Protecting Your Business from Windows Security Bugs
The biggest fear of any business owner is accidentally handing over sensitive data or access to hackers. Unfortunately, a longstanding Windows bug proves that vulnerabilities can lead to such risks, threatening your business’s reputation, employees, and customers.
What Are SmartScreen and SAC?
If you rely on Windows, you're likely familiar with Microsoft’s SmartScreen, a security feature in Windows 10 that checks the reputation of downloaded apps and websites. Similarly, Smart App Control (SAC), introduced with Windows 11, checks for app signatures before running them. Both tools flag suspicious items with a Mark of the Web (MoTW) to warn you about potential dangers.
Despite updates and patches, SmartScreen and SAC still have vulnerabilities that hackers are exploiting.
How Hackers Bypass These Security Features
Researchers at Elastic Security Labs discovered that hackers have been exploiting a Windows bug since 2018. They bypass SmartScreen and SAC by using one of two methods:
- Code-signing certificate manipulation: Hackers use certificates to validate malware, raising its reputation and allowing it to bypass security checks.
- Non-standard target paths: Attackers use LNK files (shortcuts) with non-standard target paths that trick Windows Explorer into bypassing the MoTW label, marking the file as safe.
Other methods include:
- Reputation hijacking: Hackers repurpose legitimate apps that have positive reputations to deliver malware.
- Reputation seeding: Attackers inject vulnerable or malicious code into your system that they can activate later.
- Reputation tampering: Hackers alter legitimate binaries without causing the file to lose its positive reputation.
What You Should Do to Stay Safe
To protect your business from these attacks, follow these best practices:
- Enable automatic updates: Microsoft regularly releases patches that fix security vulnerabilities, including those affecting SmartScreen and SAC.
- Monitor security patches: If you prefer manual updates, stay vigilant for new patches to lower the risk of malware exploiting these bugs.
- Inspect downloads thoroughly: Have your in-house security or IT team inspect all downloads to ensure they don't rely solely on built-in security features like SmartScreen and SAC, which can be bypassed.
Staying informed and alert is essential for protecting your business and customers, even with the rising threats posed by Windows bugs.
Conclusion
As hackers continue to find ways to exploit vulnerabilities in Windows security features like SmartScreen and SAC, business owners must stay proactive to protect their sensitive data. By enabling automatic updates and having a robust security strategy, you can keep your business secure from these threats.
For more information on how to safeguard your business, click here to schedule a discovery call with Lazer IT Consultants. Learn more about how our network security services can help protect your organization from cyber threats.
