"Security concerns show up," said Gates, describing the epidemic of viruses and worms as a limiting factor in connecting PCs, home entertainment systems and digitally connected handheld devices. "As we look at security broadly, we need to solve lots of problems," including potential network and Windows compromises that invite "a flood of network attacks," Gates said. He noted that update services will help protect consumers and businesses faster and better. "We feel very optimistic it'll be in place."
Still, neither he nor Microsoft chief platforms architect Jim Allchin would say when the Windows XP Service Pack 2 will be released. The company confirmed recently that the release will be delayed until the second half of the year.
"SP2 will have new browsing experience that's safer, intrusion protection and data execution protection technologies," Allchin said about new technologies being integrated into AMD and Intel processors. "If someone tries to execute in the heap, it'll be prevented."
Allchin did confirm on Tuesday that the security-focused Windows server 2003 Service Pack 1 remains slated for release the second half of 2004, and that another Windows Server 2003 Update will be released in 2005 before Longhorn.
On the same day that Linux leader Red Hat officially launched its first major corporate desktop into the market, Gates and Allchin focused the bulk of their time on the entire wave of next-generation Windows products.
To realize the benefits of cloud-native software, an application must actually be cloud-native—designed to run in the cloud, interacting with disaggregated cloud services, fully manageable as code—to deliver the expected benefits.
By combining resources and expertise, the AI-Enabled ICT Workforce Consortium will offer a blueprint for how industries can adapt to an AI-dominated future.
IT leaders should heed the guidance of cybersecurity insurance providers who think businesses should prioritize security education, incident preparedness, regular internal audits, and ongoing vulnerability scanning and patching.
