We're all just a virus with shoes.

Where the heck is the endpoint AV protection program on these machines....and also Gateway AV/Intrusion detection for the network.....weird and uncalled for.

...and for the couple of you that know about it (AU, Lisa, etc.) this is just a little more fodder for some interesting side notes in the VR.

"The laptops carried by astronauts reportedly do not have any anti-virus software on them to prevent infection."

You've got to be kidding. The article specifically states the laptops are used for email. That is the biggest source of malicious code. I am amazed NASA wouldn't even take the most basic of precautions.

Those machines could have just as easily been used for a targeted attack which could potentially capture credentials that may have granted access to other systems.

Evidently this wasn't the first time it's happened --

...Nasa told Wired News that viruses had infected laptops taken to the ISS on several occasions but the outbreaks always only been a "nuisance"...

You would think NASA's top geeks would have made sure it didn't keep happening. How could they allow use of computers with no anti-virus program and/or firewall protection?

Didn't they watch 'Independence Day'?

HAL, Is that you?

I am more concerned that we have large objects circling the earth that may be running Microsoft code.

Blue Space Station of Death, anyone?

NO, it's not the Microsoft code that is the problem here. Any code should be protected by AV at the Gateway in the network and then on each endpoint. Any code! But, it CERTAINLY SHOULDN'T RELY ON MICROSOFT SECURITY OPTIONS.

The cosmos at large
It's so very big
It's so far away
The comets...the craters...the vapors
The solar wind
The residual echoes...the residual echoes
The residual echoes from the giant explosion
Where they said it beginned

The germs from space!
The negative-virus knit-wear
The blobulent suit
That's right! THE BLOBULENT SUIT
It's made of rubbert, it's very ugly
It's got an air hose...
(The guy that has it all has a SPACE WRENCH!)

Zappa
The Radio is Broken

HAL: I'm afraid. I'm afraid, Dave. Dave, my mind is going. I can feel it. I can feel it. My mind is going. There is no question about it. I can feel it. I can feel it. I can feel it. I'm a... fraid. Good afternoon, gentlemen. I am a HAL 9000 computer. I became operational at the H.A.L. plant in Urbana, Illinois on the 12th of January 1992. My instructor was Mr. Langley, and he taught me to sing a song. If you'd like to hear it I can sing it for you.

Dave Bowman: Yes, I'd like to hear it, HAL. Sing it for me.
HAL: It's called "Daisy."

[sings while slowing down]
HAL: Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer do. I'm half crazy all for the love of you. It won't be a stylish marriage, I can't afford a carriage. But you'll look sweet upon the seat of a bicycle built for two.

Man, someone must be thumping their chest in the virus development-IT-Nerd community.

HAL: "Dave, I have a mainframe cousin in Nigeria who holds all the bank codes for the Nigerian Treasury. Give me your bank account info and I'll have him transfer the money to you."

"Man, someone must be thumping their chest in the virus development-IT-Nerd community."

This story had me thinking "What if some infected system malfunctions and astronauts die because of it....will the virus writers feel bad?"

But when you think of it, hospitals, emergency services, etc. probably get infected and that doesn't stop people from writing and distributing viruses. And I'm sure anyone who can write a virus is aware that computers are involved in life and death processes every day. So we have to assume these dirtbags just don't care. To them, spamming people with porn pop up adds at the cost of billions of dollars to others - and possibly lost lives - is a legitimate way to make a living.

Sully,

You give these scum too much credit in presuming that the writing of virus's is financially-motivating. For some, the 'I can do it' thrill is more than sufficient.

Jeff - The ones I've had the misfortune of coming across recently were designed with money in mind. One was very elaborate and involved fake Windows messages (it was trying to into buying some software from the virus makers in order to get rid of the virus). But I'm sure there are losers who write viruses for "fun".

What annoys me most all is that even the solution to computer viruses, anti-virus software, is a pain the butt: Increasing boot up time, using up systems resources and always seeming to know the exact wrong time to run a scan or too look for updates, constantly telling the user to reboot, requiring yearly subscriptions, not working against all malicious software which necessitates you also buy a spyware program, etc etc etc.

FF to the Northguy and Silver IRonist!!!!!

Linux based machines are better. Nasa should quit relying on Microsoft.

We used to have saying where I work. Our computers only had to be more secure than NASA's. We just had to get the hackers to go there and they will leave us alone.

It worked for a long time.