Microsoft Vista for IT Security Professionals

Foreword

In 2001, the IT community was celebrating the long-awaited release of Microsoft’s Windows XP. The release of Windows XP was a major milestone for Microsoft because it was the first time that the company had created an NT kernel-based operating system intended for both businesses and consumers. Windows XP was designed to render DOS-based operating systems such as Windows 9x and Windows ME obsolete forever. Sadly, the celebration was short-lived, though, as it became apparent that Windows XP and Internet Explorer were both plagued with security problems.

At first these security problems were mostly a concern for businesses. It wasn’t long, however, before consumers began to feel the consequences of these security holes as well. Nuisances ...