Microsoft announced yesterday that they had discovered a security vulnerability in older versions of Windows that could allow a hacker to access the computer without any user action required. This is covered under advisory CVE-2019-0708.
Affected versions:
- Windows XP
- Windows 7
- Windows Server 2003
- Windows Server 2008
Unaffected versions:
- Windows 10
- Windows Server 2016
- Windows Server 2019
Due to the far-reaching affects of this vulnerability, Microsoft has taken the unusual step of releasing updates for versions of Windows that have been outside mainstream support for several years (e.g. Windows XP and Windows Server 2003).
Have There Been Any Attacks Yet?
As of the writing of this post Microsoft says they have not seen any evidence of attacks against this serious security vulnerability. But it could happen at any time, so it's best to install the updates as soon as possible to prevent any problems.
What You Need To Do
Please Note: If your company is a monthly managed client of Sentryon IT Solutions on either a Total Managed IT or Endurance Managed IT plan, we will be taking care of this for you as part of your plan.
For affected computers that are not managed by Sentryon, including those you have at home, you will need to ensure the update is applied as soon as possible.
Here are the links to the updates:
- For in-support versions (Windows 7, Windows Server 2008): https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2019-0708
- For out-of-support versions (Windows XP, Windows Server 2003): https://support.microsoft.com/en-ca/help/4500705/customer-guidance-for-cve-2019-0708
Want to Get Protected?
If your company wants to be protected from these kinds of vulnerabilities just like other Sentryon IT Solutions plan clients, please feel free to contact us for a no-obligation consultation.