It is critical for businesses to be aware of new data security vulnerabilities and act to protect key company data. However, it is often difficult for business owners and managers to find the time to effectively monitor data security news. CenterLine has developed an email notification system for interested clients and business partners who want to be informed about the latest data security concerns. The latest alerts are posted below. Please visit the Contact Us page and sign up to receive future alerts. Daylight Saving Time Change and Affect 03/06/07 The 2005 Energy Policy Act is moving Daylight Saving Time forward by three weeks to March 11 instead of the usual April date this year. For many, the disruption could be worse than Y2K. Appointment calendars may not be accurate, remote users may experience connectivity problems, and even workers who are physically in your office may be unable to login to their computers. Potential business-critical issues with servers, desktops, routers, PDAs, anti-virus software, financial packages, and proprietary software may exist if they are not properly patched. Microsoft has issued updates to provide automatic patching for newer Operating Systems and software packages, but Windows 2000, for example has to be manually patched for the time change. This may be true for other Microsoft products that are being used in your organization. Other hardware and software manufacturers are making patches available using their own automatic update procedures, but many more are only posting manual patching procedures on their websites. Proprietary products should definitely be given special attention. Since many of our clients are utilizing CenterLine for proactive services, we recommend contacting us immediately to be sure that your products have been effectively patched. While it will be impossible to offer any guarantees of stability, we recommend utilizing all resources available to limit inconvenience or downtime. If you discover issues over the next few weeks, we encourage you to call. If any additional information becomes available, we will forward it to you. Dell Laptop Battery Recall 09/12/06 Dell recently announced a recall for a number of laptop batteries. The affected laptop batteries pose a possible fire hazard that could result in employee injury, loss of data, and damage to company property. It appears that many businesses have not taken the time to determine if their laptops are included in the recall. The models listed here are potentially affected by this recall: Latitude: D410, D500, D505, D510, D520, D600, D610, D620, D800, D810 Inspiron: 500M, 510M, 600M, 700M, 710M, 6000, 6400, 8500, 8600, 9100, 9200, 9300, 9400, E1505, E1705 Precision: M20, M60, M70, M90 XPS: XPS, XPS Gen2, XPS M170, XPS M1710 If you are interested, CenterLine can assist you with determining if your company laptops are included in the recall. Please call to start this process. Critical Microsoft Vulnerability Discovered 01/05/06 There is a new vulnerability that affects all versions of Microsoft Windows Operating Systems. This threat involves malicious “.wmf” code planted in pictures, etc. activated through Internet browsing, Instant Messaging, and E-mail. Currently there is no action that will ensure 100% protection from this threat. However, Microsoft plans to have a software patch available next week. The security experts consider this a severe threat and strongly recommend that everyone install the Microsoft patch on every Windows workstation and server once the patch has been made available. Please call for additional information and to schedule a time to implement the patch. View full details from Microsoft. Critical Virus Alert - Win32/Sober.Z@mm 01/05/06 There is an E-mail virus that is resurfacing and is set to run again January 6th. This virus is spread through E-Mail attachments. The latest Anti-Virus software does protect you from this, but if you are not up to date, you could be infected. We recommend that all CenterLine clients keep their Anti-Virus software current and have your workstations and servers checked periodically. Please call for additional information and to schedule a visit to confirm your systems are adequately protected from known threats. View full details from Symantec.