Windows 8 'harder for malware to exploit', says security analysis

[bogdan]

Microsoft’s upcoming operating system is a step forward in security, at least according to a security researcher who is among the first to take a detailed look at early releases of Windows 8.

Chris Valasek, a senior security research scientist at development testing firm Coverity, began examining the security features of Windows 8 last autumn, before the consumer previews of the upcoming revamp of the new Microsoft OS came out.

Source: The Register. Read the source article to find out what new security features Windows 8 brings.

It seems that every new Windows version adds security features, of course these security features are added on top of an old (vulnerable) OS. While they indeed improve security they aren't bullet proof. Anyway, only time can tell if a new windows version is better than the previous one when it comes to security, the new operating system is not yet "tested" be malware authors in a real-world scenario.

 

[MrXidus]

Sill won't make up for the users who lack common sense and manage to get themselves infected then complain.

Good to hear none the less.

 

[malbky]

LOL, hackers will find a bypass method.

 

[Overkill]

I notice most of you win 8 users hardly have any protection (other than maybe EMET or windows defender), since it's not bulletproof why not install an av like you would on win 7? I know it's new but there's still that chance!

 

[Dejan]

It's not even fully released yet.
Malware developers will find a way pretty quickly.

 

[Syntax]

Yes, it can be harder to exploit but still hackers have their chances.

 

[bogdan]

Another blog post about Windows 8 anti-malware built-in features:

According to some recent reports, Windows 8 will have more security features built in, which will make the system less vulnerable. For instance, one difference between Windows 7 and 8 is including more exploit-mitigation technologies. In that regard, two programs, the Windows Heap Manager and Windows Kernel Pool Allocator will make it far harder for attackers to exploit buffer-overflow vulnerabilities.

Source: everything-microsoft.com

The new Windows Defender that comes with the Windows 8 system is a full-blown anti-malware program (looks like Microsoft Security Essentials). I'm wandering if other anti-malware companies will agree with this.