Updates 2022-10-11

Welcome back, Folks!

Today is Patch Tuesday for October, 2022. This month brings a new major version of Windows 11, and impending new version of Windows 10. That’s on top of the 120 major hacks, and another 150+ application updates this month. This is actually the lightest month we’ve had in a while, with less than 3 GB of updates for most users.

This Month in Technology

2K Games, a high-profile Hawaiian financial company, Airplane WiFi networks, Albanian State Police, American Airlines, Anesthesia Associates of El Paso PA, Anesthesia Associates of Maryland LLC, Anesthesia Services of San Joaquin PC, Argentina’s Ministry of Economy, Ask.FM, Bell Technical Solutions, Bhinneka, Binance, Bitbucket Server, Bonita Springs Retirement Village, Inc., Bronx Anesthesia Services PC, Centerstone of Tennessee, Inc., Centre Hospitalier Sud Francilien, Chase UK, Chilean Judiciary, Chilean Ministry of Defense, City of Tucson, Columbia River Mental Health Services, Comision Nacional de Acreditación in Chile, Comm100 Live Chat, CommonSpirit Health, Consorci Sanitari Integral, Costa Group, Country Doctor Community Clinic, CSI Laboratories (again!), The Coeur Group, Dialog, Digital Network System, DLS Motors, Easterseals-Goodwill Northern Rocky Mountain, Inc., Elbit Systems of America, Empress EMS, Extended MLTC, an F-35 Lightning II fighter aircraft components supplier, Fast Company, FishPig, FMC Services, LLC, FortiOS, FortiProxy, Fredericksburg Anesthesia Services LLC, Guatemala’s foreign ministry, Hampton Public Library, Hazleton Anesthesia Services PC, Independence, Intel, Jaime Câmara, Johnson Fitness and Wellness, Kaye-Smith Enterprises, Inc., Kiwi Farms, Landmark Management Services, Latam government, Lloyd’s of London, Lynbrook Anesthesia Services PC, Magellan Rx Management, Magento, Makler, Mexican Military, Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager, Microsoft Exchange, hundreds of Microsoft SQL servers, Monroe Ear Nose and Throat Associates, PC, National Institute for Drug and Food Surveillance, Neurology Center of Nevada, New York Racing Association, Northern California Fertility Medical Center, Okta Auth0, Optus, Oracle Cloud, Orange Southwest Supervisory District, Palm Springs Anesthesia Services PC, Peru’s Instituto De Desarrollo Profesional, Physician’s Business Office, Inc., Providence WA Anesthesia Services PC, Puigcerda Hospital, Quintal, redONE Network Sdn Bhd, REDTONE Digital BHD Network, Reelfoot Family Walk-In Clinic, Reid and Riege, P.C., Reidville Fire Department, Resource Anesthesiology Associates of CA A Medical Corporation, Resource Anesthesiology Associates of IL PC, Resource Anesthesiology Associates PC, Revolut, Rockstar Games, Seattle Children’s Hospital, Seesaw, Shangri-La Group, Smith, Gambrell & Russell, LLP, South Redford School District, Starbucks, State Bar of Georgia, State of Colorado, Swachhata, TAP Air Portugal, Telstra, Tessie Cleveland Community Services Corp, The Icon Group, Toyota, Transit Finance, Trend Micro Apex One, Trillium Health Inc., U.S. Dept of Defense, Uber (more), Universidad Internacional Del Ecuador, Upstate Anesthesia Services PC, UW Medicine, Wakanim, WhatsApp, Wintermute, Zimbra, and Zoho ManageEngine have reportedly been hacked or compromised this month.

MEC has shared with us why Microsoft Exchange has proven to be such a large target. 350+ million email accounts spread across over 300,000 physical servers, where (demonstrably) security lapses are commonplace. Even with that, it has nothing to do with the recent spate of outlook crashes or certificate issues on MS products.

There’s more evidence demonstrating the risk of pirated software. Twitter neglected to log out devices after password resets. And Dell drivers are being used to hijack computers.

The newest version of Windows 11 was released less than 3 weeks ago. It has problems. Among the many issues with the latest release of Windows 11 include
file copy performance, Windows Hello failure, provisioning, Remote Desktop, printer issues, Intel audio, NVIDIA GeForce Experience, and NVIDIA gaming performance, and those are just the ones that have made the news so far. If you’re planning to upgrade to the latest build of Windows 11, wait another month or two.

Now for the good news:

It turns out the theoretial protection of tinfoil hats may have actually been a government conspiracy. Really. How is this good news? You don’t have to worry about making sure you have tinfoil available anymore! 🙂

Let’s Get Busy

Now back to our regularly scheduled program.

Patch Tuesday is huge this month. The typical computer should see roughly
GB in updates today. Let’s get started.

Windows 11 22H2 (22621) is a major update for Windows 11, but it has been plagued with issues over the last couple weeks. Give it time before you willingly update.

Microsoft released updates to address 90 vulnerabilities in Active Directory Domain Services, Azure, Azure Arc, Client Server Run-time Subsystem, Microsoft Edge, Microsoft Graphics Component, Microsoft Office, Microsoft Office 365 2209 (15629.20156), Microsoft Office SharePoint, Microsoft Office Word, Microsoft WDAC OLE DB provider for SQL, NuGet Client, Remote Access Service Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol, Role: Windows Hyper-V, Service Fabric, Visual Studio Code, Windows Active Directory Certificate Services, Windows ALPC, Windows CD-ROM Driver, Windows COM+ Event System Service, Windows Connected User Experiences and Telemetry, Windows CryptoAPI, Windows Defender, Windows DHCP Client, Windows Distributed File System, Windows DWM Core Library, Windows Event Logging Service, Windows Group Policy, Windows Group Policy Preference Client, Windows Internet Key Exchange Protocol, Windows Kernel, Windows Local Security Authority, Windows Local Security Authority Subsystem Service, Windows Local Session Manager, Windows NTFS, Windows NTLM, Windows ODBC Driver, Windows Perception Simulation Service, Windows Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol, Windows Portable Device Enumerator Service, Windows Print Spooler Components, Windows Resilient File System, Windows Secure Channel, Windows Security Support Provider Interface, Windows Server Remotely Accessible Registry Keys, Windows Server Service, Windows Storage, Windows TCP/IP, Windows USB Serial Driver, Windows Web Account Manager, Windows Win32K, Windows WLAN Service, Windows Workstation Service, and MSRT (~2 GB). This includes security updates. A reboot is required.

Apple released updates for iOS 16.0.3 and watchOS 9.0.2. This includes security updates. Use Apple Software Update to install these updates. A reboot is required.

iOS iOS 16.0.3 is a security update. Use Settings, General, Software Update to install the most current update.

watchOS 9.0.2 is a security update. Use the Watch app on your iPhone to install the most current version.

Google Chrome OS 105.0.5195.134 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version. A reboot is required.

Don’t forget to check your mobile devices, too! Many updates will also apply to your tablet, phone, kindle or television – so check your device-appropriate App Store and install updates.

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.

The release of macOS Monterey (12.x) means that macOS Mojave (10.14) and older are no longer supported. If you can not install at least macOS Catalina (10.15) on your Mac then you should immediately remove it from the Internet and use it offline only. It will no longer receive patches or updates and can now no longer be secured.

The now-current release of the Windows 10 (v21H2) is very large so will take a long time to download on slower connections. Windows 10 pushes you to get the latest Windows 10 release every 12 months and only supports any consumer builds for 18 months. If you don’t let it finish and you’re on a slow connection, this process will kill your Internet performance forever. If you don’t have the bandwidth to download the bits, I’m happy to provide loaner USB drives to our local clients, or, if you prefer to have me mail it to you please contact me for information.

The now-current release of the Windows 11 (v22H2) is very large so will take a long time to download on slower connections. Windows 11 pushes you to get the latest Windows 11 release every 12 months and only supports any consumer builds for 24 months. If you don’t let it finish and you’re on a slow connection, this process will kill your Internet performance forever. If you don’t have the bandwidth to download the bits, I’m happy to provide loaner USB drives to our local clients, or, if you prefer to have me mail it to you please contact me for information.

Windows 11 is still very young so I encourage you to wait a few more months before you consider switching to it.

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 or use, reducing the attack surface. This includes “free” applications like Avast, OpenOffice, and games you do not actually play.

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 any time, 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.

AMD Adrenalin 22.10.1 improves stability. This is not a security update.
https://www.amd.com/en/support

Crucial Storage Executive 8.03 does not provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://www.crucial.com/support/storage-executive

Display Driver Uninstaller 18.0.5.5 improves cleanup. This is not a security update.
https://www.wagnardsoft.com/display-driver-uninstaller-ddu

DS4Windows 3.1.6 resolves dozens of issues. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/Ryochan7/DS4Windows/releases/latest

Epson ET-4800 3.01 adds support for newer Remote Print Driver and Epson Photo+ Software. This is not a security update.
https://epson.com/Support/Printers/All-In-Ones/ET-Series/Epson-ET-4800/s/SPT_C11CJ65201

Garmin Express 7.14.0 doesn’t provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://www.garmin.com/en-US/software/express/

Intel Driver and Support Assistant 22.6.39 resolves several bugs and improves feedback. This is not a security update.
https://www.intel.com/p/en_US/support/detect

Netgear Nighthawk R7960P 1.4.4.94 is a security update.
https://www.netgear.com/support/product/R7960P.aspx#download

Wacom Driver 6.4.0-8 adds support for newer hardware. This is not a security update.
https://www.wacom.com/en-us/support/product-support/drivers

Browser Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

Brave 1.44.108 is a security update.
https://brave.com/

Google Chrome 106.0.5249.103 is a security update.
https://www.google.com/chrome/

Microsoft Edge 106.0.1370.34 is a security update.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge/business/download

Firefox 105.0.3 is a security update.
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/

SeaMonkey 2.53.14 is a security update.
https://www.seamonkey-project.org/

Vivaldi 5.5.2805.35 is a security update.
https://vivaldi.com/

Email Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

NK2Edit 3.45 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/outlook_nk2_edit.html

OutlookAttachView 3.46 improves visual feedback. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/outlook_attachment.html

Thunderbird 102.3.2 is a security update.
https://www.thunderbird.net/en-US/

Internet Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

BrowsingHistoryView 2.52 improves visual feedback. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/browsing_history_view.html

Dropbox 158.4.4564 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.dropbox.com/

Facebook Messenger 164.0.0.8.109 is a security update.
https://www.messenger.com/download

FileZilla Client 3.61.0 should be treated as a security update.
https://filezilla-project.org/

FreeFileSync 11.26 improves performance and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.freefilesync.org/download.php

Google Drive 64.0.4 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://drive.google.com/start

Microsoft Teams 1.5.00.21668 adds support for Apple Silicon, group chat reply suggestions, and improves management features. This is not a security update.
https://teams.microsoft.com/downloads

Mumble 1.4.287 improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.mumble.info/

Nextcloud Server 24.0.6 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.
https://nextcloud.com/

Rclone 1.59.2 improves stability. This is not a security update.
https://rclone.org/

Signal 5.62.0 resolves several bugs and improves contact property view. This is not a security update.
https://signal.org/download/windows/

Skype 8.88.0.401 improves stability. This is not a security update.
https://www.skype.com/

Syncthing 1.22.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://syncthing.net/

Technitium DNS Server 9.1 adds certbot support, dashboard improvements, and several other features. This is not a security update.
https://technitium.com/dns/

Telegram 4.2.4 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://telegram.org/

WinSCP 5.21.5 is a security update.
https://winscp.net/eng/index.php

Zoom 5.12.2.9281 is a security update.
https://zoom.us/

Media Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

Bitwig Studio 4.4 improves stability, adds new audio FX packages, and new “spectral devices.” This is not a security update.
https://www.bitwig.com/download/

darktable 4.0.1 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.darktable.org/

MediaMonkey 5.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.mediamonkey.com/windows#download

Plex Desktop 1.55.0.3278 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.plex.tv/media-server-downloads/#plex-app

Plex Home Theater 1.26.1.3276 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.plex.tv/media-server-downloads/#plex-app

Plex Media Server 1.29.0.6244 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.plex.tv/media-server-downloads/#plex-media-server

Game Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

Epic Games 14.2.4 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.epicgames.com/

GameMaker Studio 2022.9.0.49 improves stability. This is not a security update.
https://www.yoyogames.com/en/gamemaker

Lego Studio 2.22.9.3 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.lego.com/en-us/ldd

Nintendo Switch 15.0.0 improves stability, changes a menu, and adds ability to take screenshots in NSO. This is not a security update.
https://en-americas-support.nintendo.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/22525/kw/system%20updates/p/989

PS4 10.01 improves performance. This is not a security update.
https://www.playstation.com/en-us/support/hardware/ps4/system-software/

PS5 22.02-06.00.01 improves performance. This is not a security update.
https://www.playstation.com/en-us/support/hardware/ps5/system-software/

Steam 2022.10.06 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.steampowered.com/platform/update_history/index.php?skin=0&id=0

Office Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to most people.

Adobe Animate 21.0.12 and 22.0.8 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/animate/apsb22-54.html

Adobe Bridge 12.0.3 and 11.1.4 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/bridge/apsb22-49.html

Adobe Experience Manager CS and 6.5.14.0 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/experience-manager/apsb22-40.html

Adobe Illustrator 26.5 and 25.4.8 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/illustrator/apsb22-55.html

Adobe InCopy 17.4 and 16.4.3 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/incopy/apsb22-53.html

Adobe InDesign 17.4 and 16.4.3 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/indesign/apsb22-50.html

Adobe Photoshop 22.5.9 and 23.5 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/photoshop/apsb22-52.html

Adobe Reader DC 22.003.20258 is a security update.
https://get.adobe.com/reader

Audacity 3.2.1 improves stability. This is not a security update.
https://www.audacityteam.org/download/

Blender 3.3.1 adds hair geometry, improves deforming tools, and several other features. This is not a security update.
https://www.blender.org/download/

Krita 5.1.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://krita.org/en/download/krita-desktop/

LibreOffice Fresh 7.4.1 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.libreoffice.org/

Notepad++ 8.4.6 adds change history markers and tab context menu improvements. This is not a security update.
https://notepad-plus-plus.org/

PDF-XChange Editor 9.4.364.0 is a security update.
https://www.tracker-software.com/product/pdf-xchange-editor

Calibre 6.6.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://calibre-ebook.com/

Kindle for PC 1.39.65306 doesn’t provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://www.amazon.com/kindleforpc

Security Software Updates

One or more of these is likely to be of interest to most people.

Chainsaw 2.1.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/countercept/chainsaw

HTTP Toolkit 1.11.0 doesn’t provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://httptoolkit.tech/

OnionShare 2.6 adds several new features. This is a security update.
https://onionshare.org/

OpenSSL 3.0.6 is a security update.
https://www.openssl.org/source/

OpenSSL 1.1.1r is a security update.
https://www.openssl.org/source/

OSFClone 1.4.1000 updates libraries and core OS. This is a security update.
https://www.osforensics.com/tools/create-disk-images.html

ProtonVPN 2.1.1 is a cosmetic update. This is not a security update.
https://protonvpn.com/download

ProtonVPN for macOS 3.0.3 is a cosmetic update. This is not a security update.
https://protonvpn.com/download

ReactOS 0.4.14.24 resolves dozens of bugs. This should be treated as a security update.
https://reactos.org/

uBlock Origin 1.44.4 resolves the broken :not() operator. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock/releases/latest

VT-CLI 0.10.3 adds directory scanning and improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/VirusTotal/vt-cli/releases/latest

Capture Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

Open Broadcaster Software 28.0.3 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://obsproject.com/

ScreenToGif 2.37.1 resolves several bugs to improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/NickeManarin/ScreenToGif/releases/latest

SnagIt 22.1.2 resolves an activation bug. This is not a security update.
https://download.techsmith.com/snagit/releases/snagit.msi

Converter Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

DVDFab 12.0.8.9 adds support for new encodings and improved hardware support. This is not a security update.
https://www.dvdfab.cn/download.htm

iMazing HEIC Converter 2.0.2 doesn’t provide a changelog. This is not a security update.
https://imazing.com/heic

PDF Creator 5.0 is a major update adding new features and organizational tools. This is not a security update.
https://www.pdfforge.org/pdfcreator

StreamFab 5.0.5.6 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.dvdfab.cn/downloader-new.htm

Education updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to most people.

Zotero 6.0.15 adds split view improvements, adds math support, PDF improvements, and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.zotero.org/

Utility Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

BgInfo 4.32 now reports Windows Insider builds. This is not a security update.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/bginfo

Bitwarden 2022.9.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://bitwarden.com/

CCleaner 6.04.10044 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.ccleaner.com/

Coreinfo 3.6 adds and option to measure inter-CPU latency. This is not a security update.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/coreinfo

DesktopOK 10.34 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.softwareok.com/?seite=Freeware/DesktopOK

Etcher 1.7.9 adds update notification and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.balena.io/etcher/

Everything 1.4.1.1022 is a security update.
https://www.voidtools.com/

Everything CLI 1.1.0.26 adds -exit, -reindex, and -utf8bom options, and resolves a Unicode write bug. This is not a security update.
https://www.voidtools.com/

Fido 1.35 is the fourth compatibility release for Windows 11 22H2. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/pbatard/Fido/releases

Git SCM 2.38.0 resolves over a dozen bugs. This is not a security update.
https://git-scm.com/

Go 1.19.2 is a security update.
https://go.dev/

GoodSync 12.0.7 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.goodsync.com/

grepWin 2.0.11 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/stefankueng/grepWin/releases/latest

Kingston SSD Manager 1.5.2.4 doesn’t provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://www.kingston.com/us/support/technical/ssdmanager

NTLite 2.3.8.8945 improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.ntlite.com/download/

OSForensics 10.0.1004 improves documentation and reports, and updates several features. This is not a security update.
https://www.osforensics.com/download.html

PowerToys 0.63.0 resolves several bugs and updates dependencies. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/microsoft/PowerToys/releases/latest

ScreenConnect 22.8.9612.8308 adds key rotation, improved session management, improved compatibility and resolves several bugs. This is a security update.
https://www.connectwise.com/software/control/download

Sysmon 14.1 adds monitoring for FileBlockShredding events. This is not a security update.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/sysmon

TaskSchedulerView 1.72 improves high-DPI compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/task_scheduler_view.html

TeamViewer 15.34.4 improves multi-tab display. This is not a security update.
https://www.teamviewer.com/en-us/download/windows/

Unity 2022.1.19 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.
https://unity3d.com/get-unity/download/archive

WinGet 1.3.2691 updates dependencies. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/microsoft/winget-cli/releases/latest

Developer Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

Android Studio 2021.3.1.16 improves wear OS compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://developer.android.com/studio

AutoIt 3.3.16.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/docs/history.htm

GitHub Desktop 3.1.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://desktop.github.com/

MySQL Server 8.0.31 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.
https://dev.mysql.com/downloads/installer/

MySQL ConnectorNet 8.0.31 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://dev.mysql.com/downloads/connector/net/

Node.js 14.20.1 is a security update.
https://nodejs.org/en/

Node.js 16.17.1 is a security update.
https://nodejs.org/en/

Node.js 18.10.0 is a security update.
https://nodejs.org/en/

SQLite 3.39.4 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.sqlite.org/download.html

TortoiseSVN 1.14.5 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://tortoisesvn.net/downloads.html

Visual Studio Code 1.72.1 is a security update.
https://code.visualstudio.com/

Virtual Machine Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

VirtualBox 7.0.0 is a major update adding full encryption support, cloud interop connectivity, new hardware virtualization features and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads

Web Package Updates

These are likely to be of interest only to web developers.

Coppermine Gallery 1.6.20 improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://coppermine-gallery.net/

Drupal 9.4.8 is a security update.
https://drupal.org/download

Joomla 4.2.3 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.joomla.org/

MailEnable 10.42 and 9.85 are security updates.
https://www.mailenable.com/

Piwigo 13.0.0 adds several new features and updates compatibility options. This is not a security update.
https://piwigo.org/

Akismet 5.0.1 resolves several bugs.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/akismet/

Autoptimize 3.1.2 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/autoptimize/

myStickymenu 2.6.1 removes the contact form character limit. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/mystickymenu/

Postie 1.9.62 resolves a timezone bug. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/postie/

Redirection 5.3.4 resolves a “not” bug. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/redirection/

Simple Lightbox 2.9.2 should be treated as a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/simple-lightbox/

Slider Revolution 6.6.3 resolves a couple bugs. This is not a security update.
https://revolution.themepunch.com/

W3 Total Cache 2.2.6 resolves a Cloudfront compatibility bug. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/w3-total-cache/

WP Mail SMTP 3.6.1 resolves several bugs and improves debug controls. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-mail-smtp/

WooCommerce 6.9.4 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/woocommerce/

WordPress Importer 0.8 improves compatibility and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wordpress-importer/

That’s all for now folks. Keep it clean out there. 😉

Regards,

Shawn K. Hall
https://SaferPC.info/
https://12PointDesign.com/

Updates 2022-06-14

Welcome back, Folks!

Today is Patch Tuesday for June, 2022. It’s the biggest update series in well over a year.

This Month in Technology

AA Traveller, Acuity International’s Comprehensive Health Services, Adecco, Aesto Health, Aimware, Alameda Health System, Allaire Healthcare Group, Allwell Behavioral Health Services, Amart Furniture, Aon PLC, Apple iPhones (even when off), Apple M1 CPUs, Apple Watches, Arnprior Regional Health, Associated Ophthalmologists of Kansas City, P.C., Atlassian Confluence Server and Data Center, AU Health, Bangladesh government, Bank of Zambia, Behavioral Health Partners of Metrowest, LLC, BJC Health System, BlackBerry Fans, Bored Ape Yacht Club, Bryan County Ambulance Authority, Burman & Zuckerbrod Ophthalmology Associates, P.C., Capital One, Capsule, Carinthia, Austria, Central Florida Inpatient Medicine, Chicago Public Schools, CHRISTUS Health, Cisco IOS, Comstar LLC, Costa Rican Social Security Fund, Cypress Healthcare, LLC, Dis-Chem, DivX SubTitles, East Tennessee Children’s Hospital, Fanpass, Finkelstein Eye Associates, Fishman Vision, Football World Cup 2022 qualifier between Wales and Ukraine, Foxconn, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, General Motors, Genetics & IVF Institute, GitHub, GitLab, Greenland’s healthcare services, Healthcare Assistance Plan for Employees of Seventh-day Adventist Organization of the North American Division, Heidell, Pittoni, Murphy & Bach, LLP, Heroku, Homestead Hospice & Palliative Care, HP BIOS, 70 Indian government websites, John Knox Village of Florida, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Washington, Kaiser Permanente, Kiddos’ Clubhouse, Mandiant, McCoy Vision Center, McKenzie Health System, Memorial Community Health, Inc., MGM Resorts, Microsoft Teams, Mindpath Care Centers, North Carolina, PLLC, Mississippi Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center, Moyes Eye Center, PC, Nikkei, NLB Corporation, North Alabama Bone & Joint Clinic, P.C., North Lakes Pain Consultants, Northern Rockies Orthopaedics, Novartis, NuLife Med, LLC, Numrich Gun Parts, OE Enterprises, Inc, OGUsers, Oklahoma City Indian Clinic, Omnicell, Orangeburg Eye Center, Oswego County Opportunities, Inc, Otherside Metaverse, Palermo, Italy, Paragon Cheats, Parker-Hannifin Corporation, Partnership HealthPlan of California, PayHere, Pegasus Airlines, Platinum Hospitalists LLP, Preen.Me, QNAP NAS, Quantum Imaging & Therapeutic Associates, Quincy, Illinois, Rainier Arms, ReadNovel, RiverKids Pediatric Home Health, Russian Ministry of Construction, Housing and Utilities, Sberbank, Scarborough Health Network, Schneck Medical Center, Screencastify, Shaker Heights City School District in Ohio, Shields Health Care Group, Shoreline Eye Group, SirHurt, SonicWall Secure Mobile Access (SMA) 1000 Series, South Australia’s Treasury, SpiceJet, Stevens & Lee, Summit Healthcare Association, Sylvester Eye Care, Telegraph, Tesla Model 3, Tesla Model Y, Texas Department of Insurance, Texas Department of Transportation, The Multiple Sclerosis Center of Atlanta, Travis-CI, Trend Micro, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), University of Chicago Medical Center, Val Verde Regional Medical Center, Versus Market, Viasat, Virginia Mason Medical Center, Wagner Heights Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Washington University School of Medicine, Wendy’s, and Windows 11 have reportedly been hacked or compromised this month.

Netgear broke the Orbi firmware. I’ve been warning about the privacy risks of Wi-Fi for years. It’s finally going mainstream. A pirated version of CCleaner is yet again being used to hijack user accounts.

Apple allowed 1.6 million malicious apps onto the Apple AppStore, then later removed them.

The next time someone uses the argument that “how is a web-based business supposed to stay alive without ads” to decry your use of an ad blocker, send them this link about how third-party trackers (like the ones used in Google and DuckDuckGo) are collecting everything you type.

Now for the good news:

Intuit has finally acknowledged they’re being used to send phishing messages. They’re not going to put an end to it, but they finally have admitted that it’s a widespread source of phishing emails.

Oh, and the UK has declared that defensive attacks” are legal.

Let’s Get Busy

Now back to our regularly scheduled program.

Patch Tuesday is huge this month. The typical computer should see roughly 3 GB in updates today. Let’s get started.

Microsoft released updates to address 62
vulnerabilities in .NET Framework, AV1 Video Extension, Azure OMI, Azure RTOS, Azure Service Fabric Container, HEVC Video Extensions, Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager, Microsoft File Server, Microsoft Office, Microsoft Office Excel, Microsoft Office SharePoint, Microsoft Photos App, Microsoft SharePoint Server, Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft Windows ALPC, Microsoft Windows Codecs Library, Microsoft Windows Support Diagnostic Tool (MSDT), Remote Volume Shadow Copy Service (RVSS), Visual Studio, Windows App Store, Windows Autopilot, Windows Container Isolation FS Filter Driver, Windows Container Manager Service, Windows DCOM Server, Windows Defender, Windows Encrypting File System (EFS), Windows File History Service, Windows Hyper-V, Windows Installer, Windows iSCSI, Windows Kerberos, Windows Kernel, Windows LDAP, Windows Media, Windows Media Center, Windows Network Address Translation, Windows Network File System, Windows PowerShell, Windows SMB, Windows WinSock, and MSRT (~2.5 GB). This includes security updates. A reboot is required.

Apple released updates for iOS 15.5, iPadOS 15.5, macOS Monterey 12.4, macOS Big Sur 11.6.7, Security Update 2022-004 Catalina, watchOS 8.6, tvOS 15.5.1, Safari 15.5, Xcode 13.4, and iTunes 12.12.4. This includes security updates. Use Apple Software Update to install these updates. A reboot is required.

iOS 15.5 is a security update. Use Settings, General, Software Update to install the most current update.

iPadOS 15.5 is a security update. Use Settings, General, Software Update to install the most current update.

tvOS 15.5.1 is a security update. Use System, Software Update to install the most current version.

watchOS 8.6 are security updatess. Use the Watch app on your iPhone to install the most current version.

Google Chrome OS 101.0.4951.72 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version. A reboot is required.

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.

The release of macOS Monterey (12.x) means that macOS Mojave (10.14) and older are no longer supported. If you can not install at least macOS Catalina (10.15) on your Mac then you should immediately remove it from the Internet and use it offline only. It will no longer receive patches or updates and can now no longer be secured.

The now-current release of the Windows 10 (v21H2) is very large so will take a long time to download on slower connections. Windows 10 pushes you to get the latest Windows 10 release every 12 months and only supports any consumer builds for 18 months. If you don’t let it finish and you’re on a slow connection, this process will kill your Internet performance forever. If you don’t have the bandwidth to download the bits, I’m happy to provide loaner USB drives to our local clients, or, if you prefer to have me mail it to you please contact me for information.

The now-current release of the Windows 11 (v21H2) is very large so will take a long time to download on slower connections. Windows 11 pushes you to get the latest Windows 11 release every 12 months and only supports any consumer builds for 24 months. If you don’t let it finish and you’re on a slow connection, this process will kill your Internet performance forever. If you don’t have the bandwidth to download the bits, I’m happy to provide loaner USB drives to our local clients, or, if you prefer to have me mail it to you please contact me for information.

Windows 11 is still very young so I encourage you to wait a few more months before you consider switching to it.

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 or use, reducing the attack surface. This includes “free” applications like Avast, OpenOffice, and games you do not actually play.

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 any time, 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.

Garmin Express 7.13.1 doesn’t provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://www.garmin.com/en-US/software/express/

Nvidia Driver 473.62 is a security update.
https://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx?lang=en-us

Browser Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

Brave 1.39.111 is a security update.
https://brave.com/

Google Chrome 102.0.5005.115 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://www.google.com/chrome/

Microsoft Edge 102.0.1245.41 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge/business/download

Firefox 101.0.1 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/

Firefox ESR 91.10.0 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/all/

Iridium 2022.04.100 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://iridiumbrowser.de/

Vivaldi 5.3.2679.55 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://vivaldi.com/

Email Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

Thunderbird 91.10.0 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://www.thunderbird.net/en-US/

Internet Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

AnyDesk 7.0.10 resolves an error reporting bug. This is not a security update.
https://anydesk.com/en/downloads

curl 7.83.1 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.
https://curl.haxx.se/windows/

DNSDataView 1.65 adds a new command-line parameter. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/dns_records_viewer.html

Dropbox 150.4.5000 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update. (btw, thank you Dropbox for finally releasing a changelog!)
https://www.dropbox.com/

FileZilla Client 3.60.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://filezilla-project.org/

FreeFileSync 11.21 adds volume GUID support, case conflicts, and resolves several bugs. This is a security update.
https://www.freefilesync.org/download.php

Google Drive 59.0 adds support for client-side encryption, system-level search shortcuts, and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://drive.google.com/start

Nextcloud Server 24.0.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://nextcloud.com/

Prosody 0.12.1 adds CORS controls and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://prosody.im/download/start

PuTTY 0.77 is a major update adding several new features, networking and security features, and resolves many bugs. This should be treated as a security update.
https://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/download.html

Signal 5.45.1 improves language leveling and data sync. This is not a security update.
https://signal.org/download/windows/

Skype 8.83.0.408 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.skype.com/

Syncthing 1.20.2 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://syncthing.net/

Technitium DNS Server 8.1.3 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://technitium.com/dns/

Trillian 6.5.0.20 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.trillian.im/

Trillian Mac 6.5.0.14 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.trillian.im/

TrueNAS Core 13.0 resolves dozens of bugs. This is a security update.
https://www.truenas.com/download-truenas-core/

Wget2 2.0.1 is a security update.
https://gitlab.com/gnuwget/wget2/-/releases

Zoom 5.10.7.6120 adds Zoom Whiteboard sharing and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://zoom.us/

Media Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

iTunes 12.12.4.1 is a security update.
https://www.apple.com/itunes/download/

Picard 2.8.1 updates libraries and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://picard.musicbrainz.org/

Plex Desktop 1.46.1.3056 improves compatibility and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.plex.tv/media-server-downloads/#plex-app

Plex Home Theater 1.18.0.3023 improves compatibility and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.plex.tv/media-server-downloads/#plex-app

Plex Media Server 1.27.0.5897 resolves several bugs and improves stability. This is not a security update.
https://www.plex.tv/media-server-downloads/#plex-media-server

Game Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

Epic Games 14.0.12 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.epicgames.com/

GameMaker Studio 2022.5.1.16 updates runtime. This is not a security update.
https://www.yoyogames.com/en/gamemaker

Nintendo Switch 14.1.2 improves stability. This is not a security update.
https://en-americas-support.nintendo.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/22525/kw/system%20updates/p/989

PlayStation PS5 22.01-05.10.00 improves performance. This is not a security update.
https://www.playstation.com/en-us/support/hardware/ps5/system-software/

Steam 2022.05.31 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.steampowered.com/platform/update_history/index.php?skin=0&id=0

Office Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to most people.

Calibre 5.43.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://calibre-ebook.com/

Inkscape 1.2 adds pages, markers and dashes, more gradient controls, performance improvements and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://inkscape.org/release/

LibreOffice Fresh 7.3.4 resolves over 80 bugs. This is not a security update. Remember that the Fresh line is beta software and should be avoided by most users.
https://www.libreoffice.org/

LibreOffice 7.2.7 resolves almost 50 bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.libreoffice.org/

Nextcloud Desktop 3.5.1 resolves 20 bugs. This is not a security update.
https://nextcloud.com/

Notepad++ 8.4.2 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://notepad-plus-plus.org/

Paint.net 4.3.11 improves dark theme and updates plugins. This is not a security update.
https://www.getpaint.net/

PDF Candy Desktop 2.93 doesn’t provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://pdfcandy.com/

Adobe Animate 21.0.11 and 22.0.6 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/animate/apsb22-24.html

Adobe Bridge 12.0.2 is a security update.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/bridge/apsb22-25.html

Adobe Illustrator 26.3.1 and 25.4.6 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/illustrator/apsb22-26.html

Adobe InCopy 17.3 and 16.4.2 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/incopy/apsb22-29.html

Adobe InDesign 17.3 and 16.4.2 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/indesign/apsb22-30.html

RoboHelp Server 11.3 is a security update.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/robohelp-server/apsb22-31.html

Security Software Updates

One or more of these is likely to be of interest to most people.

RogueKiller 15.5.3 is a security update.
https://www.adlice.com/download/roguekiller/

Tails 5.1 is a security update.
https://tails.boum.org/install/dvd/index.en.html

uBlock Origin 1.43.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock/releases/latest

Converter Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

DVDFab 12.0.7.4 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.dvdfab.cn/download.htm

Education updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to most people.

Zotero 6.0.8 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.zotero.org/

Utility Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

1Password for Mac 7.9.5 is a security update.
https://1password.com/downloads/mac/

AccessChk 6.15 resolves a crash bug. This is not a security update.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/accesschk

Agent Ransack 2022.3326 resolves several bugs and dds support for new policies and file types. This is not a security update.
https://www.mythicsoft.com/agentransack/download/

AOMEI Partition Assistant 9.8.0 improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.diskpart.com/

Bitwarden 2022.5.1 resolves several bugs and improves integration and compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://bitwarden.com/

Cygwin 3.3.5 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://cygwin.com/

DesktopOK 9.91 adds system-wide dark theme controls. This is not a security update.
https://www.softwareok.com/?seite=Freeware/DesktopOK

dnGrep 3.0.64.0 resolves several bugs, improves performance and reliability. This is not a security update.
https://dngrep.github.io/

Everything 1.4.1.1017 updates localizations and resolves a search history bug. This is not a security update.
https://www.voidtools.com/

Fido 1.29 adds UEFI Shell 2.2 support. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/pbatard/Fido/releases

FileLocator Pro 2022.3326 resolves several bugs and dds support for new policies and file types. This is not a security update.
https://www.mythicsoft.com/filelocatorpro/download

Go 1.18.3 is a security update.
https://go.dev/

GoodSync 11.11.2 is a security update.
https://www.goodsync.com/

NTLite 2.3.6.8785 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.ntlite.com/download/

OSFMount 3.1.1001 improves command-line verbosity and error reporting. This is not a security update.
https://www.osforensics.com/tools/mount-disk-images.html

osquery 5.3.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://osquery.io/downloads

PowerToys 0.59.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/microsoft/PowerToys/releases/latest

RAMMap 1.61 improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/rammap

ScreenConnect 22.5.7881.8171 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.connectwise.com/software/control/download

SmartMonTools 7.3 resolves several bugs and improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://smartmontools.org/

Sysmon 13.34 resolves several bugs. This should be treated as a security update.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/sysmon

TaskSchedulerView 1.71 adds a new switch to control column display and export. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/task_scheduler_view.html

TeamViewer 15.30.3 improves user interface and resolves a send-to bug. This is not a security update.
https://www.teamviewer.com/en-us/download/windows/

TraceRouteOK 3.01 improves internal networking. This is not a security update.
https://www.softwareok.com/?seite=Microsoft/TraceRouteOK

Unity 2022.1.4 improves performance and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://unity3d.com/get-unity/download/archive

USBDeview 3.05 adds WCID column. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/usb_devices_view.html

WinScan2PDF 7.81 improves multi-monitor support. This is not a security update.
https://www.softwareok.com/?seite=Microsoft/WinScan2PDF

Developer Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

AutoHotkey 1.1.34.03 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.autohotkey.com/download/

Android Studio 2021.2.1.15 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://developer.android.com/studio

GitHub Desktop 3.0.2 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://desktop.github.com/

Node.js 14.19.3 updates OpenSSL. This is not a security update.
https://nodejs.org/en/

Node.js 16.15.1 updates OpenSSL. This is not a security update.
https://nodejs.org/en/

Node.js 17.9.1 is a security update.
https://nodejs.org/en/

Node.js 18.3.0 is a security update.
https://nodejs.org/en/

Visual Studio Code 1.68.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://code.visualstudio.com/

Web Package Updates

These are likely to be of interest only to web developers.

Drupal 9.2.21 is a security update.
https://drupal.org/download

Drupal 9.3.15 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://drupal.org/download

HumHub 1.11.2 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.humhub.com/en/download

Joomla 4.1.4 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.joomla.org/

OpenCart 4.0.0.0 is major update adding many new features and libraries. This is not a security update.
https://www.opencart.com/

phpList 3.6.8 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.phplist.org/

phpMyAdmin 5.2.0 updates libraries and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.phpmyadmin.net/

YOURLS 1.9.1 updates libraries and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://yourls.org/

WordPress 6.0 is a major update adding several new features, including block locking, performance, accessibility and new design tools. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/

Akismet 4.2.4 only updates documentation. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/akismet/

BuddyPress 10.3.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/buddypress/

Contact Form 7 5.5.6.1 resolves Constant Contact API changes and improves compatibility. This should be treated as a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/contact-form-7/

Social Post Feed 4.1.4 improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/custom-facebook-feed/

Duplicator 1.4.6 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/plugins/duplicator/#developers

myStickymenu 2.5.9 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/mystickymenu/

Slider Revolution 6.5.24 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://revolution.themepunch.com/

Sucuri Security 1.8.31 resolves a path bug. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/sucuri-scanner/

Theme My Login 7.1.5 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/theme-my-login/

WooCommerce 6.5.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/woocommerce/

That’s all for now folks. Keep it clean out there. 😉

Regards,

Shawn K. Hall
https://SaferPC.info/
https://12PointDesign.com/

Updates 2022-03-08

Welcome back, Folks!

Today is Patch Tuesday for March, 2022. It’s a big one. This month is ugly – and not just in the tech world. It seems that in the same breath that the elite acknowledged and swept the COVID hysteria under the rug, admitting their intervention was entirely propaganda, every government, financial system, media outlet, and software vendor has chosen to simultaneously swallowed a new collection of (quickly disproven) propaganda without the slightest hint of irony. Sigh. We can only do what we can do, but do not be afraid to talk about it. Censorship is how you make enemies, not friends.

This Month in Technology

A1 Hrvatska, Adafruit, Aetna ACE, Allen ISD, Alliance Physical Therapy Group, LLC, Amazon Alexa, AON, Ascension Michigan (single affiliated covered entity) ACE, Asterisk, Asustor NAS devices, Axeda agent, Axis Communications, Baltimore Mayor’s Office of Children and Family Success, Beetle Eye, Belarus online services, Bible Fellowship Church Homes, Bronx Addiction Services Integrated Concepts Systems, Inc., CA State Bar, CareOregon Advantage, Caritas Internationalis, CBORD’s GET Mobile security platform, Charlotte Radiology, Cisco’s Email Security Appliance, Coinbase, Community Medical Center, Comprehensive Health Services LLC, Conti ransomware gang, Credit Suisse, Crossroads Health, CVS Pharmacy, dozens of COVID passport apps, Dr. Morrow, Element Vape, Englewood Health, EPIC Pharmacy Network, Inc., Expeditors International, Extend Fertility, Family Christian Health Center, Family Fare LLC, Fleetwood Area School District, FlexBooker, Gems Education, GiveSendGo/Canadian Freedom Convoy, Google Android, Harbour Plaza Hotel, Hays USD 489, Highland Hospital, Houston Health Department, Intel CPU vulnerabilities can expose your cryptographic keys, International Committee of the Red Cross, Internet Society (ISOC), Ireland’s Health Service, Jackson County Hospital District, JAX Spine and Pain Centers, Jersey City Medical Center, KLAYswap, La Posada at Park Centre, Inc., LAPSUS$, LendUs, Liberty of Oklahoma Corporation, Logan Health Medical Center, MacGeneration, Memorial Hermann Health System, Meyer, Microsoft, Microsoft App Store, Microsoft Azure, Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft SQL Servers, Mizuno, Monongalia Health System, more than 500 Magento 1-based online stores, Morley Companies, Moscow Stock Exchange, Motorola Solutions Inc, new form of distributed denial of service attack, New York State’s Joint Commission on Public Ethics, Nvidia (and it’s BAD), Ohlone College, Oklahoma City Police Department Rape Kit information, Okta Advanced Server Access, PressReader, Priority Health, PROMESA, Puma, Reality Winner’s Twitter account, Rompetrol, Russian TV stations, Samsung Electronics (including source code), San Francisco 49ers, SAP Internet Communication Manager, Sberbank, Sea Mar Community Health Centers, Seneca Nation Health System, South Shore Hospital, Swissport, T-Mobile, Taylor, Ganson & Perrin LLP, TfNSW, the Russian Military, Town Home Care, LLC, Toyota Motor Corp., UK’s Foreign Office, UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office, Ukraine local government websites, Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers, Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada, UMass Memorial Health, Inc., 52 organizations from multiple US critical infrastructure sectors, US defense contractors, US Radiology Specialists, Inc., Viasat, Visual Voice Mail, Vodafone Portugal, VxWorks-based Smart Infusion Pumps, Washington Department of Licensing, WatchGuard firewalls, Williamsville Central School District, Zabbix servers, Zenly, and Zoe Therapy Services have been hacked.

Slack and Twitter both had large outages.

AB Volvo, Activision Blizzard, Adobe, Airbnb, Apple, Apple Maps, Apple Pay, Aston Martin, BMW, Cisco, Coinbase, Daimler Truck, Dell, Epic Games, Ford Motor Company, Google, Google AdWords, Google Maps, Harley-Davidson, Intel, Jaguar Land Rover, Jolla, Mastercard, Mercedes-Benz, Microsoft, Mitsubishi Motors, Namecheap, Netflix, Nintendo, PayPal, Reddit, Readdle, Samsung Electronics, Snapchat, Spotify, SWIFT, Telegram, The EU, TikTok, Toyota Motor Corporation, Twitter, Ubisoft, Visa, Volkswagen, and YouTube have imposed their own private sanctions on Russia and sometimes Belarus.

In response to software vendors (Apple, Microsoft, Readdle and others) imposing their own form of sanctions on Russia, Russia has passed new a licensing law, effectively greenlighting piracy. After ceasing reporting from Russia, the BBC has launched Tor access in several languages. Meanwhile Russia blocks sites that violate their new propaganda law and even rocket sales to the US.

Elon Musk, never a stranger to controversy, has declared that his Starlink service will not bow to censorship demands.

It was disheartening when Canada stole the bank accounts of anyone who dared to donate to a legal protest and dispatched Antifa and the UN to put down protestors

it was worse when they simply locked down all the banks (or at least realized the damage they were doing to themselves), even if they did quickly reverse their insanity. The Mercury account lockouts affected “a large set of accounts” throughout Africa. Worse yet, the entire world banking system has locked out Russia. By the way, do Google and Apple think that disabling their pay platforms in Russia will be the move that will encourage adoption by the rest of the world?

On the topic of social credit systems, I’d like to address the theory that cryptocurrency can be used in spite of bank interventions and government lockdowns. That’s not always the case, as Coinbase demonstrated this week.

As if spurned to action by the recent release of vaccine information and bribery, Twitch is now banning streamers that share “misinformation,” such as the actual medical fraud vaccine information and research by the vaccine manufacturers themselveswill now be banned.

That’s ok, you can go back to “real life” now that cities are opening back up. Did the science change, is it all part of some greater agenda, or are people just bored?

With such a war on truth and science, how can anyone fall for the Battle of Snake Island, Ghost of Kiev, Ukrainian ransomware, or any of the dozen other examples of legacy media propaganda right now?

The CIA has been conducting bulk surveillance on US citizens and the Supreme Court is okay with police planting hidden cameras throughout your property. Telegram isn’t as secure as you might think it is.

Oh – Let’s talk about Apple AirTags…one lady tracked her shipped goods with them and caught the mover lying about it. I’m more skeptical of this story about exposing a secret intelligence service, but the reality is that stalking and tracking for vehicle/home theft are part of the downside.

Microsoft is testing a new build of Windows 11 Pro that will now require a Microsoft account in order to be able to use Windows. This directly violates their previous statements about not forcing Windows Professional and Enterprise versions to use Microsoft accounts. While this will increase deployment and maintenance costs, the real trouble is going to be with transient users that are forced to login with “a” Microsoft account on a business machine and will no longer be able to easily untie that machine or role account from the deeply embedded Microsoft “features.”

Meris Botnet was used to target a single website with over 21 million requests per second. Google Drive is flagging native macOS files as violating copyright. Another new rootable vulnerability has been discovered for Linux. The EU is trying to mandate weakened security so they can better enforce the GDPR, digital identity and social credit systems.

Now for the good news:

The problem with cryptocurrency is that it necessarily depends on a public ledger (the blockchain). Espresso intends to fix that.

Let’s Get Busy

Now back to our regularly scheduled program.

Patch Tuesday this month is a big one. The typical computer should see roughly 2.2 GB in updates today. Let’s get started.

Microsoft released updates for .NET and Visual Studio, HEIF Image Extension, HEVC Video Extension, Microsoft 365, Raw Image Extension, Remote Desktop client, VP9 Video Extension, Windows 10, Windows 7, Windows 8.1, Windows RT, Windows Server, Azure Site Recovery, Microsoft Defender for Endpoint, Microsoft Defender for IoT, Microsoft Edge, Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft Intune, Microsoft Office Visio, Microsoft Office Word, Microsoft Windows ALPC, Microsoft Windows Codecs Library, Paint 3D, Role: Windows Hyper-V, Skype Extension for Chrome, Tablet Windows User Interface, Visual Studio Code, Windows Ancillary Function Driver for WinSock, Windows CD-ROM Driver, Windows Cloud Files Mini Filter Driver, Windows COM, Windows Common Log File System Driver, Windows DWM Core Library, Windows Event Tracing, Windows Fastfat Driver, Windows Fax and Scan Service, Windows HTML Platform, Windows Installer, Windows Kernel, Windows Media, Windows PDEV, Windows Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol, Windows Print Spooler Components, Windows Remote Desktop, Windows Security Support Provider Interface, Windows SMB Server, Windows Update Stack, XBox, and MSRT (~1.5 GB). This includes security updates. A reboot is required.

Apple released updates for iOS 15.3.1 and iPadOS 15.3.1, macOS Monterey 12.2.1, macOS Big Sur 11.6.4, Security Update 2022-002 Catalina, Safari 15.3, and watchOS 8.4.2. This includes security updates. Use Apple Software Update to install these updates. A reboot is required.

iOS 15.3.1 is a security update. Use Settings, General, Software Update to install the most current update.

iPadOS 15.3.1 is a security update. Use Settings, General, Software Update to install the most current update.

watchOS 8.4.2 are security updates. Use the Watch app on your iPhone to install the most current version.

Google Chrome OS 98.0.4758.107 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version. A reboot is required.

Don’t forget to check your mobile devices, too! Many updates will also apply to your tablet, phone, kindle or television – so check your device-appropriate App Store and install updates.

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.

The release of macOS Monterey (12.x) means that macOS Mojave (10.14) and older are no longer supported. If you can not install at least macOS Catalina (10.15) on your Mac then you should immediately remove it from the Internet and use it offline only. It will no longer receive patches or updates and can now no longer be secured.

The now-current release of the Windows 10 (v21H2) is very large so will take a long time to download on slower connections. Windows 10 pushes you to get the latest Windows 10 release every 6 months and only supports any consumer builds for 18 months. If you don’t let it finish and you’re on a slow connection, this process will kill your Internet performance forever. If you don’t have the bandwidth to download the bits, I’m happy to provide loaner USB drives to our local clients, or, if you prefer to have me mail it to you please contact me for information.

The now-current release of the Windows 11 (v21H2) is very large so will take a long time to download on slower connections. Windows 11 pushes you to get the latest Windows 11 release every 6 months and only supports any consumer builds for 24 months. If you don’t let it finish and you’re on a slow connection, this process will kill your Internet performance forever. If you don’t have the bandwidth to download the bits, I’m happy to provide loaner USB drives to our local clients, or, if you prefer to have me mail it to you please contact me for information.

Windows 11 is still very young so I encourage you to wait a few more months before you consider switching to it.

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 or use, reducing the attack surface. This includes “free” applications like Avast, OpenOffice, and games you do not actually play.

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 any time, 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.

Display Driver Uninstaller 18.0.4.9 improves cleanup. This is not a security update.

HP M281cdw Firmware 20211221 resolves the network stability issue from the previous firmware that effectively disabled the device.

Logitech Options 9.60.87 is a security update.

Browser Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

Brave 1.36.111 is a security update.

Firefox 98.0 is a security update.

Firefox ESR 91.7.0 is a security update.

Google Chrome 99.0.4844.51 is a security update.

Microsoft Edge 99.0.1150.36 is a security update.

SeaMonkey 2.53.11 is a security update.

Vivaldi 5.1.2567.57 is a security update.

Email Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

Mailspring 1.10.0 is a major update to the underlying code, adding ARM support, improved spellcheck, performance, and port improvements. This is not a security update.

Thunderbird 91.6.2 is a security update.

Internet Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

AnyDesk 7.0.6 improves password management and resolves several bugs. This should be treated as a security update.

curl 7.82.0 resolves dozens of bugs and adds several new automations. This is not a security update.

Dropbox 143.4.4161 doesn’t provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.

FileZilla Client 3.58.0 updates libraries, log details and prepares for 2FA support. This is not a security update.

FileZilla Server 1.3.0 is a security update.

FreeFileSync 11.18 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Omada Software Controller 5.1.7 resolves several bugs, adds new services and features, increases hard limits, and adds support for newer hardware. This is not a security update.

Skype 8.81.0.268 resolves several bugs and adds ability to revoke and recreate profile. This is not a security update.

Syncthing 1.19.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

WinSCP 5.19.6 is a security update.

Zoom 5.9.7.3931 is a security update.

Media Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

darktable 3.8.1 improves performance and stability, and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

iTunes 12.12.2.2 doesn’t provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.

Plex Desktop 1.41.0.2876 resolves DVR and LiveTV bugs, and improves search. This is not a security update.

Plex Home Theater 1.12.0.2884 resolves several bugs, resolution and MPV improvements, and improves stability. This is not a security update.

Plex Media Server 1.25.6.5577 resolves several bugs, improves collection, smart filtering, and reliability during media changes and replacement. This is not a security update.

Adobe Photoshop 22.5.6 and 23.2 are security updates.

Adobe Illustrator 26.1.0 is a security update.

Adobe After Effects 22.2.1 and 18.4.5 are security updates.

Game Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

Epic Games 13.2.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

GameMaker Studio 2022.2.0.614 adds Text-In-Sequence, Track-In-Sequence, changes array behavior, updates libraries, and resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.

Steam 2022.03.04 resolves over 20 bugs. This is not a security update.

PlayStation PS5 21.02-04.51.00 improves performance. This is not a security update.

Office Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to most people.

Atom 1.60.0 improves usability and resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.

IcoFX 3.7 resolves several bugs and improves compatibility. This is not a security update.

LibreOffice Fresh 7.3.1 resolves over a hundred bugs, including crash and freeze issues. This is not a security update. Remember that the Fresh line is beta software and should be avoided in favor of the Still (stable) version by most users.

Nextcloud Desktop 3.4.3 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Notepad++ 8.3.2 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Paint.net 4.3.8 resolves several bugs and updates libraries. This is not a security update.

Calibre 5.38.0 resolves several bugs and adds new news sources. This is not a security update.

Adobe Reader DC 22.001.20085 is a security update.

Security Software Updates

One or more of these is likely to be of interest to most people.

MalwareBytes Anti-Malware 4.5.4 resolves a dozen bugs. This is not a security update.

RogueKiller 15.4.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

uBlock Origin 1.41.8 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Velociraptor 0.6.3 adds several new features and improves performance. This is not a security update.

Wireless Network Watcher 2.30 adds custom context menu items option. This is not a security update.

Capture Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

Elgato Game Capture HD 3.70.56 updates Twitch API. This is not a security update.

Open Broadcaster Software 27.2.3 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.

ScreenToGif 2.36 resolves several bugs and adds new installation packages and package types. This is not a security update.

Converter Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

DVDFab 12.0.6.3 adds support for new encodings and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

IsoBuster 4.9.1 doesn’t provide a detailed changelog so should be treated as a security update.

MakeMKV 1.16.7 improves reliability and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Utility Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

Agent Ransack 2022.3307 resolves several bugs and adds new columns for Folder Depth, Product Version, File Version, and filtering for Owner and Product Version. This is not a security update.

Autoruns 14.09 resolves a reliability bug. This is not a security update.

Bitwarden 1.31.3 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Carbonite 6.4.1 resolves two bugs. This is not a security update.

CPU-Z 2.00 adds support for new hardware. This is not a security update.

DesktopOK 9.71 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

DMDE 4.0.0.800 adds Btrfs support, improves ReFS, and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

dnGrep 3.0.29.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Etcher 1.7.7 updates libraries, improves updater, and resolves several bugs. This is a security update.

FileLocator Pro 2022.3307 resolves several bugs and adds new columns for Folder Depth, Product Version, File Version, and filtering for Owner and Product Version. This is not a security update.

GoodSync 11.10.5 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.

grepWin 2.0.10 improves cosmetics. This is not a security update.

Nextcloud Server 23.0.2 updates libraries and resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.

NTLite 2.3.4.8643 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

osquery 5.2.2 updates libraries, improves compatibility, and resolves several bugs. This is a security update.

AOMEI Partition Assistant 9.6.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

PowerToys 0.56.2 adds new features and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

ProcessMonitor 3.89 resolves a crash bug. This is not a security update.

Recuva 1.53.2065 adds telemetry. This is not a security update.

Macrium Reflect 8.0.6636 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

ScreenConnect 22.2.7029.8094 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

SimpleWMIView 1.48 adds quick-filter option “begins with.”

Sysmon 13.33 resolves a crash bug and improves memory handling. This is not a security update.

TaskSchedulerView 1.70 adds option to open task folder and enable or disable header line in exports. This is not a security update.

Unity 2021.2.14 updates libraries and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Wazuh Agent 4.2.5 resolves several bugs. This is a security update.

WifiInfoView 2.75 adds MAC Group column, MAC Group filtering and 64-bit build. This is not a security update.

WinGet 1.1.12653 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.

WinRAR 6.11 improves reliability and compatibility. This is not a security update.

WinScan2PDF 7.55 improves reliability. This is not a security update.

WizTree 4.08 adds custom filtering for full scan results. This is not a security update.

ZoomText 2022.2202.36.400 adds new voices and languages, improves compatibility, and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Developer Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

ADB 33.0.0 resolves a crash bug. This is not a security update.

Docker Desktop 4.5.1 is a security update.

GitHub Desktop 2.9.11 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Godot 3.4.3 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.

Node.js 16.14.0 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.

Node.js 17.6.0 updates libraries and resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.

SQLite 3.38.0 resolves several bugs and updates syntax and compatibility. This is not a security update.

Visual Studio Code 1.65.1 is a security update.

Web Package Updates

These are likely to be of interest only to web developers.

Dada Mail 11.18.0 adds LWP support and resolves an invalid mailbox bug. This is not a security update.

Drupal 9.2.13 is a security update.

Drupal 9.3.7 is a security update.

Joomla 4.1.0 is a major update adding task scheduling, child template overrides, accessibility improvements and syntax highlighting. This is not a security update.

MailArchiva 8.7.4 improves performance. This is not a security update.

MailEnable 10.38 updates libraries and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

phpList 3.6.7 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

phpMyAdmin 5.1.3 is a security update.

SMF 2.1.1 is a major update release with several new features, and improves compatibility and reliability. This update will disable any mods and custom themes and some older mods and themes will need changes to be compatible. This is not a security update.

WordPress 5.9.1 resolves over 80 bugs. This is not a security update.

Antispam Bee 2.11.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

BuddyPress 10.1.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Contact Form 7 5.5.6 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Slider Revolution 6.5.18 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Social Post Feed 4.1.2 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

myStickymenu 2.5.8 resolves a couple bugs and adds cosmetic and layout features. This is not a security update.

Widgets on Pages 1.6.0 is a security update.

WooCommerce 6.3.0 is a security update.

WP Mail SMTP 3.3.0 improves compatibility and resolves several bugs.

WordPress Zero Spam 5.2.15 is a security and woke-ness update. Since they’re now injecting content of their own choice into your website, they can no longer be trusted and you should remove this plugin from your websites.

That’s all for now folks. Keep it clean out there. 😉

Regards,

Shawn K. Hall
https://SaferPC.info/
https://12PointDesign.com/

Updates 2021-06-08

Welcome back, Folks!

Today is Patch Tuesday for June, 2021. There have been another couple dozen major security incidents, as well as some significant revelations impacting health, security and privacy. The latest Windows 10 release, v21H1, is out and it doesn’t change that much. Google has finally stopped their weekly security update cadence, though other vendors (including Microsoft Edge and Brave) have continued.

This Month in Technology

ABC affiliatesApple AirTagsAXA, Biden’s Venmo accountBrenntagCNA FinancialColonial Pipeline (again), DigitalOcean, European biomolecular research instituteFirst Horizon Bank, U.S. Agency for Global MediaGuard.meHerff Jones, Ireland’s Department of Health (HSE), JBSMonday.com, Microsoft PatchGuardNY MTAOGUsersOne Treasure IslandRapid7Scripps Health and Whistler have been hacked.

A Qualcomm hardware vulnerability affects almost 40% of all mobile phones. Additionally, a dozen security vulnerabilities (called FragAttacks) have been discovered that apply to all Wi-Fi devices. (I’ll bet you miss that cable now, don’t you?)

Google released a “trial” feature to many Chrome users that effectively broke Chrome on their devices. Disabling the trial allowed Chrome to operate again. This is a perfect example of why you should never be forced into being in a beta program. iOS 14.6 is chewing through batteries. Microsoft released an update that broke compatibility with their own Office 365 services – Teams, Outlook and OneDrive. Google’s Nest thermostats are giving people the cold shoulder. Spectre is back again.

The antivirus that can’t protect you from crypto mining malware will now mine crypto on your device so they can use you to generate even more revenue for them. Better hope Norton 360 doesn’t get your home raided.

Amazon, the UK government, BBC, Bloomberg, CNN, The Guardian, NYT, and and many other major sites were taken offline today in a huge outage.

When your paranoid friend says the security app you’re using might be a government trojan, believe them.

Google & Apple are still making it impossible for users to keep their location privateTor is being used to spy on “secure” user traffic. Again. A new privacy-compromising mechanism via cross-browser tracking installed apps can effectively identify your device. The TikTok App is collecting biometric data. The UK Test & Trace app does far worse.

GitHub has disabled FLoC. This is a good thing. Despite federal law, Chinese surveillance equipment is gaining US government customers. Taproot isn’t the privacy panacea it is perceived to be. On the topic of Snowden, he’s been vindicated (again).

Apple shares iCloud keys with CCP, Apple’s Find My can be used to leak secrets, has a “few” issues with notification reliability, and their techs regularly violate their users’ privacy. Due to so many arbitration cases Amazon is now allowing you to sue them…just in time, as they are now sharing your Wi-Fi with passersbyDell lied about their Alienware laptop upgradeability. There’s a reason why so many people treat Microsoft Edge as malicious.

The Epic vs Apple lawsuit testimony is over, but Apple’s AppStore is still allowing malicious and fraudulent apps, while they pat themselves on the back for not taking even more money from their users.

Dr. Fauci lied about sponsoring gain of function research for biological warfare. He dismissed what he knew to be true, the lab-leak theory, and the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine. He perjured himself. The MSM helped.

Biden shut down the last Wuhan lab investigation. What are the chances there will be a real investigation? Intelligence agencies claim otherwise and you know they have never lied. As is typical of the political elite, instead of broadcasting this everywhere, they’re targeting those that exposed it with death threats.

Governments and the MSM are concealing any true risk/benefit analysis, the miscarriages, Freudian slips, and VAERS spikes behind missing data, bad science, vastly overcounted cases, and propaganda. They’ve been caught red-handed manipulating the data.

The truth is the COVID death numbers are still dropping while post-vaccination infectionand death – are not rare. 5-10% suffer from severe adverse reactions in the hundreds of thousands. The CDC’s new rules acknowledge what many have known all along, vindicating those who opposed masks and vaccines and the vaccines are far from safe or effective.

The worst part is that there are still unsubstantiated and illegal mandates (that are supported by the low-information crowdforever), and insane dogma that violates all reason. Such as yellow stars for the unvaxxed, forbidding the unvaccinated from  church, employmentUniversity (sometimes even the vaccinated) and even West Point. The Red Cross won’t even accept blood from the vaccinated.

The UK government knows what’s coming, and most will be called “unrelated illnesses.” When life insurance companies see this as a non-event and politicians ignore their own agencies to fine the science it’s hard to take it seriously. There have been decades of vaccine research, and we know they’re designing vaccines that spread themselves – isn’t that the premise of most zombie films? mRNA rewrites the genetic code and enhances the illness. This is what it is designed to do. By the way, did you know that during mRNA trials all the mammals kept dying? They proceeded with the emergency use authorization anyway. The only immunity provided by vaccines is to the manufacturer. A second Nuremburg Tribunal is on the horizon.

The Supreme Court says the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) is overbroad. Amazon is being sued over Antitrust law. The Ohio AG is trying to declare Google a public utility.

The government has repeatedly operated in concert with Big Tech to silence dissent, science, and discussion, in effect, laundering their censorship through third-parties. Governors and others are now going on the offense.

Now for the good news:

Dr. Shiva Ayyadurai is doing more to take down Big Tech than anyone else – by himself. Please help.

Let’s Get Busy

Now back to our regularly scheduled program.

Patch Tuesday this month is huge. The typical computer should see roughly 3.0 GB in updates today. Let’s get started.

Microsoft released updates for Windows, Edge, .NET, Servicing Stack, Internet Explorer, and MSRT (~1.5 GB). This includes security updates. A reboot is required.

Apple released updates for iOS 14.6 and iPadOS 14.6, macOS Big Sur 11.4, Security Update Mojave 2021-004, Security Update Catalina 2021-003, Safari 14.1.1, watchOS 7.5, tvOS 14.6, and Boot Camp 6.1.14. This includes security updates. Use Apple Software Update to install these updates. A reboot is required.

iOS 14.6 is a security update. Use Settings, General, Software Update to install the most current update.

iPadOS 14.6 is a security update. Use Settings, General, Software Update to install the most current update.

watchOS 7.5 is a security update. Use your updated iPhone to install the most current version through the Watch app.

tvOS 14.6 is a security update. Use Settings, General, Updates to install the most current version.

Google Chrome OS 91.0.4472.81 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version. A reboot is required.

Don’t forget to check your mobile devices, too! Many updates will also apply to your tablet, phone, kindle or television – so check your device-appropriate App Store and install updates.

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.

The release of macOS Big Sur (11.x) means that macOS High Sierra (10.13) and older are no longer supported. If you can not install at least macOS Mojave (10.14) on your Mac then you should immediately remove it from the Internet and use it offline only. It will no longer receive patches or updates and can now no longer be secured.

The now-current release of the Windows 10 (v21H1) is very large, for the first time it’s actually smaller than the previous release, but it will take a long time to download on slower connections. Windows 10 pushes you to get the latest Windows 10 release every 6 months and only supports any consumer builds for 18 months. If you don’t let it finish and you’re on a slow connection, this process kill your Internet performance forever. If you don’t have the bandwidth to download the bits, I’m happy to provide loaner USB drives to our local clients, or, if you prefer to have me mail it to you please contact me for information.

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 or use, reducing the attack surface. This includes “free” applications like Avast, OpenOffice, and games you do not actually play.

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 any time, 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.

Logitech Options for macOS 8.54.147 adds support for newer hardware. This is not a security update.
https://www.logitech.com/en-us/product/options

Nvidia 466.63 adds support for newer hardware, libraries and components, and resolves stability and performance bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx?lang=en-us

Engine 3.22.0 now defaults to having Moments off, and resolves a crash bog. This is not a security update.
https://steelseries.com/engine

Browser Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

Brave 1.25.70 is a security update.
https://brave.com/

Google Chrome 91.0.4472.77 is a security update.
https://www.google.com/chrome/

Microsoft Edge 91.0.864.41 is a security update.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge/business/download

Firefox 89.0 is a security update.
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/

Firefox ESR 78.11.0 is a security update.
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/all/

Email Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

Thunderbird 78.11.0 is a security update.
https://www.thunderbird.net/en-US/

Internet Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

AnyDesk 6.3.1 resolves several bugs and adds an adaptive resolution option. This is not a security update.
https://anydesk.com/en/downloads

AnyDesk for macOS 6.2.0 resolves stability and display issues, adds tab, cursor follow, and window focus controls. This is not a security update.
https://anydesk.com/en/downloads

curl 7.77.0 is a security update.
https://curl.haxx.se/windows/

Dropbox 123.4.4832 doesn’t provide a detailed changelog, so should be treated as a security update.
https://www.dropbox.com/

FileZilla Client 3.54.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://filezilla-project.org/

Minds 4.13.0 improves performance and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.minds.com/mobile

Prosody 0.11.9 is a security update.
https://prosody.im/download/start

Technitium DNS Server 6.3 resolves several bugs and adds more than a half dozen new features, including failover and recursion ACLs. This is not a security update.
https://technitium.com/dns/

WGet 1.21.1-1 updates libraries. This is a security update.
https://eternallybored.org/misc/wget/

Zoom 5.6.7.1016 is a security update.
https://zoom.us/

Media Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

3tene 2.0.15 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://en.3tene.com/

Picard 2.6.3 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://picard.musicbrainz.org/

Plex Media Server 1.23.2.4656 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.plex.tv/media-server-downloads/#plex-media-server

Game Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

Steam 2021.06.07 resolves several bugs and improves cosmetics. This is not a security update.
https://www.steampowered.com/platform/update_history/index.php?skin=0&id=0

PlayStation PS3 4.88 improves performance. This is not a security update.
https://www.playstation.com/en-us/support/hardware/ps3/system-software/

Office Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to most people.

Audacity 3.0.2 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.audacityteam.org/download/

LibreOffice Still 7.0.6 is the final release for the 7.0 branch. This version resolves 50 reliability, stability, and compatibility bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.libreoffice.org/

Nextcloud Desktop 3.2.2 resolves several bugs and updates libraries. This should be treated as a security update.
https://nextcloud.com/

Adobe Connect 11.2.2 is a security update.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/connect/apsb21-36.html

Adobe Acrobat and Reader 2021.005.20148, 2020.004.30005 and 2017.011.30197 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/acrobat/apsb21-37.html

Adobe Photoshop 21.2.9 and 22.4.2 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/photoshop/apsb21-38.html

Adobe Experience Manager 6.5.9.0 is a security update.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/experience-manager/apsb21-39.html

Adobe Creative Cloud Desktop Application 2.5 is a security update.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/creative-cloud/apsb21-41.html

Adobe RoboHelp Server 2020.0.1 is a security update.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/robohelp-server/apsb21-44.html

Adobe Photoshop Elements 5.3 is a security update.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/photoshop_elements/apsb21-46.html

Adobe Premiere Elements 5.3 is a security update.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/premiere_elements/apsb21-47.html

Adobe After Effects 18.2.1 is a security update.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/after_effects/apsb21-49.html

Adobe Animate 21.0.7 is a security update.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/animate/apsb21-50.html

Security Software Updates

One or more of these is likely to be of interest to most people.

Tails 4.19 is a security update.
https://tails.boum.org/install/dvd-download/index.en.html

NSudo 8.2 removes ARM32 support, updates libraries, and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/M2Team/NSudo/releases/latest

OnionShare 2.3.2 resolves several bugs and updates libraries. This is a security update.
https://onionshare.org/

VT-CLI 0.9.7 doesn’t provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://github.com/VirusTotal/vt-cli/releases/latest

Capture Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

ScreenToGif 2.31 provides cosmetic improvements, improves the updater and imgur compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/NickeManarin/ScreenToGif/releases/latest

SnagIt 2021.4.1 is a security update.
https://download.techsmith.com/snagit/enu/snagit.exe

Utility Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

1Password for Mac 7.8.5 adds archive support, sharing indicators, and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://1password.com/downloads/mac/

1Password for Windows 7.7.807 resolves several bugs, adds Windows Hello support, and adds archive support. This is not a security update.
https://1password.com/downloads/windows/

Bitcoin 0.21.1 improves performance and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://bitcoin.org/en/download

Bitwarden 1.26.5 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://bitwarden.com/

CCleaner 5.81.8895 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.ccleaner.com/

Dell Command Update 4.2 improves download and logging. This is not a security update.
https://www.dell.com/support/article/us/en/04/sln311129/dell-command-update?lang=en

DesktopOK 8.88 improves compatibility and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.softwareok.com/?seite=Freeware/DesktopOK

Everything 1.4.1.1009 improves NTFS detection. This is not a security update.
https://www.voidtools.com/

Fido 1.19 adds support for Windows 10 21H1 and eliminate requirement for Internet Explorer. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/pbatard/Fido/releases

GoodSync 11.7.3 resolves several bugs and improves stability. This is not a security update.
https://www.goodsync.com/

IsMyHdOK 3.21 improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.softwareok.com/?seite=Microsoft/IsMyHdOK

NetworkTrafficView 2.40 adds several protocol controls and filters. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/network_traffic_view.html

NTLite 2.1.1.7917 improves compatibility and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.ntlite.com/download/

Aomei Partition Assistant 9.2.1 improves selection interface, resolves several bugs with third-party apps and integrated elevation when required. This is not a security update.
https://www.diskpart.com/

PointerStick 5.15 improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.softwareok.com/?seite=Freeware/PointerStick

Process Monitor 3.82 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/procmon

Process Explorer 16.42 switches default search behavior from find to filter and reports CET, and resolves several bugs. This is a security update.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/process-explorer

PsExec 2.34 changes stderr output behavior. This is not a security update.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/psexec

RoboForm 9.1.4 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.roboform.com/

Samsung Data Migration 4.0 does not provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://www.samsung.com/semiconductor/minisite/ssd/download/tools/

Sigcheck 2.81 resolves a signature validation bug. This should be treated as a security update.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/sigcheck

SimpleWMIView 1.45 improves sorting controls. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/simple_wmi_view.html

Sysmon 13.21 adds new filter conditions and resolves a crash bug. This is not a security update.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/sysmon

TaskSchedulerView 1.68 resolves a pagination bug and improves sorting controls. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/task_scheduler_view.html

TCPView 4.12 adds new filter conditions and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/tcpview

TraceRouteOK 2.52 improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.softwareok.com/?seite=Microsoft/TraceRouteOK

WifiInfoView 2.70 improves sorting options. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/wifi_information_view.html

WinGet 1.0.11451 is the first release version of WinGet. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/microsoft/winget-cli/releases/latest

WinObj 3.10 extends search to include symbolic link targets.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/winobj

WinScan2PDF 7.11 improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.softwareok.com/?seite=Microsoft/WinScan2PDF

Developer Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

Android Studio 4.2.1.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://developer.android.com/studio

DB Browser for SQLite 3.12.2 updates the certificate for DBHub.io. This is not a security update.
https://sqlitebrowser.org/

Godot 3.3.2 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.
https://godotengine.org/

Inno Setup 6.2.0 updates graphics and cosmetics, adds dark mode, improves logging, and adds several new scripting options and flags. This is not a security update.
https://www.jrsoftware.org/isdl.php

Node.js 16.3.0 upgrades libraries and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://nodejs.org/en/

SQLite 3.35.5 resolves several bugs and improves reliability and performance. This is a security update.
https://www.sqlite.org/download.html

Web Package Updates

These are likely to be of interest only to web developers.

Adminer 4.8.1 resolves several bugs. This is a security update.
https://www.adminer.org/en/

Dada Mail 11.14.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
http://dadamailproject.com/

Drupal 9.1.10 resolves over a dozen bugs. This is not a security update.
https://drupal.org/download

Joomla 3.9.27 is a security update.
https://www.joomla.org/

Nextcloud Server 21.0.2 updates libraries and resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.
https://nextcloud.com/

phpList 3.6.3 is a security update.
https://www.phplist.org/

Piwigo 11.5.0 is a security update.
https://piwigo.org/

ScreenConnect 21.8.3558.7823 adds deep-linking support, and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.connectwise.com/software/control/download

WordPress 5.7.2 is a security update.
https://wordpress.org/

BuddyPress 8.0.0 improves the registration experience, xProfile fields, simplifies administration, and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/buddypress/

Duplicator 1.4.1 resolves several bugs. This is a security update.
https://wordpress.org/plugins/duplicator/#developers

Visual Composer 36.0 resolves dozens of bugs and improves consistency. This is not a security update.
https://visualcomposer.com/

W3 Total Cache 2.1.3 is a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/w3-total-cache/

WooCommerce 5.4.0 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/woocommerce/

Show IDs 1.1.7 improves compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wpsite-show-ids/

That’s all for now folks. Keep it clean out there. 😉

Regards,

Shawn K. Hall
https://SaferPC.info/
https://12PointDesign.com/

Updates 2021-04-13

Welcome back, Folks!

Today is Patch Tuesday for April, 2021. There have been over 50 major hacking incidents, many hardware devices with critical security issues (often these are responsible for the major hacking incidents), and over a hundred updates this month. Almost every browser has released weekly security updates for the last two months. I don’t know about you, but I’m getting kind of sick of it. Finally, there’s an OpenSSL security update this week, so expect many more updates throughout the next month from every vendor that rolls their own encryption.

This Month in Technology

Acer, Apperta FoundationAzureBIG-IP, the Blender websiteBoggi Milano MenswearBooking.comBroward County (FL) Public SchoolsBrown UniversityBuffalo SchoolsCalifornia State Controller’s OfficeClubhouseCNA FinancialCrash 4 (within a day of release!), Facebook (which had the audacity to blame it’s users), Gigaset Android Update Server (preinstalled, too), Harvard Business SchoolHaverhill Public SchoolsIdaho Central Credit Union, the Indian governmentiOS, iPhones, iPads and Apple WatchesKentucky unemployment insurance systemMaricopa (AZ) Community Colleges, Michigan-based Flagstar BankMillersville UniversityMobiKwikMultiCareNetgear switches, the Netmask libraryParkMobilePeakTPA/Carolina SeniorCarePHPRollSAPSchneider Electric Smart MetersShellShopifySierra WirelessStanford MedicineSwarmShopUbiquiti (even if they won’t admit it), Union Bank of NigeriaUniversity Of CaliforniaUniversity Of ColoradoUniversity of MiamiUniversity of WisconsinUPMCVerkada, various VPN devices, Wake Forest Baptist-Lexington Medical CenterWeLeakInfo (ironic), Yeshiva University, and Zoom (more than once) have each been hacked.

There’s still fallout from the Exchange vulnerabilities for which Microsoft released patches in March, but with today’s release there are newly discovered vulnerabilities and patches, too. Even so, about 8% of Exchange servers still aren’t patched with the March fixes.

Newly discovered vulnerabilities allow bypass of Spectre mitigations on Linux, and on other platforms via JavaScriptAMD Zen 3 CPUs, Cisco SOHO Routers, and QNAP NAS devices are just a small sampling of hardware devices with serious security problems this month. 80% of global enterprises report firmware cyberattacks, while the other 20% probably just don’t have sufficient training or equipment to be able to detect them.

Major Google Android WebView problems have been notable this month and banking malware have been found in ten apps on the Google Play store. And Apple’s macOS Mail App can be hacked simply by receiving an email (again).

Azure AD/Microsoft 365, Azure DNS, Facebook, and Google have suffered recent outages.

T-Mobile is the latest to convert their customers into products. TikTok and Facebook tracking is worse than you imagine.

From the “I’m glad it didn’t happen to me” file we have an example of an aggressive space saving measure gone horribly wrong. There’s a growing trend of targeting the customers of ransomware victims to convince them to pay and another new cross-platform cryptomining worm.

Mobile privacy is a myth as both Google and Apple collect telemetry even when telemetry is disabled, but at least they’ve finally closed one of the more significant SIM-jacking holes.

Big Tech gets to make their own rules. They’re so aggressive about it that their own security staff sometimes can’t tell if they’ve been hacked. Google is being sued in France for violation of privacy. Apple has banned an accessibility keyboard from their AppStore in an effort to force them to into a buyout. Hopefully Epic will be able to use this and Apple’s hypocritical statements in Australia in their antitrust suit.

As with all disasters and government programs (but I repeat myself), the “American Rescue Act” is being trolled by malware authors to infect unsuspecting users. LinkedIn users are also being targeted thanks to the LinkedIn hack.

Not all of those Norton Antivirus renewal messages are scams (just most of them), and the UK is now suing Norton for failing to comply with their investigation into their “Dark Pattern” subscription model.

If Big Tech, Big Government, and the MSM didn’t censor Presidents (even Venezuela’s),
representatives, doctors, Christians, students, and even knitters, push false narratives, and tolerate terror, child abuse, racism, and sexism, while providing security only to one side of the aisle and targeting the other, I suspect there would be much more peace. Virginia Tech is being sued for banning the amorphously definedhate speech“, while once more college racism turns out to be a hoax. It shouldn’t be any surprise to anyone that victimhood itself is a disease.

A single death is a tragedy but killing small businesses was always part of the plan. The lockdowns were never about a virus. They were about pushing compliance with masks and experimental (lethal and anything butsafe and effective“) mRNA treatments onto an unwilling public, to “hack the software of life” preventing the ability to survive and dismantling every freedom unless you accept the jab. A surge is happening, not just at the border, but in post-jab death rates. All of this to ensure that their slush funds would be financed and elections could never be honest again.

There have been tens of thousands of fraudulent ballots in Michigan Georgia, and New Hampshire. In Georgia, one county ordered voter registration applications for 25 times the population. At least we can all agree on some common sense election reform. Or can we? The same businesses that require an ID to use their services are attacking new laws that require the same scrutiny for elections.

Now for the good news:

After more than a decade the US Supreme Court has finally ruled in favor of Google.
It’s about time. While I have no love for Google, the idea that you can’t develop code that uses the same parameters or names as Oracle code is sickening. How many of you have have written functions to format a date or number? It’s not like granular coding styles leave much to the imagination. This would be like an author suing another author because the chapters of their book were named “Chapter 1”, “Chapter 2” and so on. Good decision.

As long as I have my soapbox: Save Crypto!

Let’s Get Busy

Now back to our regularly scheduled program.

Patch Tuesday this month is huge. The typical computer should see roughly 2 GB in updates today. Let’s get started.

Microsoft released updates for Windows, Exchange, Edge, .NET, Servicing Stack, and MSRT (~ 1.5 GB). This includes security updates. A reboot is required.

Apple released updates for GarageBand 10.4.3, iOS 14.4.2, iOS 12.5.2,, iPadOS 14.4.2, and watchOS 7.3.3. This includes security updates. Use Apple Software Update to install these updates. A reboot is required.

iOS 14.4.2 and 12.5.2 are security updates. Use Settings, General, Software Update to install the most current update.

iPadOS 14.4.2 is a security update. Use Settings, General, Software Update to install the most current update.

watchOS 7.3.3 is a security update. Use the Watch app on your iPhone to install the most current version.

Google Chrome OS 89.0.4389.95 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version. A reboot is required.

Don’t forget to check your mobile devices, too! Many updates will also apply to your tablet, phone, kindle or television – so check your device-appropriate App Store and install updates.

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.

The release of macOS Big Sur (11.0) means that macOS High Sierra (10.13) and older are no longer supported. If you can not install at least macOS Mojave (10.14) on your Mac then you should immediately remove it from the Internet and use it offline only. It will no longer receive patches or updates and can now no longer be secured.

The now-current release of the Windows 10 (v2009) is huge (about 18% larger than v2004, which was 25% larger than any prior build) so will take a long time to download on slower connections. Windows 10 pushes you to get the latest Windows 10 release every 6 months and only supports any consumer builds for 18 months. If you don’t let it finish and you’re on a slow connection, this process kill your Internet performance forever. If you don’t have the bandwidth to download the bits, I’m happy to provide loaner USB drives to our local clients, or, if you prefer to have me mail it to you please contact me for information.

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 or use, reducing the attack surface. This includes “free” applications like Avast, OpenOffice, and games you do not actually play.

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 any time, 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.

Drivers by Seagull 2021.1 adds hardware support, improves response time, and adds features to certain models. This is not a security update.
https://www.seagullscientific.com/support/downloads/drivers/

Crucial Storage Executive 7.01 doesn’t provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://www.crucial.com/support/storage-executive

Display Driver Uninstaller 18.0.3.8 improves AMD removal and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.wagnardsoft.com/display-driver-uninstaller-ddu

Logitech Options (macOS) 8.50.210 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.logitech.com/en-us/product/options

NVidia 465.89 adds new profiles, improves compatibility with various games and newer hardware. This is not a security update.
https://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx?lang=en-us

Browser Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

Brave 1.22.71 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://brave.com/

Google Chrome 89.0.4389.128 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://www.google.com/chrome/

Microsoft Edge 89.0.774.76 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge/business/download

Firefox 87.0 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/

Firefox ESR 78.9.0 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/all/

SeaMonkey 2.53.7 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://www.seamonkey-project.org/

Vivaldi 3.7.2218.52 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://vivaldi.com/

Email Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

Thunderbird 78.9.1 is a security update. Use Menu, Help, About to install the most current version.
https://www.thunderbird.net/en-US/

Internet Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to everyone.

BrowsingHistoryView 2.47 adds high-DPI support and an option to copy URL QR Code to the clipboard. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/browsing_history_view.html

curl 7.76.0 is a security update.
https://curl.haxx.se/windows/

Dropbox 119.4.1772 doesn’t provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://www.dropbox.com/

FileZilla Client 3.53.1 resolves a couple bugs. This is not a security update.
https://filezilla-project.org/

FreeFileSync 11.9 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.freefilesync.org/download.php

IPInfoOffline 1.60 adds CIDR and Duplicate Count columns, and updates internal IP database.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/ip_country_info_offline.html

Npcap 1.30 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://nmap.org/npcap/

Technitium DNS Server 6.2 is a major update. The 6.0 branch adds DNS Application support, more options, and improved compatibility. This is not a security update. Be aware that the current version chokes during updates because it stalls on removal of the previous version.
https://technitium.com/dns/

Telegram 2.7.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://telegram.org/

WGet 1.21.1 is a security update.
https://eternallybored.org/misc/wget/

Zoom 5.6.1.617 is a security update.
https://zoom.us/

Media Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

3tene 2.0.14 resolves several bugs and adds new positions and motions. This is not a security update.
https://en.3tene.com/

FastStone Viewer 7.5 adds dark theme, support for audio formats, and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
http://www.faststone.org/FSViewerDetail.htm

Picard 2.6 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://picard.musicbrainz.org/

Office Updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to most people.

Adobe Photoshop 21.2.7 and 22.3.1 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/photoshop/apsb21-28.html

Adobe Digital Editions 4.5.11.187606 is a security update.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/Digital-Editions/apsb21-26.html

Adobe Bridge 10.1.2 and 11.0.2 are security updates.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/bridge/apsb21-23.html

Atom 1.56.0 updates libraries and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://atom.io/

RoboHelp RH2020.0.4 is a security update.
https://helpx.adobe.com/security/products/robohelp/apsb21-20.html

Krita 4.4.3 doesn’t provide a detailed changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://krita.org/en/download/krita-desktop/

LibreOffice Fresh 7.1.2 resolves over 60 bugs. This is not a security update, but the “Fresh” line is beta, so should be avoided by most users.
https://www.libreoffice.org/

LibreOffice Still 7.0.5 resolves over 100 bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.libreoffice.org/

Nextcloud Desktop 3.2.0 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.
https://nextcloud.com/

Notepad++ 7.9.5 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://notepad-plus-plus.org/

Security Software Updates

One or more of these is likely to be of interest to most people.

Tails 4.17 is a security update.
https://tails.boum.org/install/dvd-download/index.en.html

ClamWin Portable 0.99.4.103 doesn’t provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://portableapps.com/apps/security/clamwin_portable

OpenSSL 1.1.1k is a security update.
https://www.openssl.org/source/

RogueKiller 14.8.6 is a security update.
https://www.adlice.com/download/roguekiller/

uBlock Origin 1.34.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock/releases/latest

VT-CLI 0.9.2 doesn’t provide a detailed changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://github.com/VirusTotal/vt-cli/releases/latest

Capture Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

SnagIt 2021.3.0 resolves several bugs and improves toolset. This is not a security update.
https://download.techsmith.com/snagit/enu/snagit.exe

Converter Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

MakeMKV 1.16.3 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://12pd.com/click?makemkv

Education updates

One or more of these are likely to be of interest to most people.

e-Sword 13.0 adds Audio Bible support. This is not a security update.
https://www.e-sword.net/

Utility Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

1Password for Windows 7.6.797 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://1password.com/downloads/windows/

Bitwarden 1.25.1 resolves installation issues, adds support for Safari 13 and updates electron. This is not a security update.
https://bitwarden.com/

CCleaner 5.78.8558 improves cleaning options and behavior. This is not a security update.
https://www.ccleaner.com/

Cygwin 3.2.0 is a major update, improving threading and symlink support, and resolves more than a dozen bugs. This is a security update.
https://cygwin.com/

DesktopOK 8.77 improves translations and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.softwareok.com/?seite=Freeware/DesktopOK

dupeGuru 4.1.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://dupeguru.voltaicideas.net/

Etcher 1.5.117 resolves several bugs and updates libraries. This is not a security update.
https://www.balena.io/etcher/

Everything Toolbar 0.6.3 resolves a user-mode compatibility problem, requiring uninstallation of previous versions before upgrade. All future builds will be machine-level only. This is not a security update.
https://github.com/stnkl/EverythingToolbar/

GoodSync 11.6.2 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.goodsync.com/

Homedale 1.95 adds translation. This is not a security update.
https://www.the-sz.com/products/homedale/

IsMyHdOK 3.13 improves SSD/SSHD detection and benchmark testing. This is not a security update.
https://www.softwareok.com/?seite=Microsoft/IsMyHdOK

NTLite 2.1.0.7845 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.ntlite.com/download/

osquery 4.7.0 adds several new tables, concat* functions, and resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.
https://osquery.io/downloads

ProduKey 1.96 improves high-DPI compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/product_cd_key_viewer.html

PsExec 2.33 is a security update.
https://sysinternals.com/

RoboForm 9.1.2 adds website problem reporting and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.roboform.com/

Samsung Magician 6.3.0 doesn’t provide a changelog so should be treated as a security update.
https://www.samsung.com/semiconductor/minisite/ssd/download/tools/

SimpleWMIView 1.43 improves high-DPI compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/simple_wmi_view.html

System Monitor 13.02 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://sysinternals.com/

TaskSchedulerView 1.67 improves high-DPI compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/task_scheduler_view.html

TcpLogView 1.35 adds Process User column and improves high-DPI compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/tcp_log_view.html

TCPView 4.0 adds flexible filtering, search, and display of the Windows service that owns an endpoint. This is not a security update.
https://sysinternals.com/

WifiInfoView 2.68 improves high-DPI compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/wifi_information_view.html

WinObj 3.02 resolves a crash bug. This is not a security update.
https://sysinternals.com/

WinScan2PDF 7.01 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.softwareok.com/?seite=Microsoft/WinScan2PDF

WirelessKeyView 2.22 adds an option to copy QR Code of the selected item. This is not a security update.
https://www.nirsoft.net/utils/wireless_key.html

Developer Updates

These are unlikely to be of interest to most people.

AutoHotkey 1.1.33.06 resolves a hotkey bug. This is not a security update.
https://www.autohotkey.com/download/

Android Studio 4.1.3.0 resolves a stable/beta channel bug. This is not a security update.
https://developer.android.com/studio

Node.js 12.22.0 is a security update.
https://nodejs.org/en/

Node.js 14.16.1 is a security update.
https://nodejs.org/en/

Node.js 15.14.0 is a security update.
https://nodejs.org/en/

Redemption 5.27.0.5916 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.dimastr.com/redemption/

SQLite 3.35.4 is a security update.
https://www.sqlite.org/download.html

TortoiseGit 2.12.0 updates libraries, resolves more than a dozen bugs, and improves consistency. This is not a security update.
https://tortoisegit.org/

Unreal Engine 4.26 adds many new features. This is not a security update.
https://unrealengine.com/en-US/

Visual Studio Code 1.55.2 is a security update.
https://code.visualstudio.com/

Web Package Updates

These are likely to be of interest only to web developers.

Coppermine Gallery 1.6.11 adds a method to enable 2FA. This is not a security update.
https://coppermine-gallery.net/

Docker Desktop 3.3.0 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.docker.com/products/docker-desktop

Drupal 9.1.6 resolves over 50 bugs. This is not a security update.
https://drupal.org/download

HumHub 1.8.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.humhub.com/en/download

Joomla 3.9.26 is a security update.
https://www.joomla.org/

MailEnable 10.34 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.mailenable.com/

Nextcloud Server 21.0.1 resolves over 70 bugs, updates libraries, and improves reliability and compatibility. This is not a security update.
https://nextcloud.com/

phpList 3.6.2 improves compatibility and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.phplist.org/

Piwigo 11.4.0 is a security update.
https://piwigo.org/

ScreenConnect 21.4.2767.7752 makes several cosmetic changes and resolves bugs. This is not a security update.
https://www.connectwise.com/software/control/download

SpamAssassin 3.4.6 is a security update.
https://spamassassin.apache.org/downloads.cgi

Antispam Bee 2.9.4 adds support for ajax calls. This is not a security update.

Autoptimize 2.8.3 resolves a bug. This is not a security update.

BuddyPress 7.2.1 is a security update.

Social Post Feed 2.19.1 improves compatibility and reliability, and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Email Log 2.4.5 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Redirection 5.1.1 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

Sucuri Security 1.8.26 is an SJW release. This is not a security update.

Theme My Login 7.1.3 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

W3 Total Cache 2.1.2 resolves several bugs and adds AWS regions, new MIME types and pagination links. This is not a security update.

WooCommerce 5.2.0 resolves dozens of bugs. This is not a security update.

WP Mail SMTP 2.7.0 changes PHP requirements (5.5+) and resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

WordPress Zero Spam 5.0.12 resolves several bugs. This is not a security update.

That’s all for now folks. Keep it clean out there. 😉

Regards,

Shawn K. Hall
https://SaferPC.info/
https://12PointDesign.com/