Microsoft urges death of Windows gadgets

Just two weeks before researchers are to disclose bugs in Windows "gadgets" at Black Hat, Microsoft acknowledged unspecified security vulnerabilities in the small pieces of software supported by Vista and Windows 7.

To deal with the vulnerabilities, Microsoft has provided a way to cripple all gadgets and disable the "sidebar" engine that runs them.

"The purpose of this advisory is to notify customers that Microsoft is aware of vulnerabilities in insecure Gadgets affecting the Windows Sidebar on supported versions of Windows Vista and Windows 7," Microsoft said in a security warning issued Tuesday.

This was not the first time that Microsoft has reacted to security problems in gadgets. More than four years ago, Microsoft updated Vista with a tool that let the company automatically -- and remotely -- disable suspicious or malicious gadgets.

Read details: Computer World

Posted in: Black Hat, Microsoft, Security, Technology, Vista, Vulnerabilities, Windows 7