Windows firewall set ablaze

SECURITY WATCHDOG Websense is warning world wide webbers to watch out for tricksy Halloween related ScareWare.

Several websites have been created all in the name of ruining someone's Halloween, says Websense. The sites are easily found through search engines and can be reached with the old typo trick, so be careful not to Google for "Hallowien". You're probably safe with hair metal band Helloween, however.

The dodgy sites in question are advertising Halloween related goods or knowledge in their headers but contain something far spookier, spyware.

Coupled with a new Windows attack that is capable of murdering your firewall, it could make for a nasty Samhain indeed.

The code for the new Windows attack, reports NetworkWorld, was published online early last Sunday.

The attack can sneak into certain XP machines and fully disable Windows Firewall, even on a completely patched copy of WinDoze. It would seem the weakness is in the Windows' Internet Connection Service, or ICS, a program built for setting up a local area network.

If you're running ICS, it's recommended by security braniacs that you disable it, though this will kill your connection. Third party firewalls, as always, are recommended. µ