Microsoft Update Quietly Installs Firefox Extension

[canetoad]

Washington Post. 29 May

A routine security update for a Microsoft Windows component installed on tens of millions of computers has quietly installed an extra add-on for an untold number of users surfing the Web with Mozilla's Firefox Web browser.

Earlier this year, Microsoft shipped a bundle of updates known as a "service pack" for a programming platform called the Microsoft .NET Framework, which Microsoft and plenty of third-party developers use to run a variety of interactive programs on Windows.

The service pack for the .NET Framework, like other updates, was pushed out to users through the Windows Update Web site. A number of readers had never heard of this platform before Windows Update started offering the service pack for it, and many of you wanted to know whether it was okay to go ahead and install this thing. Having earlier checked to see whether the service pack had caused any widespread problems or interfered with third-party programs -- and not finding any that warranted waving readers away from this update -- I told readers not to worry and to go ahead and install it.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/securityfix/2009/05/microsoft_update_quietly_insta.html?wprss=securityfix

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Microsoft is not the only one fiddling with your browser. I just found 'Java Quick Starter' had been secretly installed among my Firefox add-ons with no way to uninstall, only disable it via the add-ons control window. To uninstall, you need to open Java in Control Panel.

[charlie]

1. Yup

I noticed that right off after installation. I leave it disabled.

What annoyed me more, is that it also changes Firefox's user agent string. Check out the addendum:

Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.9.0.10) Gecko/2009042316 Firefox/3.0.10 (.NET Client 3.5.30729.01)

I have no idea how they did it. I didn't know third party software could DO that.

Official instructions to remove the extension, if you want to go to the trouble:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/963707

[hobbit709]

2. Another reason I turn OFF the updates.

I won't use Internet ExploDer, if Mozilla can't work with somebody's webpage then I don't go there.

[canetoad]

4. Yep. I do too,

just keep on hand some of the crucial security patches.

Do you recall, couple of weeks ago, a number of people (?) were asking about .net? That must have been when MS started pushing it in the updates. Hell, they are slimy bastards.

Not having updates turned on, I missed out on having the .net add-on forced on me, but I reloaded Windows a couple of weeks ago and downloaded the latest Java. Didn't notice the surprise package that came with it until I read that article yesterday.

[hobbit709]

5. 99+% of their security patches

are for either Internet Exploder or Outhouse. If you don't use those or any other M$ apps, you've eliminated 99% of the problems right there.
My attitude is if it ain't broke, don't fix it. As long as my Winoze install works without those "fixes", I ain't gonna screw with it.
I won't use Media Player even to play .wmv or .wma files.

[pokerfan]

3. Windows IS a virus

They nailed me last year with "Security Update KB951748" that they obviously hadn't tested with ZoneAlarm, one of the most popular firewalls.

They called it http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/07/09/ms_dns_patch_zonealarm_woes">Black Tuesday.

That's what finally drove me to Linux.

And I couldn't be happier.