Microsoft Changes Tack: Will Fight Windows Viruses By "Securing The Perimeter"

Y ou knew this was coming...

According to C|Net, Microsoft is about to embark on a new approach to combating the digital infections that have plagued the users of its OSes of late. By "securing the perimeter," Microsoft hopes to stop viruses and worms before they reach a computer it might infect. Exactly how Microsoft intends to secure the perimeter is not clear, and the company is not saying, except that its strategy involves working closely with the makers of firewall equipment and software. From the article, Microsoft moves beyond patches:

Conceding that its strategy of patching Windows holes as they emerge has not worked, Microsoft plans next week to outline a new security effort focused on what the company calls "securing the perimeter," a company executive told CNET News.com.

Although Microsoft will continue to devise ways to improve the means by which Windows users apply upgrades, or patches, to their software, the company had realized that too many customers donit upgrade quickly enough to thwart hackers.

"From our side, (it) has been a little naive to think that all of those customers are going to do patches," said Orlando Ayala, Microsoftis former sales chief, who now heads its sales push to small and midsize businesses. "Itis just hard."

Until now, Microsoftis efforts have largely centered on improving the way it writes its code and then fixing holes as they emerge. "The strategy on security has been very (much) based on patch management," Ayala said in a telephone interview on Wednesday.

However, recent worm and virus attacks have repeatedly shown that many customers remain vulnerable long after patches have been released, he said.

Read the full article at C|Net.