Microsoft Security Exec Details Windows XP Service Pack Plans

The release, due this summer, places strong emphasis on firewall capability

By Carol Sliwa

June 7, 2004 12:00 PM ET

Computerworld - Microsoft Corp.'s latest security efforts are focused on Service Pack 2 for Windows XP, which is due this summer. Mike Nash, vice president of Microsoft's security business and technology unit, recently discussed SP2 and the company's security strategy with Computerworld. Excerpts from the interview follow:

What guidance can you give IT pros about Windows XP Service Pack 2 breaking applications? Making sure that we're doing things to make XP SP2 compatible with key customer scenarios is a top priority for us. One of the things with the new firewall in Service Pack 2 is to make sure that it's compatible with more scenarios so that it can be turned on by default and left on by the customers.
There may be some cases from a security perspective where we're doing things that change the behavior of the operating system. ... There may be certain cases where security and compatibility are at odds, and we're going to focus on security, because people really need us to be focusing on security. ... The most important thing customers should be doing right now is planning for their rollouts of Windows XP Service Pack 2, which means testing it today so that if there are issues, we get that feedback now so we have a chance to respond to it before we ship the product.

How important is the firewall in Windows XP SP2 for companies that already have network firewalls? When your machine is always inside the network, the primary thing that the firewall's going to do is protect your machine from another infected machine that was brought inside the network. If you have a laptop that comes in with an infection, the edge [network firewall] can't help you. But your machine will be protected from that attack. So I never turn my firewall off.
The other thing that will happen, if a machine comes in with malicious code on it, its ability to propagate can be somewhat slowed down by having a firewall there. The primary place it makes a difference is for machines that are checking in remotely. We know a number of situations where an end user VPNs into the corporation and didn't have a firewall turned on. That machine is both out on the Internet but inside the [corporate firewall] all at the same time. Think of it as redefining "edge of the network."

Will XP SP2's firewall work with other personal firewalls? It is designed to support multiple firewalls, ours and a third party's, at the same time.

Recommend Digg Twitter ShareThis

Email Print Send Feedback Reprints

Additional Resources

Xerox

Win a color printer!

By using solid ink technology only from Xerox, you could save up to 65% by printing color for the cost of black and white. Enter for a chance to WIN a PhaserTM 8860 network color printer!

Microsoft

Upgrade to Internet Explorer 8 today.

Save time and mitigate security risk. Deploy it now.

Sybase

NEXT-GENERATION MOBILITY PLATFORMS

In this white paper, IDC analyzes the role of next-generation mobile enterprise platforms as organizations seek a more strategic deployment of mobile solutions.

Learn the important issues you must consider before starting your next mobility initiative. Get your mobility white paper from IDC now, compliments of Sybase.

White Papers & Webcasts

Centralized Data Backup and Your WAN
Is your organization prepared to tackle the massive challenge of protecting your data in a cost effective and timely manner? With a growing...

Why Compliance Pays
This OnDemand webcast explores the relationship that firms with best compliance records have higher revenue, greater customer retention, lower financial losses from data...

An All-in-One Approach to Web Security
Granting web access to employees poses challenges to IT administrators and introduces unique security risks. Even as companies have perfected their security techniques...

Best Practices for Managing Business Risks from the Use of IT
(Source: Symantec) Based on exhaustive benchmarks conducted by the IT Policy Compliance, this session highlights the relationship between business risks and use of...

The Hidden Dangers of Spam
Beyond the well-understood productivity drain that spam inflicts on businesses, threats posed by illicit email circulating through a network are causing many security...

Managing And Protecting Your Ever Increasing Mobile Assets
(Source: Absolute Software) Your users are becoming more mobile each day. This is great for productivity - yet challenging for IT control. Natalie...

Open Source Security Myths Dispelled
(Source: Astaro) Open Source Software is computer software whose source code is available to the general public. This openly viewable nature...

Sun OpenSSO Enterprise Webinar
(Source: Sun) This webinar replay discusses Sun OpenSSO Enterprise innovation--the single, open-source solution that helps your business solve the challenges around internal access...

Best Practices for Backing Up VMware® with Veritas NetBackup™
VMware® is used by enterprises large and small to increase the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of their IT operations. With this in mind, Symantec...

Agile Enterprise Content Management (ECM) for Rapid ROI
(Source: IBM) Content rich business processes are a core feature of daily operations at just about any organization today. Very often these essential...

All White Papers | All Webcasts