IBM report reviews Internet crime

Wed Feb 13 22:28:31 UTC 2008

Andre Gironda wrote:

> It's our fault for not pushing AV on your customers, and it's the AV's
> fault for not providing audit data to us, and it's the software
> vendors' fault for causing us to have to recommend AV and for AV to
> exist.  The liability should land on the software vendors.

I'm really surprised that ISPs haven't banded together to sue Microsoft 
for negligently selling and distributing an insecure OS that is an 
Attractive Nuisance - causing the ISPs (who don't own the OS infected 
computers) harm from the network traffic the infected OSs send, and 
causing them untold support dollars to handle the problem.

If every big ISP joined a class action lawsuit to force Microsoft to pay 
up for the time ISPs spend fixing viruses on Windows computer, Microsoft 
would get a LOT more proactive about solving this problem directly.  The 
consumers have no redress against MS because of the EULA, but this 
doesn't extend to other computer owners (e.g. ISPs) who didn't agree to 
the EULA on the infected machine but who are impacted by the infection.

jc