to stand on a desktop. The JooJoo site is shockingly sparse on details, and contains only the barest information about the company, the product and the product’s capabilities.

Nonetheless, at least one enterprising user has posted a driver that enables the JooJoo to run Windows 7. The hacked Windows 7 driver doesn’t engage all of the JooJoo’s functions but gets most of them and in surprisingly good fashion. One of the big features that’s left wanting is the JooJoo’s accelerometer. The accelerometer is the component that enables these devices to reposition the screen when its orientation is changed, and to incorporate device motion as a command or data input. In other words, if you shake this device, it won’t do anything, and probably can’t calculate your carbon footprint if you take it for a ride in your Prius.

The origin of the driver presents an interesting alternative, however, for Windows users whose hardware isn’t supported by the hardware manufacturer. Some hardware is simply worth having, even when the manufacturer of the device doesn’t think so.

I suspect that, in at least some cases, we’ll see consumer demand for Windows device drivers for abandoned or orphaned products. That also opens the question of whether or not manufacturers that no longer want to support a particular device will support volunteer programmers (a la open source) who are willing to invest their time and talents to create a guerilla driver for an orphaned device. The support might include device information that the manufacturer has, work that it started and abandoned and/or code for the existing drivers.

Even if the original manufacturer isn’t willing to create a driver update, consumer demand may be steady enough to warrant the creation of a driver by a third-party. Sometimes (as demonstrated by the JooJoo hack), third parties will develop the driver anyway.

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Monthly Driver Updates Aren't Just For Windows Anymore

Will Adobe Sign Up For Patch Tuesday?

Patch Tuesday releases include security updates, driver updates and patches to the operating system that have not been deemed a flat-out, “all-hands-on-deck” emergency. The system has worked relatively well since it was introduced by Microsoft in 2003. Now Adobe says that it may move to monthly product and security updates.

Several prominent attacks against Windows Vista and Windows 7 have been launched using Adobe Flash and Adobe Reader, and users and vendors alike are pressuring Adobe to pay more attention to product vulnerabilities and to address potential exploits faster. Currently, Adobe issues product updates once per quarter. This leaves malware designers significant time to discover and develop attacks using the company’s products.

Another problem for Windows users is that Windows Update does not automatically download and install Adobe product updates. Instead, Windows Update handles only new third-party driver releases. Adobe says it plans to adopt Microsoft’s Security Center Update Publisher (SCUP) by the end of 2010. This move will enable Adobe to distribute product updates to Windows users more quickly and effectively.

Currently, Adobe doesn’t post its most recent product updates on the company’s Web site. Instead, users download an update, then use the Adobe Updater tool to patch the version of the software they’ve just downloaded. One drawback of this approach is that it relies on users to update the product. If users don’t seek out the updates, or don’t allow automatic updates on their computers, the unpatched, out-of-date product(s) will remain.

Since Adobe products are becoming the vector of choice for certain types of attacks against Windows, expect Microsoft to notch up the pressure on Adobe to move to a more regular system of patching, adopt more efficient methods of updating products, and to design products with tighter security controls in mind.

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Seagate Announces New Superfast Hybrid Laptop Drive, Resolves Driver Problem

Hybrid Drives Can Offer Both Performance And Power Saving

One of the most critical concerns with any kind of laptop hardware is power consumption. Because laptops work primarily on batteries, the amount of power that each device consumes has a direct bearing on the performance of the system. As a result, manufacturers attempt to reduce power consumption as much as possible for devices designed for use in laptops.

That design decision is not without cost. Laptops frequently work with older processors, older memories, older displays and older peripherals that consume less power. Not having the latest processors means that laptops perform some tasks more slowly than their conventional desktop counterparts.

Flash drive technology is attractive for laptop designs because it consumes less energy than mechanical drives do, and lacks moving parts. By eliminating moving parts, laptops become more reliable and more road-worthy. The trade-off? Not-so-good performance.

With the new hybrid drives from Seagate, Windows 7 and Windows Vista performance has been properly addressed and Seagate says that the new drives willl operate seamlessly with not only Windows 7 and Windows Vista, but also with laptops that run the Mac OS and Linux as well.

Improved performance and improved Windows drivers aren’t the only things users can expect from the new Momentus XT drives. Seagate says that it will offer the drives as upgrades for a new Republic of Gamers G73Jh notebook starting at just $113.

If the hybrid drive and its drivers deliver genuinely improved performance, better integration with Windows 7 and Windows Vista and reduce the cost to just over $100 for 500GB of laptop storage space, Seagate will have a hit on its hands. Although the new drives are being marketed to the laptop gamers, you can bet that if the drives perform well, you’ll be seeing them in non-gaming applications in the not-too-distant future.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Seagate

Bad Or Missing Windows Drivers Can Cause Big Problems

Driver Problems Come In Many Shapes And Sizes

Drivers are files, so they’re subject to the same limitations that other files are. They can get corrupted, misplaced or deleted. When this happens, the computer is unable to access the related hardware properly. A corrupted driver may partially function, which will cause your hardware (or your computer) to behave erratically when you try to use the device. In other cases, the corrupted driver won’t work at all, meaning that you have no access to your device.

Driver problems can also occur when you install system updates that overwrite a portion of the driver software, or that don’t interact properly with your old driver. In this case, the driver usually stops functioning altogether. Attempts to access the driver can cause the computer to freeze or crash.

Last but not least, manufacturers may issue new drivers to correct problems with an existing driver, enable new functions, or improve compatibility with the operating system. You may not notice any behavior problems with your device or computer, but you won’t have the benefit of the updates, either.

In the distant past, users were responsible for locating, downloading and installing the correct driver for their hardware. Windows came with a few “generic” drivers for required hardware like displays, mice and keyboards. More recently, Windows has been redesigned to locate and install driver updates, and comes with a large collection of drivers.

Unfortunately, these additions don’t reduce the amount of time it takes to do driver maintenance. Sometimes, Windows doesn’t have the updated driver, or doesn’t know about it. Windows also occasionally downloads and installs the wrong driver for your hardware. (This can cause a number of problems for you, including functions that don’t work or devices that are inaccessible.)

When this happens, you can plan to spend extra time troubleshooting the problem, locating the correct driver, uninstalling the wrong driver, and installing the correct driver. Doing driver maintenance is an unpleasant prospect, to say the least.

I have turned all of my driver maintenance tasks over to Driver Detective. Driver Detective locates, downloads, installs and backs up the correct driver for your device. Driver Detective also monitors the operation of your drivers and replaces drivers that have gotten corrupted or gone missing. Once Driver Detective is configured, you don’t have to do anything except enjoy working on a well-maintained computer.

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Looking For Windows Drivers Doesn't Have To Be A Major Time Commitment

Drivers Abound, Just Not Always In The Right Places

Windows drivers are available by the millions. That’s right; over time, there have been literally millions of hardware drivers written for the Windows operating system. That’s because there have been millions of peripherals designed to work with windows. Everything, from printers to keyboards to specialized hardware, requires a driver to allow the hardware to communicate with the computer.

Drivers don’t just happen and Microsoft isn’t responsible for writing drivers; hardware manufacturers are. When hardware manufacturers don’t write updated drivers, they’re essentially walking away from one of their products. Without a driver, the hardware won’t work properly, if at all. Older drivers might suffice, but chances are good that when an operating system changes radically – like the difference between Windows XP and Windows 7 is – there’s a good bet that a new driver is in order.

There’s no income involved for the manufacturer in writing a new driver for old hardware. Drivers are given away at no cost. Ongoing driver support represents the commitment a company makes to a hardware product, as well as an acknowledgment by the company that hardware can function admirably well past the manufacturer’s desire to continue supporting it.

Many peripheral manufacturers took a flyer on writing drivers for Vista, largely because Vista wasn’t a big commercial success. That approach is now causing problems for consumers who want to upgrade to Windows 7, and who still want to use their older hardware. Many manufacturers haven’t done the legwork needed to write a Vista driver, and the absence of a Vista driver significantly lessens the chance that a Windows 7 driver will be forthcoming.

For its part, Microsoft attempted to head off this problem by including a virtualization mode in Windows 7 that will enable the computer to run Windows XP. In virtual XP mode, the old XP drivers will still work. Unfortunately, the computer’s BIOS must support virtualization – a trick that many aging computers don’t.

If you’ve got an older piece of hardware that you don’t want to – or can’t – replace, and your computer can run Windows XP virtually, you can still access your older hardware and enjoy the benefits of Windows 7. (Just not simultaneously.)

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Windows 7 Doesn't Always Have Drivers For Older Peripherals

What’s So Awful About Windows Drivers

The printer is a special breed of hardware. One element of modern printer design that causes headaches all around is the fact that there are many different models of the same device. One model may be designed to plug directly into a computer’s USB port, while another model of the same device is meant to sit on a network. Functionally, the two devices may be the same. They may use the same design and have the same toner cartridge. They may look virtually identical, but minor differences may mean that each device needs to have its own driver.

Microsoft had hoped to avoid this by insisting that manufacturers have their device drivers ready to go by the time Windows 7 hit the store shelves. For manufacturers that had already gone through the trouble of writing a Vista driver, the task was simple. All they had to do was submit the Vista driver to Microsoft and prove that it worked on Windows 7. If the driver didn’t work, the manufacturer was required to correct the errors by the Windows release date.

Unfortunately, many hardware manufacturers never went as far as actually writing a driver for Vista. That worked well enough because many users never went as far as actually installing Vista. With Windows XP being officially declared “long in the tooth” and nearing its 10th birthday, many users were anxious to upgrade to a more stable operating system.

Microsoft provided Windows 7 and spent a fair amount of time working out the kinks before sending it to market. Hardware manufacturers weren’t so diligent, and after six months, the likelihood of getting additional drivers for older hardware is dimming.

Some users have found workarounds or assistance from third-party drivers. Other users have found that Vista drivers work well enough for their older hardware, when Vista drivers exist. Other users spend hours searching fruitlessly for driver support.

Nothing will help if a manufacturer hasn’t written an updated driver, but a driver management program like Driver Detective can certainly cut down on the amount of time spent searching for and installing driver updates. Driver Detective will locate, download, install and back-up your current suite of drivers automatically. There’s no more time spent looking for the correct drivers – Driver Detective does all the hard work for you!

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