ACSS Updates

All Users in the USA

Due to changes in when daylight savings time will start as of 2007, all computers and other electronic devices that compensate for daylight savings time automatically will need to be updated for such changes. Automatic updates for Windows and Mac OS X take care of these changes. If come daylight savings time your clock hasn't changed automatically, you might want to look into getting the appropriate update in order to ensure proper time in the future.

Windows Users

Microsoft finally patched up a lot of the exploits related to Office applications (Word and Excel) with the Feb. 13th updates. However, a new Word exploit has already been discovered and now there is an Internet Explorer issue.

The new Word exploit apply to Office 2000 and Office XP versions. Again the suggestion is to be careful about the documents you open. Are they from a trusted source or not?

The Internet Explorer flaw is for version 6.0 only. The severity of the flaw is very high. Basically a malicious remote user could obtain access to files on the computer. The advice from Symantec is not helpful for most end-users. They say:
"To mitigate the risk, Symantec recommended users run all software and the Web client as a non-privileged user with minimal access rights and avoid links provided by unknown or untrusted sources. Users should also refrain from visiting sites of questionable integrity, Symantec said."

Better advice would be to say, "Don't use Internet Explorer 6.0".


Mac Users

There have been a number of updates for Mac OS X released recently. Be sure to keep your system up-to-date.
I've also noticed that ClamXav for Apple computers has really matured. If you looking for a good AV solution for a Mac that is free, check out: www.clamxav.com




Finally, the website for AvantGuard is going through some major changes. So, if you find you can access our website, don't worry. Once the new website is up, expect an email!