Moonchild wrote:wouldn't you agree that ransomware is a lot nastier than a Windows update which is aggravating but otherwise not destructive in any way?
Also, my intention of this topic was to warn the community, not to be the "first" or to talk about general practices -- even if I'd waited a few days there's likely a good chance I would NOT have seen the issues involved in this update before it got installed on the build machine, unless someone else would have posted on the forum here similar to what I did (since I tend not to follow the various tech blogs with verve).
If it's not appreciated, then I'll refrain from doing so in the future.
I'll give you my answer, but you won't like it.
If a person who stores valuable info on their computer and never backs it up, gets ransomware on their computer, then yes, it is a nasty situation. Nasty in the sense, if they pay and don't get their code to release the computer, their valuable data is lost to the ransomware people. That is called a "double whammy" where I come from.
Then the computer will be brought to a repair shop (like the one I volunteer at) and the computer's hard drive is reformatted, Windows 7 SP1 is re-installed, activated, loaded with the correct drivers. Then the customer can take his computer home and then install all the updates for Windows 7 which means they have to wait so the computer can for "check for the updates" which can take a long time. Then spend more time waiting for the computer to "download the updates". Then spend more time waiting for the computer to "install the updates". Then spend some more time waiting while the computer reboots a few times until, if nothing goes wrong, the computer boots to the Desktop. Or the shop will go and install all the updates which results in a higher price.
Now, lets take a very bad Windows Update. Lets say after installing the Windows Updates, the computer won't boot. Lets also say the valuable info on the hard drive can't be retrieved. The result, lost data and Windows 7 SP1 has to be re-installed just like when the computer got hit with ransomware.
You don't read tech blogs. But I do and I read them everyday for Linux and Windows 7. Since you didn't read any of the tech blogs for these updates which were affecting Windows 7 (and I think Windows 10), I have a feeling you'll start reading a few tech blogs from now on when Microsoft starts sending out Windows Updates. As they say, "Pain is an excellent teacher". But since you're a power user, you might not have had much pain. Since you could fix the problem with your computer relatively quickly, it was more like an irritation for you. At least I'm guessing it was an irritation.
Now, if you give a heads up about bad Microsoft updates or you don't give a heads up, that is totally your decision. When it comes to bad Microsoft's Windows updates, if you don't give a warning, it will affect some of your users on here, but not me. I read those tech blogs daily, especially when it comes to Microsoft's Windows Updates because I take care of my sister-in-laws computer since she runs Windows 7 everyday. She'll install Windows Updates, but not when they are released or if she finds them on her computer since I have "check for updates but let me decide to download and install them". She calls me and since I already know about some "suspect" KB updates from Microsoft before hand from reading the tech blogs like gHacks, I do her Windows Updates via Teamviewer since she lives 221 miles from me.
Yesterday I took control of her computer and when I saw "suspect child" KB4480970 in her updates, I unchecked the box to the left of the update, then right clicked on the update to highlight it which also brings up a context menu and left clicked on the word, "Hide" in the context menu to keep this update from installing on her computer. She didn't have KB4480960 in her updates, but if she had, I would have hid that update too. If I recall, I only installed 3 KB updates on her computer. All of the "Optional" updates which were not checked, I hid all of them also.
I've been taking care of her computer for the last 4 years (now heading for 5 years) and she has never had a problem with her Windows Updates mainly because, as they say, "I do my homework".
Linux Mint 21.3 (Virginia) Xfce w/ Linux Pale Moon, Linux Waterfox, Linux SeaLion, Linux Firefox
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Linux Debian 12.5 (Bookworm) Xfce w/ Linux Pale Moon, Linux Waterfox, Linux SeaLion, Linux Firefox