Microsoft

Microsoft has issued an update to Office 2011 for OS X, which closes a critical vulnerability that may allow remote code execution from an attacker.

With this vulnerability a maliciously crafted Word document or e-mail message in Outlook (with Word configured as the e-mail reader) could give an attacker the execution rights as the current user, allowing them to arbitrarily run code on the affected system.

While this update is a run-of-the-mill closure of identified vulnerabilities, be sure to keep your system fully updated. While there are undoubtedly other undocumented vulnerabilities in software, malware developers often use known and patched … Read more

LOS ANGELES -- At first I thought I had misunderstood him, so I made sure to reply slowly. "So you're saying Kinect is going to blast IR signals at your living room, and they're going to reflect off walls and stuff and bounce back to control all of your devices?"

"That's correct," Marc Whitten said.

"Whoa," I replied.

"Kinect has a really powerful management of that energy," he explained. "It's just light," he went on, "but it just exists in a different spectrum." I … Read more

Who won E3 so far? Was it the Xbox One? Or, was it the PS4 that kicked its butt? Did Sony dominate, totally smack down Microsoft, and run away with Best in Show?

All I know, from a distance, is this: boy, the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 look a lot alike.

The picture above is from a classic "Star Trek" episode featuring two different alien races that fought bitterly but were more alike than they dared to admit. Sound familiar?

The moment the PS4 was unveiled, in its boxy glory, you couldn't help but be reminded … Read more

LOS ANGELES -- Marc Whitten thinks the Xbox One provides an overall better value than the competition.

"I believe we're delivering an immense value," he explained to me at a meeting within Microsoft's booth at E3 2013. The Microsoft corporate vice president and chief product officer for Xbox believes that when you consider everything Xbox One is offering -- with its lineup of exclusive titles and ambitious live TV integration -- there's enough justification for spending the extra $100 come this holiday season.

The company's direct console gaming competitor, Sony, undercut Xbox One by $… Read more

Bummed out because the Xbox One requires an Internet connection? Microsoft has some advice for you: stick with an Xbox 360.

In an interview with Spike TV at the E3 show Tuesday, Xbox executive Don Mattrick responded to the complaints about the Xbox One's demand for an Internet connection. Mattrick described the $499 Xbox One, coming in November, as "a future-proof choice," saying that a console designed to be used online offers certain advantages, such as the ability to link games and entertainment.

And for those people without Internet access?

"Fortunately we have a product for … Read more

Microsoft's Bing carved out a 17.4 percent slice of the U.S. search engine market in May, according to the latest ComScore data provided by investment firm Macquarie Capital.

An investors note released today by Macquarie analyst Ben Schachter revealed that Bing's share in May rose only 0.10 percentage points from April. But that slow but steady rise showed an ongoing gain that's held relatively firm for the past three years.

Still, Google remains the search engine champ, well ahead of the other contestants. Its May market share showed an increase of 0.20 points … Read more

The U.S. Department of Justice confirmed Tuesday that it is considering requests from Google, Facebook, and Microsoft that would let them clear their names after allegations they opened their networks to government spies, although U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has not yet issued a decision on the matter.

In response to queries from CNET, the Justice Department said late this afternoon: "The department has received the letter from the chief legal officer at Google. We are in the process of reviewing their request."

David Drummond, Google's chief legal officer, sent an open letter to Holder … Read more

LOS ANGELES -- So, the Xbox One is really good at tracking asteroids -- and not of the video game variety.

The E3 video game conference afforded Microsoft a chance to offer a more detailed look at its next-generation console, with the company pulling back the curtain on some of the more interesting capabilities of the new system.

The early indication suggests the Xbox One will see a massive leap in power, actually see games that smartly use the Kinect's motion sensor, and work even better as an entertainment hub for the home.

To show off its computational powers, … Read more

We are finally reveling in an influx of details on the fresh rival gaming systems of Sony's PlayStation 4 and Microsoft's Xbox One. While the two consoles share a physical resemblance, they diverge in a lot of ways. One major difference involves the handling of used games.

Sony has said there will be no restriction on the PS4 used-game market, while Microsoft is placing restrictions on selling and sharing games.

Microsoft's new policies have given Sony an opening to promote the PS4 as a friendlier alternative to the Xbox One. That has resulted in a tongue-in-cheek video released on the official PlayStation YouTube channel, titled "Official PlayStation Used Game Instructional Video."… Read more