Back in August, Microsoft issued an update for Windows 7 64-bit that many, many people all over the world had problems installing on their computers.

Windows Update KB2712808 was defined as a security patch for Windows 7 for x64-based Systems. Typically, Windows Automatic Updates will automatically check for, download, and install updates, usually at a set time each day (some people may schedule Windows updates for once a week).

However, KB2712808 quite often fails to install automatically using Windows Automatic Updates. And if KB2712808 does not install, no other Windows updates can install.

Failure to install KB2712808 results in a serious security risk

Because regular Windows updates are needed to patch your computer against always-evolving threats that appear daily, a failure to install KB2712808 will result in a serious security risk for your computer.

Manually installing KB2712808 often does not work

Generally speaking, if Automatic Updates don’t work, Microsoft recommends manually installing the update. You can do this by searching for it on the Internet, such as searching for the terms Windows Update KB2712808 manual download.

The first result is the update itself, Security Update for Windows 7 (KB2712808), hosted on the Microsoft site.

Genuinecheck.exe is no longer supported

However, manually downloading the KB2712808 update often does not work. Why? “Windows validation” is required when you try to download the KB2712808 update, and the actual download link for the windows activation tool (genuinecheck.exe) often provides this notice:

“Genuinecheck.exe is no longer supported. please download the newest version and ensure that your system clock is accurate”.

The simple solution: use the latest version of Internet Explorer

Although Microsoft doesn’t mention it, the reason why the Genuinecheck (the program that validates your version of Windows) often won’t work, is because it needs something called “ActiveX” to function. ActiveX was developed by Microsoft in the 1990’s to make it easier to run programs from webpages.

However, ActiveX has been shown to very easily transmit malware and viruses, so it has been effectively discarded as a web development tool. Other popular web browsers such as Firefox and Google Chrome do not rely on Active X.

However, Microsoft still relies on ActiveX on its company webpages, including the download page for KB2712808.

Chrome and Firefox cannot download Windows Updates

If you are using a web browser such as Firefox or Chrome to download and manually install Windows Updates, it won’t work. As Chrome and Firefox can’t handle ActiveX, the best thing to do is to use the most current (and safe) version of Internet Explorer. Internet Explorer can be downloaded here. After that, download Security Update for Windows 7 (KB2712808), hosted on the Microsoft site, follow the prompts, and restart your computer.

Once you have successfully installed the KB2712808 update, you can use Windows Automatic Update again to automatically install everything else. Be warned, installing the backlog of Windows updates will take about 20 minutes.

Web browsers including Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari and Google Chrome have all been hit by a Java software flaw used to spread malware, and security experts have gone as far as warning people to disable Java software on their computer.

This flaw or vulnerability in Java allows an attacker to bypass Java security completely, making it possible to install malware or execute malicious code on your computer.

Malware, short for “malicious software”, is software used or created to disrupt computer operation, gather sensitive information, or gain access to private computers.

Java itself is used to create “applets” or programs that are embedded in other applications, typically in a web page displayed in a web browser,  in order to provide interactive features to web applications that cannot be provided by HTML alone. Some video games and flash movies are examples of applets.

It’s estimated that Java is installed on more than 3 billion computers around the world, but only about a third of users get updates and patches for the software that close security holes.

As well, sometimes Java security flaws remain “unpatched”.  Oracle, which provides software patches for Java  has only patched two of the 31 flaws reported so far this year. It’s hard to say when this latest patch will occur.

Java was designed to be one of the safest computer programming environment when it is created, but ironically nothing is really safe when it comes to web security.

How to stay safe

So what’s the solution?

Use anti-virus on your computer

Make sure you have an anti-virus program installed on your computer. Anti-virus programs examine all of the “traffic” arriving on your computer from the Internet, and also monitor when programs attempt to connect to the internet. AVG offers a popular free anti-virus program, while Kaspersky’s “premium” product is also installed on many computers around the world.

Keep your information safe

It’s not always easy to keep your computer completely safe from viruses and malware, and infections may happen. Because of this ever-present risk, it’s a good idea to make sure that there are no passwords, credit card numbers, or even cookies available for an intruder to somehow exploit. You need to safeguard your information.

The best way to safeguard your information is remove it entirely from your computer, period.

PC Clean Maestro provides an easy way to remove passwords and credit card payment information so it will never fall into the hands of the wrong people. As an added bonuses, preseve your privacy by completely removing your browsing history too. It will help you preserve your peace of mind.