SanDisk introduced the TrustWatch integrated suite of applications that transform off-the-shelf USB flash drives from a security threat to a competitive advantage in the enterprise. TrustWatch is built around a secure network appliance and a management console, through which IT administrators can easily configure and deploy secured USB flash drives, while preventing information from being copied to unapproved devices. The TrustWatch solution allows the IT department to select from SanDisk’s line of standard flash drives for issue to employees.

Microsoft said Friday that it is working to resolve a glitch that prevented some customers from taking advantage of the company’s Vista family pack option. The company is offering Vista Ultimate buyers in the U.S. and Canada the option of purchasing up to two additional licenses of Vista Home Premium for $50 apiece. However, some early takers on the offer got product license keys that did not work.

Microsoft is warning of an Excel-focused zero-day attack that affects several versions of its Office software, including one for Macs. In its security advisory issued Friday, Microsoft warns people of a "very limited" zero-day attack that takes advantage of vulnerabilities in the Excel spreadsheet program. The "extremely critical" Excel vulnerabilities are found in Microsoft Office 2000, Office 2003 and Office XP, as well as in Office 2004 for computers running Apple’s Mac OS, according to a separate advisory from security company Secunia.

Microsoft has quietly flipped the switch on a new feature in Internet Explorer 7 meant to combat phishing scams. The software giant in early January made a change on its computer systems that allowed Web sites fitted with a new type of security certificate to display a green-filled address bar in IE 7, Markellos Diorinos, a product manager for Windows at Microsoft, said in an interview.

Learn.com announced that Mentor on-demand help desk technology is now available for Microsoft’s newest products, Windows Vista and Office 2007.

Americans lost about $49.3 billion in 2006 to criminals who stole their identities, an 11.5 percent decline that may reflect increased vigilance among consumers and businesses, a study released on Thursday shows. Losses declined from a revised $55.7 billion in 2005, according to the third annual study by Javelin Strategy & Research. They had increased in each of the prior two years.

Early adopters of Windows Vista are getting three months of free Wi-Fi access from hot-spot operator The Cloud. Those who have installed the newly released Microsoft operating system in the United States are currently able to take advantage of a similar hot-spot deal with T-Mobile. It is valid through April 30 when users sign up for a complimentary trial account, according to T-Mobile.

Windows users upgrading to Vista were shocked to discover that music purchased from the iTunes store wouldn’t play after upgrading to Redmond’s latest OS. In response to the problem Apple yesterday released The iTunes Repair Tool for Vista 1.0–which allows music purchased from the iTunes store to play in Vista. The patch "will repair permissions for important files required by iTunes to play your iTunes Store purchases."

In spite of ongoing criticism for not being committed enough to open standards and specifications, Microsoft and its partners have finished work on the Open XML Translator. The open-source Translator, which is an add-on to Microsoft Word, will be available for download and use starting Feb. 2 at no cost.

The official Web site of Dolphin Stadium, home of Sunday’s Super Bowl XLI, has been hacked and seeded with exploit code targeting two known Windows security flaws. In the attack, which was discovered by malware hunters at Websense Security Labs, the server hosting the site was breached and a link to a malicious JavaScript file was inserted into the header of the front page of the site. Visitors to the site execute the script, which attempts to exploit the vulnerabilities.