Microsoft's WGA spyware again!

[Jeff]

In 2006 when Microsoft seems to have introduced its "Windows Genuine
Advantage" there was an outcry by the public because it was discovered
that this WGA was in fact spyware that called home to Microsoft on a
regular basis. The outcry was such that Microsoft provided a way to
uninstall it.

My PCs have been running XP for years and I have downloaded critical
updates on a regular basis without WGA. But, in the last set of critical
updates I could not download them without first having to download and
install WGA. My Windows XPs are all legit and I have no problem with
Microsoft checking that they are legit at the time of the critical
update download, but I do have a problem with my PCs connecting to
Microsoft at other times because there is no reason for that and it
introduces additional risks.

Does anyone know anything about this new WGA installation? There seem
to have been n o messages about it on the newslist after the 2006 ones
and my questions on the general XP newslist go unanswered. Can the new
WGA be uninstalled using the old uninstall tools? Does it call home like
the old one did?

Please help.

Jeff

 

[Straight Talk]

but I do have a problem with my PCs connecting to
Microsoft at other times because there is no reason for that and it
introduces additional risks.

If you have a problem with Microsoft install Linux instead.

 

[Jeff]

If you have a problem with Microsoft install Linux instead.

I do not have a problem with Microsoft. I have a problem with any
spyware. Don't you?

 

[Rich]

I feel sorry for you jeff and all the other customers that have paid good
money for a product that has come on the markett only half engeneered,
the sofware industy is about the only type of buisiness that seems to be abe
to hold you ransom with a half finiished product that constantly needs to
evolve useing fatches, fixes etc, to the point where the product becomes too
large to fix on your pc,
this is unacceptable in my mind and and the syware companies just love it.

if you seen a nice car on the lot and found there was no engine in it, you
just wouldnt buy the damn crap
rich

 

[Straight Talk]

I do not have a problem with Microsoft. I have a problem with any
spyware. Don't you?

If you consider windows to be spyware, don't use it. The OS is the
highest authority of your system. What makes you believe you can
control what it is determined to do behind your back?

 

[Straight Talk]

I feel sorry for you jeff and all the other customers that have paid good
money for a product that has come on the markett only half engeneered,
the sofware industy is about the only type of buisiness that seems to be abe
to hold you ransom with a half finiished product that constantly needs to
evolve useing fatches, fixes etc, to the point where the product becomes too
large to fix on your pc,
this is unacceptable in my mind and and the syware companies just love it.

if you seen a nice car on the lot and found there was no engine in it, you
just wouldnt buy the damn crap

LOL. Like if the market for software and cars are comparable. Pick up
your dummy and stop whining.

 

[VanguardLH]

In 2006 when Microsoft seems to have introduced its "Windows Genuine
Advantage" there was an outcry by the public because it was
discovered that this WGA was in fact spyware that called home to
Microsoft on a regular basis. The outcry was such that Microsoft
provided a way to uninstall it.

My PCs have been running XP for years and I have downloaded critical
updates on a regular basis without WGA. But, in the last set of
critical updates I could not download them without first having to
download and install WGA. My Windows XPs are all legit and I have no
problem with Microsoft checking that they are legit at the time of
the critical update download, but I do have a problem with my PCs
connecting to Microsoft at other times because there is no reason
for that and it introduces additional risks.

Does anyone know anything about this new WGA installation? There
seem to have been n o messages about it on the newslist after the
2006 ones and my questions on the general XP newslist go unanswered.
Can the new WGA be uninstalled using the old uninstall tools? Does
it call home like the old one did?

You are talking about the AX control used when visiting their web
page, not the event that runs when you start Windows. Everytime you
visit the WU site, it checks if you have the latest version of this AX
control. It runs when you use their WU site. If you don't want it to
run, don't do updates.

 

[Jeff]

You are talking about the AX control used when visiting their web
page, not the event that runs when you start Windows. Everytime you
visit the WU site, it checks if you have the latest version of this AX
control. It runs when you use their WU site. If you don't want it to
run, don't do updates.

No, I am not. I update regularly and know what the regular check AX
control is. This last update was different. It specifically said it
needed to upgrade some Windows "components" before proceeding further.
When I said OK, the popup window said "Installing Windows Genuine
Advantage". This is something new. Happened on 2 of my PCs. First 2
times I stopped it and cancelled the WGA installation, but it would not
then go on to the critical updates and there was no way to bypass it on
other tries.

So it did install WGA without which I could not get the critical
updates. I have since gone to IE6's Tools/Manage Add-ons and when I
select to see "Add-ons that have been used by Internet Explorer",
Windows Genuine Advantage is indeed listed among them and listed as
enabled. I know WGA was not there before this last update. If you have
not yet come across this forced installation of WGA with your last
critical update you will be faced with it on your next upgrade.
Happened on 2 PCs and - as I said - I do the critical updates regularly.
This is new behavior.

I do not mind MS checking that my Windows is genuine before providing me
with the updates. What I do not want is WGA calling MS at "other times"
(as it is reputed to do) when I am not knowingly connecting to MS for
updates or anything and sending who knows what information about my PCs.
That is the spyware behavior that caused a public uproar and made MS
stop forcing WGA in 2006. Now they have decided to again force it on
its customers.

I have now disabled WGA in the IE6 add-ons but do not know what will
happen the next time critical updates are again available for download.
It is the not knowing what it is doing in the background that bothers
me. I use Firefox for everything except the upgrades but do not know if
that is sufficient to prevent MS from having WGA connect through IE in
the background un-beknown to me. This would cause slowing down of my PC
and my other internet connections and possibly bringing in other malware
that might be lying in wait on their website.

(My next PC will certainly be a MAC and I am tempted to already go back
to using Linux on the ones I now have).

Jeff

 

[Rich]

hey buddy;
calling people dummys when they express a point of view isnt gonna fix
anything, much less your issue;
I know you love the challange of mucking with pc's so power to you,and sice
you like the sound of your own voicw so much just carry on no more comments
fro me

Rich lol

 

[Leythos]

I do not mind MS checking that my Windows is genuine before providing me
with the updates. What I do not want is WGA calling MS at "other times"
(as it is reputed to do) when I am not knowingly connecting to MS for
updates or anything and sending who knows what information about my PCs.
That is the spyware behavior that caused a public uproar and made MS
stop forcing WGA in 2006. Now they have decided to again force it on
its customers.

And since you've never had a clue as to what the OS is doing at any
other time in your entire history, why complain now?

MS has been monitoring and checking for decades, any way they could, and
it's not going to stop, even Linux systems phone home, so you're just
going to have to accept it or stop using computers.

--

Leythos
- Igitur qui desiderat pacem, praeparet bellum.
- Calling an illegal alien an "undocumented worker" is like calling a
drug dealer an "unlicensed pharmacist"
(e-mail address removed) (remove 999 for proper email address)

 

[MAP]

I download updates from MS download center using a old computer I took out of
the closet then transfer these updates to my thumb drive and install them on
my main system, that way I still get the latest updates without WGA on my
primary computer. (which is legal,unless Dell sells computers with a pirated
copy of xp on them)

 

[VanguardLH]

No, I am not. I update regularly and know what the regular check AX
control is. This last update was different. It specifically said
it
needed to upgrade some Windows "components" before proceeding
further.
When I said OK, the popup window said "Installing Windows Genuine
Advantage". This is something new. Happened on 2 of my PCs. First
2
times I stopped it and cancelled the WGA installation, but it would
not
then go on to the critical updates and there was no way to bypass it
on other tries.

Yep, you're talking about the AX control that the WU web page
requires. It is executed only when you visit that web page. A new
version of that AX control had to be installed before it could
interrogate your host to determine what updates to present to you.
This is not updating the wgatray.exe program.

If you want to check this, go install an HIPS product, like Online
Armor, System Safety Monitor, AntiHook, ProcessGuard (a dead product),
or AppDefend (an abandoned product for over a year now). Leave them
in learning mode. Reboot the host so they can learn what is loading
on Windows startup. Then go into their program monitoring and disable
wgatray.exe from running when you boot windows. Now go to the WU web
site and download that new AX control for WGA. Reboot the host.
You'll see that AX control is *not* used during Windows startup. Your
HIPS will only prompt you to let it run when you visit the WU page.

So it did install WGA without which I could not get the critical
updates. I have since gone to IE6's Tools/Manage Add-ons and when I
select to see "Add-ons that have been used by Internet Explorer",
Windows Genuine Advantage is indeed listed among them and listed as
enabled.

And again you are talking about the AX control that is only ran when
you visit the WU web site (and when using Internet Explorer).

 

[Anteaus]

Perhaps the worst thing about this WGA nonsense is that it forces the use of
IE to download updates. This in itself is the biggest security risk on any
computer, and although you're ostensibly visiting a trusted Microsoft site
it's still very easy to make a typo, or to forget you're using IE and go to
other untrusted sites. Bingo, you've acquired a drive-by piece of nastiness.

 

[Jeff]

Perhaps the worst thing about this WGA nonsense is that it forces the
use of IE to download updates. This in itself is the biggest security
risk on any computer, and although you're ostensibly visiting a
trusted Microsoft site it's still very easy to make a typo, or to
forget you're using IE and go to other untrusted sites. Bingo, you've
acquired a drive-by piece of nastiness.

This is really funny. I put my question in this (and ina different
thread in another Windows newsgroup) because it is a microsoft newsgroup
and I thought I might find some solutions. Instead it is as if this was
a Linux group! Everyone is criticizing MS. The first few answers I got
essentially just told me to try Linux instead! Judging from this
experience, MS is really in trouble.

As for Linux, I've been there already (more than once). Linux is very
nice but the learning curve remains steep and most applications I use
still run best only on Windows. Security is better but incompatibilities
and problems make it no fun unless you are a Linux expert and it takes a
long time and effort to achieve that. My next PC will probably be a MAC
which can run both the MAC OS and Windows (though purchasing a separate
Windows license to do that is not exactly attractive).

Jeff
P.S. On the other Microsoft newsgroup, the advice given was that it I
authorized "Automatic Updates" I would never again see a prompt to
update WGA! That sounded ridiculous! It meant that MS would just
automatically install WGA in the background and in addition I would be
stuck with "automatically upgrading" to IE7 instead of IE6.