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WIDTH=468 HEIGHT=60></a></noscript></td></tr></table></= td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" align="justify"><hr /> <div><div class== "storyhead">Windows Update keeps tabs on all system software</div> <div c= lass="storybyline">By <a href="mailto:john.leyden@theregister.co.uk">= John Leyden</a></div> <div class="indexposted">Posted: 28/02/2003 at 10= :49 GMT</div> <br /> <div class="storybody">Evidence obtained by German= hardware site <a href="http://www.tecchannel.de/betriebssysteme/1126/i= ndex.html" target="new">tecChannel</a> suggests a list of software inst= alled on an XP machine is sent to Microsoft when users run Windows Update= . <br> <br>When patches are downloaded, a few kilobytes of data are sent in the = opposite direction over a secure SSL channel. <br> <br>Because the data is encrypted a simple packet sniffer can't be used t= o see what this data contains. <br> <br>However tecChannel's tecDUMP utility takes advantage of an undocument= ed WinInet API, enabling an examination of the data <i>before</i> it beco= mes encrypted. <br> <br>According to tecChannel, the information sent to Microsoft includes d= etails of all the software installed in a machine, not only Microsoft app= lications. <br> <br>The latest version of Windows Update Privacy Statement (which dates f= rom last October) states: "Windows Update must collect a certain amount o= f configuration information from your computer". <br> <br>This configuration information includes OS version number, IE version= number and "version numbers of other software for which Windows Update p= rovides updates" along with plug and play ID numbers and regional setting= s. <br> <br>But there's no mention of collecting data on software from other vend= ors running on a machine. And this software can't be updated using Window= s Update. So why is Microsoft collecting this data? <br> <br>One for the conspiracy theorists ... ®</div> <br /></div> <div><= IMG SRC='/images/reg_bullet.gif' BORDER='0'> <font face="arial,helv= etica" size="-1" color="#DD0000"><a href="http://ad.doubleclick.net= /clk;5360326;3579356;o?http://ad.uk.doubleclick.net/clk;5338417;7949914;z= ?http://www.kelkoo.co.uk/b2b/shopbot/search.jsp?from=shopbot&partne= r=hp2&catPath=uk%2Fhp%2Fhandhelds&catId=100268023&formT= ype=advanced&categorylvl1=mobile+products&categorylvl2=hand= helds+and+palmtops&categorylvl3=hp+iPAQ+pocket+pcs&name=&= av=y">hp iPAQ Pocket PC H5450 — Great prices</a></font> <br> <IMG= SRC='/images/reg_bullet.gif' BORDER='0'> <font face="arial, helvet= ica" size="-1"><a href="http://www.cashncarrion.co.uk/">Cash'n'Carrio= n Reg Shop</a></font>   <IMG SRC='/images/reg_bullet.gif' BORDER== '0'> <font face="arial,helvetica" size="-1"><a href="http://www.the= register.co.uk/go/vcisp">Register Broadband from only £25.99</a></fo= nt></div></td></tr></table></td> <td valign="top" width="150" align== "right"><table cellpadding="2" width="134" cellspacing="0" border== "0"><tr><td class="advert" align="left"><table cellpadding="0" cell= spacing="0" border="0"><tr><td valign="top"><SCRIPT language="Jav= aScript"> var time = new Date(); randnum= (time.getTime()); if (navig= ator.appName.indexOf('Netscape')!=-1) { document.write ('<A HREF="htt= p://ad.uk.doubleclick.net/jump/theregister.co.uk/softhome;area=softhome= ;pos=2;sz=160x600;tile=1;abr=!ie4;abr=!ie5;ord=100004?">'); d= ocument.write ('<IMG SRC="http://ad.uk.doubleclick.net/ad/theregister.c= o.uk/softhome;area=softhome;pos=2;sz=160x600;tile=1;abr=!ie4;ab= r=!ie5;ord=100004?" BORDER="0" WIDTH=160 HEIGHT=600></a>'); } e= lse { document.write('<SCRI' +'PT language="JavaScript" SRC="http://a= d.uk.doubleclick.net/adj/theregister.co.uk/softhome;area=softhome;pos== 2;sz=160x600;tile=1;ord=100004?"></SC' + 'RIPT>'); } </script><nosc= ript><A HREF="http://ad.uk.doubleclick.net/jump/theregister.co.uk/softh= ome;area=softhome;pos=2;sz=160x600;tile=1;abr=!ie4;abr=!ie5;o= rd=100004?"><IMG SRC="http://ad.uk.doubleclick.net/ad/theregister.co.= uk/softhome;area=softhome;pos!=2;sz=160x600;tile=1;abr=!ie4;abr= =!ie5;ord=100004?" WIDTH=160 HEIGHT=600></a></noscript></td></tr>= </table></td></tr></table></td></tr></table><table cellpadding="0" widt= h="100%" cellspacing="0"><tr><td /></tr></table><LAYER SRC="http://= ad.uk.doubleclick.net/adl/theregister.co.uk/softhome;area=softhome;pos== 1;sz=468x60;tile=1;ord=513829?" visibility=hidden id=a1 width== 468 onload="moveToAbsolute(ad1.pageX,ad1.pageY);a1.clip.height=60;a1.= clip.width=468;visibility='show';"></LAYER></body></html>