Investing in Secure Technology
Whether it's a six year old hopping online to learn about ladybugs or a CEO sending sensitive business information from her laptop, technology tools play a fundamental part in our daily lives. To combat emerging safety threats, Microsoft is making security features a fundamental part of these tools. Microsoft’s efforts include ensuring the highest degree of quality in its software, delivering new security technology innovations in the Microsoft Windows® platform, and developing security products and services that will evolve to meet future security needs.
Examples of our investments in new technologies and products include Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 2 and the Malicious Software Removal Tool, which provide stronger baseline security settings for millions of users around the world. More effective malware detection and removal abilities, along with new features, help give our customers the upper hand against threats.
Additionally, Microsoft is constantly strengthening the core security tools available in the three-step Protect Your PC plan. Offering a combination of firewall protection, antivirus software, and the popular automatic software-update system, this plan helps millions of users keep their computers, and themselves, safer.
In a wired and connected world, technology builds the bridges that link people to their interests, their work, and each other. It takes vigilance to keep the bridges safe. So Microsoft devotes a large portion of its efforts to improving access controls—basically, creating ways to allow legitimate users to get easier access from more places, but blocking entry to unauthorized users.
To learn more about Microsoft's overall strategy for securing products and setting the stage for future security advances for customers, businesses, and governments, download Microsoft Technology Investments: Helping Customers Mitigate Security Risk.
Guidance to Help Customers Protect Themselves
With a growing library of resources, Microsoft’s worldwide education campaign arms customers with the knowledge to better protect themselves and their computers.
Kids
Nowhere is the fight more important than child safety. Whether their kids go online to learn, to play, or to explore, parents need to know that their kids' online activities are protected. So Microsoft collaborates with numerous child safety organizations to support a widespread effort to help safeguard children's online experiences.
Microsoft is partnering with iSafe, a nonprofit foundation dedicated to helping youth use the Internet safely and responsibly, in the development of online, on-demand training for Internet safety and security. The program, based on iSafe's dynamic K–12 Internet safety curriculum and community outreach program, is aimed at helping educators, students, parents, and adults over 50. For more information, visit www.iSafe.org.
Parents not only want to know that their children's cyber adventures are being guarded, they also want ways to control what kind of content their kids have access to in various applications. That's why Microsoft is building parental controls into products like MSN® 9 and Xbox®. These controls help parents protect their children from inappropriate content and allow different levels of security for each child, depending on age and maturity level.
Consumers
In an effort to provide more consumer empowerment, Microsoft is constantly adding to a wide selection of free online security resources. Articles, safety tips, free product updates, instructional videos, and more are available for download at www.microsoft.com/athome/security.
IT Professionals
The ability to help defend against security threats is especially critical for IT professionals and businesses, which are responsible for multiple users and sensitive business data. On the one hand, IT professionals are tasked with making employees' jobs easier by facilitating access to business servers and data. On the other hand, they are responsible if the servers are breached or a virus gets in through e-mail. Microsoft has a wealth of security resources tailored to these IT professionals, who require more specialized guidance and tools. Microsoft strives to give them everything they need, as conveniently as possible, through online resources, security summits, Webcasts, training seminars, e-learning clinics, and online security guidance available on TechNet and MSDN®.
Working with Global Partners to Extend Security
Focusing on improving the tools of security is only part of the answer. To spread the effectiveness of these security measures, Microsoft collaborates with government, safety, and law enforcement agencies around the world. Working together in these partnerships allows for better, worldwide solutions for mitigating these security issues, from computers in India to handhelds in Indiana.
Microsoft works in partnership with national and local governments through the Government Security Program (GSP). The GSP identifies and addresses security vulnerabilities, and provides the information necessary to conduct robust security reviews of our products. The goal of the GSP is to provide greater insight into the integrity of the Windows and Microsoft Office platforms, and enhance the government's ability to design and build more secure computing infrastructures. Since its inception in January 2003, GSP membership has grown steadily to include more than 38 member countries and organizations in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa .
The Global Infrastructure Alliance for Internet Safety (GIAIS) represents an alliance between Microsoft and 55 of the largest ISPs from around the world, who are working together to increase Internet safety and security for consumers. The alliance covers an estimated 80% of the world's Internet subscribers. The program is a collaborative effort targeted at protecting consumers from known viruses and worms, as well as quickly addressing new and emerging Internet threats.
Collaboration is the cornerstone of the Security Cooperation Program (SCP), a global initiative that provides a structured way for governments and Microsoft to exchange timely information related to computer threats and citizen outreach. Through the SCP, Microsoft creates proactive relationships with governments that are designed to help them better anticipate, prevent, respond to, and mitigate the effects of IT security attacks.
Microsoft, in cooperation with the International Center for Missing and Exploited Children (ICMEC) and Interpol, has helped to develop and launch a global training initiative with a series of four-day conferences designed to educate law enforcement officers from around the world on child exploitation, cybercrime, and child protection issues. These training sessions include information on how to handle online child abuse victim issues and how to conduct effective investigations. Since 2003, over 1200 law enforcement officers from over 95 countries have been trained.
In addition to the ICMEC/Interpol training conferences, Microsoft separately has sponsored a series of roundtable discussions on children’s online safety issues. These roundtables have brought together law enforcement, policymakers, industry experts, and community leaders in the relevant regions to examine how to stop illegal and harmful Internet activities targeting minors and small children. The roundtables typically include panels that examine the scope of the problem of online child exploitation in the relevant region and address child online safety from both a public and private sector perspective.
In conjunction with Microsoft's partnership with ICMEC and NCMEC, Microsoft is a founding member of the Financial Coalition Against Child Pornography (FCACP). The FCACP’s commitment is to eradicate the commercial viability of child pornography on the Internet. In addition to ICMEC and NCMEC, the Coalition comprises members that are part of the payment industry and Internet service providers, such as MasterCard, American Express, AOL, and eBay/PayPal. The Financial Coalition was announced in a press conference on March 15, 2006, with Senator Richard Shelby.
Microsoft has also joined forces with several of our antivirus partners in the Virus Information Alliance (VIA). This alliance is solely focused on providing our customers with detailed information on significant viruses that are affecting Microsoft products and users, along with guidance on how to address the threat and reduce the damage to desktops and people.
Microsoft is a founding member of Digital PhishNet, a cooperative enforcement operation that unites industry leaders in technology, banking, financial services, and online auctioneering with law enforcement to tackle “phishing.” Digital PhishNet is the first group of its kind to focus on aiding criminal law enforcement and assisting in apprehending and prosecuting those responsible for committing crimes against consumers through phishing.
We continue to work closely with federal and state agencies to bring both civil and criminal enforcement actions against illegal spammers, phishers, and those who distribute viruses and spyware on the Internet. So far, Microsoft has supported more than 300 enforcement actions worldwide, including the filing of 230 civil lawsuits in the United States.
All these efforts are designed to help our partners and customers understand how they can better protect themselves and their systems. The progress we make helps reinforce the safe use of technology everywhere—so kids can continue to learn, adults can continue to explore, and businesses can continue to thrive.
Footnotes 1"National Institute of Standards and Technology Joins Microsoft’s Government Security Program: U.S. Participation Expands Program Membership to 38 Countries and International Organizations,"
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2005/feb05/02-10nistpr.mspx (February 10, 2005).
RSS text link citations:
1. Microsoft sponsors Global Infrastructure Alliance to help 200 million computer users get the upper hand against Internet security threats. Source: "Global Infrastructure Alliance for Internet Safety (GIAIS),"
http://www.microsoft.com/serviceproviders/resources/securitygiais.mspx
2. Microsoft and the Federal Trade Commission take steps to educate the public on Internet security. Source: "Steve Ballmer Details Microsoft’s Security Strategy: Microsoft announces new product to help protect business customers, collaborates with governments and industry on evolving threats,"
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2005/oct05/10-06SecuritySpeechPR.mspx (October 6, 2005).
3. Microsoft shares information with 14 government agencies to help increase online safety. Source: "Microsoft Security Cooperation Program (SCP),"
http://www.microsoft.com/Industry/government/scp.mspx
4. Microsoft works with Interpol and international child safety organizations to promote Internet security worldwide. Source: “Law Enforcement Specialists Trained to Combat Exploitation of Children Online: Microsoft Joins Interpol and International Center for Missing and Exploited Children for Global Training Conference in Lyon,”
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2003/dec03/12-01ICMECTrainingPR.mspx (December 1, 2003).
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