[attrition] Errata - Auto Fail: Automatic Update Mechanism Failure

[security curmudgeon]

[We're sure there are a lot more incidents. If any come to mind, please
  submit them to errata[at]attrition.org.]


http://attrition.org/errata/autofail.html

Auto Fail: Automatic Update Mechanism Failure

New update available! Click here to download now!

>From virus signature updates that identify competing products as a trojan, 
to operating system updates that break core functionality, there has been 
no shortage of quality control failures in updates released by vendors. 
Many of these updates are delivered to the user's computer via automatic 
update mechanisms. That means these problematic updates are delivered to 
millions of computers quietly and efficiently, typically without user 
interaction.

It's always welcome to see security bugs fixed or better rules released in 
the products we use. But when the price of that fix is at best an 
annoyance and at worst a complete system failure, we're not so sure it's 
worth it. At the very least, users should be aware of the various types of 
failures and the frequency with which they occur.

While mistakes happen to everyone, we'll leave it as an exercise to the 
reader to notice any trends from repeat offenders.

[..]