Hi, Folks!
Patch Tuesday is here again, and after the last month of weekly (or more) security updates the light update series is very welcome. Microsoft, Apple, Adobe and Oracle are still the major update sources this week.
Microsoft released 7 updates today affecting Windows, Internet Explorer, Silverlight, and Office (~75mb). This includes security updates. A reboot is required. For Windows 7, this is the first release version of Internet Explorer 10, which is tagged as an ‘important’ update, but is not automatically selected. IE10 changes some behavior, so unless you’re ready to spend a little time learning the new IE, you do not have to install it quite yet. On the other hand, it does have stronger base security than previous versions, so, especially if you’re not using IE at all, it’s best to install the update to ensure that IE is less likely to be exploited in the future.
http://update.microsoft.com/
Apple released updates to OS X and Java. This includes security updates. Use the Apple Software Updater to get the most current versions.
Adobe AIR 3.6.0.6090 is a security update.
https://12pd.com/click?air
Adobe Flash Player 11.6.602.180 is a security update.
https://12pd.com/click?flash
https://12pd.com/click?flashie
https://12pd.com/click?flashmac
Java 7u17 is a security update.
https://12pd.com/click?java
I can’t stress enough that if you don’t actually need it – remove it instead of updating!
Important Notes
Everything above this section should be checked by everyone on every computer. Chances are good that close to every single computer you touch will be affected by those updates. This is not the case with the items below, though you should still check each line item below to see if it applies to software you have installed.
Please remember that while I list many different applications within these updates, most people should ONLY install updates for a program if they already have a previous version of that program installed.
It is essential to maintain all the applications you have installed on your computer, but often you can minimize the time investment and the potential for exploitation simply by uninstalling software you do not need.
Also note that using the applications own “check for updates” function, when available, will best preserve your current settings, and often avoid any crapware that might come with a fresh installer. Use this option if it’s available to you.
Finally, if you’re sick of doing this all yourself, let me! Call or email me anytime, and we can set you up with subscription SaferPC updates which will be installed each month whenever necessary. Click, call or email for more details:
https://saferpc.info/updates/
209-565-12PD
shawn@12pointdesign.com
Driver Updates
If you’re using this hardware – these updates are for you.
WD SmartWare Software 1.6.4 corrects a stability bug. This is not a security update.
http://www.wdc.com/wdproducts/wdsmartwareupdate/Step1.asp?id=wdfMB_Essential&os=win
Browser Updates
One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.
Firefox 19.0.2 is a security update. Use Help, About to get the most current version.
Google Chrome 25.0.1364.172 is a security update. Use Menu, About to get the most current version.
SeaMonkey 2.16.1 is a security update. Use Help, About to get the most current version.
Email Updates
One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.
NK2Edit 2.50 adds SMTP Address for Exchange records. This is not a security update.
http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/outlook_nk2_edit.html
Internet Updates
One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.
Evernote 4.6.3.8096 adds support for Outlook 2013, corrects several bugs related to IE clipping, reattaching files, copy & paste, drag & drop and business emails. This is not a security update.
http://www.evernote.com/
Please note that Evernote was hacked last week, so you should take the time to change your password for the Evernote service if you have an account. As always, if you’ve used the same password ANYWHERE else, take the time to change it everywhere – and NEVER reuse passwords!
Google Earth 7.0.3.8542 is a security and stability update.
http://earth.google.com/index.html
BrowsingHistoryView 1.25 adds support for all profiles of Chrome and Canary. This is not a security update.
http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/browsing_history_view.html
Codec Updates
One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.
Win7 Codec Package 4.0.5 updates included codecs and improves DLNA and Extender playback. To install the update, you must uninstall and reinstall the application. This is not a security update.
http://shark007.net/win7codecs.html
Win8 Codec Package 1.4.9 updates included codecs and improves MKV playback. To install the update, you must uninstall and reinstall the application. This is not a security update.
http://shark007.net/win8codecs.html
Win x64 Codec Support 4.0.5 updates included codecs. This update applies only to 64-bit computers, and requires either the Win7 Codec Package or the Windows Vista Codec package.
http://shark007.net/x64components.html
Game Updates
These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.
Lego Digital Designer 4.3.6 does not provide a changelog, so it should be treated as a security update.
http://ldd.lego.com/
Office Updates
One or more of these are likely to be of interest to most people.
Blender 2.66a corrects over 80 bugs, mostly related to reliability. This is a security update.
http://www.blender.org/download/get-blender/
Security Software Updates
One or more of these is likely to be of interest to most people.
Avast! Home Edition 8.0.1483 corrects application compatibility with various video players, Virtual PC, and ZoneAlarm, and corrects a bug that would consume the entire CPU. This should be treated as a security update.
http://www.avast.com/free-antivirus-download
Wireshark 1.8.6 adds seeral new protocols, corrects a couple dozen bugs, including crash and stability issues. This is a security update.
http://www.wireshark.org/
Converter Updates
These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.
Freemake Video Converter 4.0.0 adds new DVD menus, auto-cropping, auto-backup, custom DVD backgrounds, and improved stability. This is not a security update.
http://www.freemake.com/
Utility Updates
These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.
GPU-Z 0.6.8 adds support for newer hardware and corrects a few bugs. This is not a security update.
http://www.techpowerup.com/downloads/SysInfo/GPU-Z/
BulkFileChanger 1.23 improves EXIF support. This is not a security update.
http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/bulk_file_changer.html
DriveLetterView 1.25 adds several new detailed columns and auto-size column support. This is not a security update.
http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/drive_letter_view.html
NetworkTrafficView 1.61 adds several new columns to the command-line capture mode.
http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/network_traffic_view.html
WifiInfoView 1.16 adds an option to re-sort on every update. This is not a security update.
http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/wifi_information_view.html
Virtual Machine Updates
These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.
VirtualBox 4.2.8-83876 corrects a couple dozen bugs and improves stability and reliability. This is not a security update.
http://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads
VMware Player 5.0.2 corrects several bugs including crash and memory leaks. This is not a security update.
http://www.vmware.com/products/player/
Web Package Updates
These are likely to be of interest only to web developers.
Dada Mail 6.2.0 corrects a bug in subscription and unsubscription filters and two other bugs. This should be treated as a security update.
http://dadamailproject.com/download/
Anti-Splog 2.1.1 adds support for local filters, corrects a couple reliability bugs. This is not a security update.
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/anti-splog/
BuddyStream 3.0.1 adds several new controls, removes filters, sharebox, adds new icons, updates twitter API, and corrects several bugs. This is not a security update.
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/buddystream/
Control XML-RPC publishing 1.0 adds support for XML-RPC to WordPress Multi-Site installations.
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/control-xml-rpc-publishing/
That’s all for now folks. Keep it clean out there. 😉
Regards,
Shawn K. Hall
https://SaferPC.info/
https://12PointDesign.com/