There is the end user, Microsoft and the hackers that are all being touted as the culprits in this war of code on the Internet. An argument could be made for any one of these groups and all should be held responsible to some degree. Let’s take a look at each of the groups and you can make up your own mind.

Microsoft and the other software vendor should be expected to put out a product that is secure and able to withstand the blows that the hackers throw at them. The problem with this thought is that it is going to be virtually impossible to produce a software product that is totally free from vulnerabilities. If they could, they would, but we would never have any new products because it would take so long for them to develop and write the code.

Even though the product on the market is not as secure as it can be from the beginning, I think that Microsoft and most of the other vendors are doing the most that can be expected of them. The Windows Update site   has gotten to the point that it is easy enough for end users to navigate without to much fear.  There are some improvements that could be made and it seems that they are coming online at an admirable pace. It has been a long while since there has been a problem with one of the updates crashing computers instead of helping the situation. You can get to the site free of charge and the activeX component will analyze your software to determine what updates you need. The updates are listed in three separate categories with the Critical Updates and Service Packs being the ones that need to be installed.

The next group that is being blamed is the end users. They play a big part in keeping the viruses out of their own systems by the amount of time that they spend updating their software. With the Windows Update site and the notification programs that are available for download, there is no reason to allow your system to be without one of the security updates that will stop the breaches of your computer programs. There is a program that is available for download from the Windows Update site under the heading of Critical Updates and Service Packs called the Windows Critical Update Notification.

This is one item that should be running on startup on every Windows 98 machine out there. It will connect to the Microsoft Windows Update site whenever you are connected to the Internet and check for Critical Updates. If one is available you will get a notification on your screen telling you about the update. You click on the button and the Windows Update site appears. All you need to do is agree to the License Agreement and the download and installation will proceed. Windows XP users have this installed as a default with the only difference being that the notification comes in the form of an icon in the taskbar and the update is downloaded before you are notified. You click on the icon and you can start the install right away without going to the update site.

The last group is the hackers and they are the ones that should be held accountable for their misdeeds. The hackers are the ones that are writing the viruses and they are the ones that should be hung from their toenails at first light. They are the kids with too much time on their hands that spend weeks on end writing code that will infiltrate our systems through a vulnerability that has been revealed in a chat room or on the Microsoft Windows update site. Most of the active exploits that are out on the net do not come to full strength until many months after the patch has been released.

There is no way that all the blame can be laid on the end users and Microsoft. We all know that the hackers are the true criminals and the end users and Microsoft are innocent victims. The problem is that you can’t leave the keys in the ignition and then get mad when your car gets stolen. Microsoft is doing what it can to combat the situation and you as the end user need to do your part to use the tools that they are giving us to help to alleviate this problem. People who allow their systems to get infected with viruses because of the lack of virus protection or not installing updates as needed need to have their license for the Internet Superhighway suspended until they can bring their software back up to an acceptable level that does not endanger the rest of us.