What Wi-Fi Security Problem? Windows is Already Patched
You may have heard about a massive new Wi-Fi security vulnerability. But if you’re using Windows, you’re all set: Microsoft already issued a patch that fixes the flaw.
“We have released a security update to address this issue,” a Microsoft statement explains. “Customers who apply the update, or have automatic updates enabled, will be protected. We continue to encourage customers to turn on automatic updates to help ensure they are protected.”
One can safely assume that means “all supported versions of Windows,” and not just Windows 10. But the software giant says it will provide more details in a blog post later today. But I find it interesting that Microsoft already fixed this issue. It suggests they’ve known about it for some time.
Update: Microsoft has provided additional details.
“Microsoft released security updates on October 10, 2017 as part of Update Tuesday to resolve this vulnerability in all affected editions of Windows. Customers who have Windows Update enabled and who applied the latest security updates are protected automatically.”
Anyway, if you’ve not heard, a security researcher today disclosed a massive vulnerability in the WPA2 security protocol that is used to encrypt Wi-Fi traffic.
“The attack works against all modern protected Wi-Fi networks,” the researcher noted. “If your device supports Wi-Fi, it is most likely affected.” So. All of them, then.
By the way, if you’re an Android user too, Google promises a fix for this flaw “in the coming weeks.” This is important because the attack is apparently “exceptionally devastating against Linux and Android 6.0 or higher.”