Microsoft tries to quell TCP/IP 'danger'

To fully implement the TCP/IP protocol in Windows XP would make denial of service attacks a walk in the park, Microsoft said.

The company was responding to claims by a well-known security expert only known as "Fyodor" that by repeatedly disabling the ability to send TCP/IP packets via "raw sockets", Microsoft was asking the security community to "pick their poison": either cripple their operating system or leave it open to hackers. Raw sockets are a little-known feature of the TCP/IP protocol on which the Internet runs. Security professionals rely heavily on raw sockets as it allows them to bypass certain controls to create more customised TCP/IP packets and analyse Internet data.

News source: ZDNet