RE: Re: Hypothetical design question

["Alun Jones" <alun () texis com>]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] 
> [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of der Mouse
> Sent: Thursday, January 29, 2004 5:57 PM
>
> I've long thought that a large part of the reason Windows is so
> virus-vulnerable is that the user interface uses the same gesture
> (double-clicking, or even right-click and choose "open") to run an
> executable file and "open" a "document".

As well it may, since there is little to distinguish between the two.

"Data" files carry executable code - macros, components, etc.  Executables
embed data - self extracting zip files, movie viewers, even (IIRC) some DRM
stuff.

And that's before you even get started on the way that a buffer overflow bug
turns what used to be data into a vector for carrying unwanted executable
code.

Alun.
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