With Windows 10, Microsoft is also working on a new ‘Blue Screen of Death’ messages incorporating QR codes for easier redressal of issues.
Microsoft’s dreaded ‘Blue Screen of Death’ for Windows 10 is being provided a nice makeover in that a QR Code will now be containing all the information that led to the crash along with possible remedies to turn things around.
Users will be able to scan the QR codes using smartphones or other compatible devices to better understand what led to the crash. The codes will also be hiding a URL, which is supposed to lead to the site that can help sort out the issues.
That for sure makes for a much-simplified approach compared to the BSOD’s of yore which usually contained a lot of technical details much of which were indiscernible to the general populace. While that was replaced with the frowny face for the first time in Windows 8, the QR codes are expected to make things even more user-friendly.
However, the new BSOD incorporating QR code are part of the latest Windows 10 Insider Preview builds and is only expected to be incorporated in the Windows 10 Anniversary update that is due out later this summer.
However, the said makeover for BSOD could also open up new security vulnerabilities if it isn’t properly implemented. A possible security risk being envisioned is that malware could easily fake a system crash and launch the BSOD complete with a QR code.
The code, in turn, could be enough to mislead a user into believing all the wrong stuff to lure them into downloading the wrong patch, possibly containing malware. Let’s hope such a security scenario does not go undetected with the Microsoft engineers.
Meanwhile, such a change for the BSOD containing QR codes comes as a complete surprise with no mention of the stuff in the Windows 10 Preview Build 14316 release notes. Not that users are likely to be too keen to face the BSOD in the first place though such a change is indeed welcome.
Source: inferse.com
