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I am not sure that I know enough about this to comment. I am relaying what I saw on BBC, about a notice that American NSA put out. Apparently there is a security issue with a .DLL file that Microsoft is scrambling to fix.
Microsoft has been in touch with me, saying that I did not pay for Windows 360, so I have to prove I did. This may cost me $200. I go in tomorrow at 11 AM to see what can be done.
I was reticent to do this announcement, because I do not wish to see all the howling about the evils of Microsoft. I am not a Computer Geek and when I ask for help on things, people are not responsive or they want me to do some sort of weird shit that I will not understand at all.
Further, I just want to do things, not spend all my time working on a bunch of mysterious Electronic stuff that might have come out of a Witches Cauldron.
Gwen
Comments
The Patch Was Already Released.
It's already been fixed.
From PC World -- https://www.pcworld.com/article/3514172/microsoft-nsa-confir...
-Piper
Proof of Purchase then?
I'll sort through my bank records to find the recept then.
Who/What/When/ Where/Why and How?
How were you contacted by Microsoft? I know I pay $60/year recurring for access to Office 365. Did someone call you? Were you "called" on skype? I know a lot of scammers try things like this.
Or was it that Office 365 suddenly says you don't have access/your license has expired?
-Piper
Message embedded in Word.
There was a yellow strip along the top margin of Word that said I had not paid. I looked through my Bank Records and don;t see anything, so I must not have paid it. I'll go in to morrow to see what I can work out. Thanks.
Gwen
Office 365 Individual
If you haven't paid, an Office 365 Individual subscription may be the cheap way to go. You can pay monthly or annually but it's only $69/year US and includes 1 TB of OneDrive storage that you can use to keep your files safe. I actually have my files live in the cloud and keep a copy on each device I use so they stay synched. Your mileage may vary.
Strange that...
Microshaft announced this severe problem on the day that Windows 7 goes EOL? Who'd a thought it eh?
As for Office 365... Where did you get the license key from if you didn't pay for it?
Be very wary of this being a scam and that your system might have been hacked. As Piper said, it won't cost you $200 unless you buy the whole thing.
Samantha
Many people assume that it's
Many people assume that it's part of the computer they purchased, because it's pre-installed in trial mode. It's one of the less endearing traits of Microsoft, that they abuse their OS position like that.
I'll get a life when it's proven and substantiated to be better than what I'm currently experiencing.
You're right.
The computer is a few years old, so if I didn't buy it last fall, I would not have had it.
:)
Gwen
Microsoft Zero Day
The NSA found a problem with the way Windows 10 authenticated updates. While they could have used this in their toolkit it was too important to not fix. Also they have an agreement to help patch rather than exploit flaws. Wannacry was caused by a flaw the NSA was aware of but did not report until after the NSA toolkit was stolen. This is a Windows 10 flaw primarily but I guess it could also be in Office 365 since the update mechanism is similar or the same. It looks like the patch was released today, patch Tuesday around 1300 CST. I saw the news reports before the update was released. This is the first time the NSA is being credited publicly with finding a bug.
Corporate Greed
Damn and blast all greedy corporations. Thankfully, free office type software that works is available. Install LibreOffice and don't look back.
G/R
Bye bye Windows and MS
Having experienced niggly little problems ever since Windows 3.1 and up to my latest Windows 10 machine, I have not used an MS dominated machine in ages. I bit the bullet and went over to Chrome OS with a Dell Chromebook about a year ago.
No regrets at all.
I accept that if you muck about with memory-intensive data such as photos and video-editing, then it might not be for you, but I only use a word processor and the usual emails etc.
For what I do, I can use the MS Office online for free if I so desire, but to be honest, the Google Office alternatives are fine.
Okay, so one has to have an Internet connection, but when I was in West Africa, I bought a local sim card for my phone with sufficient data for a fraction of the cost of paying my UK mobile company's roving charges and never was without connection, even on a Game reserve miles from civilization.
I store everything in the cloud anyway (So no worries with PCs crashing and losing hard drive memory). I have a series of memory sticks and a portable hard drive and back everything up in any case.
It boots up in a fraction of the time a PC starts and there are no worries about malware, viruses etc.
Also, and for me a clincher - it was less than $200,(£170), is sturdy, 8 hour battery and if I really need a Windows-specific program (Like MS PUBLISHER to create book covers), I use the remote desktop and can access my PC through the Chromebook, even when I'm abroad. I just need my PC to be switched on.
For me, it was a no-brainer. I spent several weeks researching and dithering, but once I made the change, I'd never buy another Windows or Mac machine.
Tanya
There's no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothes!
+1 for Chromebooks
+1 for Chromebooks
I have a Windows 10 laptop, but mostly, like now, I use a Chromebook.
It also runs Android apps.
Kris
{I leave a trail of Kudos as I browse the site. Be careful where you step!}
Microsoft
is badly coded memory devouring time consuming fragile rubbish with about as much security as a swiss cheese.
Fortunately there are community based much improved alternatives to all Microshit produces, only the change takes effort and time, but only once.
I have a protegée, who is a professional programmer, she has a linux machine for work and a google (android) one for private use, I personally still use windows 7, that I have changed a bit myself and completely separated from Mirosoft, disabled all updates and used a separate firewall. So far everthing works fine. If that stops one day I am going for Linux, too. Eff Mr. Gates, he never had a first clue about programming. From the beginning one needed Peter Norton to make DOS work like proper programming and if one looks at the amount of space Windoes takes up you realise, that whatever Microshit claimes, their rubbish is still DOS based.
Monique S
It's All Fixed
As it turns out, the problem was the fact that my Debit Card was hacked 3 times in 2019 so when Office went to automatically renew, it couldn't. At the MS store, they finally revealed what the actual problem was and we fixed that part, but it took a whole day for the new information to trickle down to the "Borg" and for them to send out renewals to my machine. As for my other issue with a brand new printer, it had a CD that needed to be loaded that I did not know about. Once found and loaded, all seems well now on that issue. God saved me.
I did warn you all that I write stories, and really have little interest in computers. I'm old and suspicion that Dementia is encroaching on my mind. Physically, I have life ending conditions rearing their ugly heads, so anything that is not really simple probably won't be addressed. I am far more worried about waking up in a noisy, smelly care center with bed sores. I was hoping to make use of Oregon's Right to Die Law but now I find that it requires the use of a Doctor, most of which are pricks.
Have a great day people, and thanks.
Gwen