Windows Media Player silently installs into /Applications as non-admin
WTF?!?!?
I wanted to view a video online using RealPlayer, but I couldn't get the plugin working correctly. Despite my wariness with Microsoft, I thought I'd give WMP 9 for OS X a try.
My user account has no admin privileges. When I install into /Applications, I get prompted for my admin user and password every time.
So how the hell was I able to install WMP by running the installer file without getting prompted for my admin username/password ?!?!?!?
That's right. The WMP installer created files in /Applications without prompting me.
Needless to say, I find this extremely disturbing. If there's some kind of security hole in OS X that allows somebody to circumvent my paranoid security settings, I want to know about it.
Since I couldn't get the WMP plugin to work anyway, I deleted all files related to that program and emptied my trash.
I wanted to view a video online using RealPlayer, but I couldn't get the plugin working correctly. Despite my wariness with Microsoft, I thought I'd give WMP 9 for OS X a try.
My user account has no admin privileges. When I install into /Applications, I get prompted for my admin user and password every time.
So how the hell was I able to install WMP by running the installer file without getting prompted for my admin username/password ?!?!?!?
That's right. The WMP installer created files in /Applications without prompting me.
Needless to say, I find this extremely disturbing. If there's some kind of security hole in OS X that allows somebody to circumvent my paranoid security settings, I want to know about it.
Since I couldn't get the WMP plugin to work anyway, I deleted all files related to that program and emptied my trash.
Comments
Also, admins can always write to /Applications. So, assuming you're an admin, it's optional for installers to ask you. They certainly should, though.
Originally posted by Chucker
Why exactly are you installing WMP instead of using the QT component, as recommended by Microsoft?
Also, admins can always write to /Applications. So, assuming you're an admin, it's optional for installers to ask you. They certainly should, though.
No, I'm not an admin. I consciously removed admin privileges from my user account. I created a separate admin account to install stuff to /Applications, among other things.
You'll probably tell me that's not necessary, but I'm super paranoid about security.
Edit: Minor gramatical errors.
Originally posted by JavaCowboy
No, I'm not an admin. I consciously removed admin privileges from my user account. I created a separate admin account to install stuff to /Applications, among other things.
You'll probably tell me that's not necessary, but I'm super paranoid about security.
Sounds like something borked up your permissions. ChizenCo perhaps?
Originally posted by Chucker
Sounds like something borked up your permissions. ChizenCo perhaps?
I know you're being facetious, but I reinstalled RealPlayer minutes later and was prompted for my username/password.
<Tinfoil Hat>
Is it possible that, due to the 1997 agreement with Apple, Microsoft has access to secret OS X API's that allow them to circument user-defined security settings?
</Tinfoil Hat>
http://www.microsoft.com/mac/otherpr...d=windowsmedia
It asked me for my login and password.
Now I have to uninstall that POS...