SQL Slammer -- Microsoft caught in pants-down situation

Microsoft failed to follow its own advice and some of its internal servers were infected by the SQL Slammer worm, reports The New York Times [free registration required]. The attacks could easily have been prevented if IT departments kept up to date with security patches, so it's more than a little funny that keeping up to date with Microsoft patches is beyond even Microsoft. Microsoft spokesman Rick Miller carried the can in public: "We, like the rest of the industry, struggle to get 100% compliance with our patch management," he said. "We recognize — now more than ever — that this is something we need to work on."