+44 (0)203 88 020 88

Menu

Search

Cyber Security News & Articles

 

Cyber Security
News & Articles

Trusted Cyber Security Experts
25+ Years Industry Experience
Ethical, Professional & Pragmatic

Critical Windows Fax Server Vulnerability Patched – and Why You Should Care

In the February 2021 Patch Tuesday security update Microsoft fixed 56 flaws, one zero-day vulnerability and two remote code execution vulnerabilities in the Windows Fax Service.  That’s right, someone can send you a fax and take over your Windows system.

While you might be tempted to think: ‘who sends faxes these days?’ that is the wrong question.  Instead, Network Managers should ask themselves: What systems used to send and receive faxes a few years ago and could still have this feature enabled?

The removal of software or features that are no longer needed is a way to improve the security of a system by reducing its attack surface.  All software contains bugs and security vulnerabilities – including some that have not been discovered yet.  You harden the system’s security by removing software that is no longer needed thus removing the vulnerabilities associated with that software.

Vulnerability management not only involves the prompt installation of security patches, but also the removal of unsupported or no longer needed software in order to reduce the attack surface of each device on the network.

Check and Disable Windows Fax Service

Check if the Fax service is enabled on your system:

  1. Press Windows key + R on to open the Run dialog on Windows 10.
  2. Type services.msc  to open the Services window.
  3. Locate the Fax service.
    • If the Fax service is not listed the system is not vulnerable.
    • If the Fax service is listed but the status is not Running, then the system is not currently vulnerable, but could be targeted if the service was started.

Microsoft provides details of how to remove the Fax service on their security advisory.

 

 

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter today

If you’d like to stay up-to-date with the latest cyber security news and articles from our technical team, you can sign up to our monthly newsletter. 

We hate spam as much as you do, so we promise not to bombard you with emails. We’ll send you a single, curated email each month that contains all of our cyber security news and articles for that month.

Why Choose SecureTeam?

Customer Testimonials

“We were very impressed with the service, I will say, the vulnerability found was one our previous organisation had not picked up, which does make you wonder if anything else was missed.”

Aim Ltd Chief Technology Officer (CTO)

"Within a very tight timescale, SecureTeam managed to deliver a highly professional service efficiently. The team helped the process with regular updates and escalation where necessary. Would highly recommend"

IoT Solutions Group Limited Chief Technology Officer (CTO) & Founder

“First class service as ever. We learn something new each year! Thank you to all your team.”

Royal Haskoning DHV Service Delivery Manager

“We’ve worked with SecureTeam for a few years to conduct our testing. The team make it easy to deal with them; they are attentive and explain detailed reports in a jargon-free way that allows the less technical people to understand. I wouldn’t work with anyone else for our cyber security.”

Capital Asset Management Head of Operations

“SecureTeam provided Derbyshire's Education Data Hub with an approachable and professional service to ensure our schools were able to successfully certify for Cyber Essentials. The team provided a smooth end-to-end service and were always on hand to offer advice when necessary.”

Derbyshire County Council Team Manager Education Data Hub

“A very efficient, professional, and friendly delivery of our testing and the results. You delivered exactly what we asked for in the timeframe we needed it, while maintaining quality and integrity. A great job, done well.”

AMX Solutions IT Project Officer

“We were very pleased with the work and report provided. It was easy to translate the provided details into some actionable tasks on our end so that was great. We always appreciate the ongoing support.”

Innovez Ltd Support Officer

Get in touch today

If you’d like to see how SecureTeam can take your cybersecurity posture to the next level, we’d love to hear from you, learn about your requirements and then send you a free quotation for our services.

Our customers love our fast-turnaround, “no-nonsense” quotations – not to mention that we hate high-pressure sales tactics as much as you do.

We know that every organisation is unique, so our detailed scoping process ensures that we provide you with an accurate quotation for our services, which we trust you’ll find highly competitive.

Get in touch with us today and a member of our team will be in touch to provide you with a quotation. 

0

No products in the basket.

No products in the basket.