Images: WGA lurks in Windows Update

A user who chooses to exercise control over the process sees a list of updates that have been downloaded to the PC. Each update has a name, and highlighting that name calls up a short summary of the purpose of the update and a link to further information. In this round of updates, Berlind was not able to spot whether any also included the Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) software. It didn't seem to be included at first, but a later round of checks revealed that it was indeed there.

The WGA program is a precursor to the antipiracy features Microsoft is building into Windows Vista, expected in January 2007. In Vista, certain operating system features will only work as long as it is a properly licensed copy.

David Berlind/ZDNet

Going through the download-and-install process a second time, Berlind found that the update included the WGA component after all. In this screen, the Windows Genuine Advantage Validation Tool appeared to have been downloaded, initialized and installed without ever asking for user consent.

David Berlind/ZDNet

Following the steps laid out by Microsoft eventually yielded word that yet another update was waiting--a "high-priority update" called "Windows Genuine Advantage Notification." The summary text: "The Windows Genuine Advantage Notification tool notifies you if your copy of Windows is not genuine. If your system is found to be non-genuine, the tool will help you obtain a licensed copy of Windows."

A few more steps lie ahead for those who want a full accounting, prompting Berlind to wonder: How many users will follow this circuitous route to figure out what this is about?

David Berlind/ZDNet

Microsoft notes that the WGA tool is "prerelease software" in the End User License Agreement (EULA), which is displayed when WGA Notifications is about to be installed. People can decline the download at that point. Berlind says that most people click on the license "accept" button without paying any attention to it.

David Berlind/ZDNet

This is all the user sees once the updates are done. Berlind suggests that this would be a good place for Microsoft to offer more details and functionality--for instance, listing the updates in some clickable fashion so users can get more information about what they've just done to their computers and perhaps a way to undo specific updates.

David Berlind/ZDNet