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Microsoft's Compromise On Windows 8 Security Leaves Consumers Vulnerable

This article is more than 10 years old.

If you downloaded the Release Preview of Windows 8 -- or the earlier Consumer Preview for that matter -- you will have noticed that the operating system comes equipped with Windows Defender antivirus software as default. It's a nice touch, because not only does it mean that you're protected against malware right out of the box, but that the consumer doesn't need to buy any additional software.

But this is not how things will work in the final release of Windows 8.

According to Gary Davis, director of global consumer product marketing for antivirus McAfee, Microsoft is to give hardware makers -- the OEMs or Original Equipments Manufacturers -- the choice as to what antivirus they want to install onto the PCs they sell.

Choice is good, right?

Maybe not.

The reason that Microsoft is doing this is not in order to give consumers a choice, but to give the OEMs an opportunity to load trail versions of antivirus programs onto new PCs. Why to the OEMs want to load trial antivirus software onto new PCs when Windows 8 comes with a fully-features antivirus packages that's 100 percent free to use? The do it because they're paid to do it.

Speaking to Computerworld, Davis said that this change was bought about "because of pressures from the OEM community" and that "a large portion of their profits on PCs come from revenue associated with AV [antivirus software]".

According to Davis, Windows 8 will activate Windows Defender only if there is no other antivirus software on the computer. Even if Windows Defender detects that existing antivirus software hasn't been updated recently, it will only offer Windows Defender as one of several choices, and only after leaving users vulnerable for 15 days.

During those 15 days, the Windows Action Center will warn users that their antivirus package has expired and offer them information on how to renew their license.

Leaving users in a position where they're vulnerable for 15 days because of no new antivirus updates when there's a fully-featured antivirus package installed on the system seems highly negligent of Windows to me. Users have paid for a Windows license, and that Windows license buys them the right to use Windows Defender, and yet a deal struck between Microsoft and the OEMs means that consumers aren't able to benefit from the feature they've paid for.