Files already being removed off the Internet though

Jun 25, 2017 19:00 GMT  ·  By

A massive 32TB of Microsoft data got leaked, including sources for the operating system’s hardware drivers that would allow hackers to discover vulnerabilities and develop exploits substantially easier.

The leaked data appears to come from Microsoft’s own servers and is dated March 2017, comprising even Windows 10 tools that the company uses internally for troubleshooting, testing, and debugging. These builds were never supposed to be public, and they include symbols that are being used by Microsoft to determine each specific version.

A report from The Register revealed that the data includes not only internal builds of Windows 10, but also Windows Server 2016, as well as the code for Shared Source Kit, which in its turn compromises data like Windows 10 hardware driver source code, PnP code, USB and Wi-Fi stacks, storage drivers, and ARM kernel code.

Furthermore, the leaked data is also said to include the Windows 10 Mobile Adaption Kit, an unreleased solution developed by Microsoft that the company uses to run specific Windows 10 applications on smartphones. The Adaption Kit is believed to be part of Microsoft new toolset for the Windows 10 Mobile refresh that is expected later this year or in early 2018.

Files already being removed

BetaArchive says files are already being removed, and explained in a statement that the archive is actually 1.2GB, and not 32TB as originally claimed.

“The folder itself was 1.2GB in size, contained 12 releases each being 100MB,” BetaArchive said in a statement. “[It] cannot possibly cover ‘core source code’ as it would be simply too small, not to mention it is against our rules to store such data.”

Furthermore, the site admits that there was a folder called “Shared Source Kit” on its servers, but it has already been removed. “We currently have no plans to restore it until a full review of its contents is carried out and it is deemed acceptable under our rules,” BetaArchive said.

Microsoft Shared Source Kit was specifically aimed at qualified customers, enterprises, governments, and partners for debugging and reference purposes, the company itself says, so the fact that it got leaked shouldn’t be a major concern for the company since the data was already available for third parties.

Microsoft is yet to offer a statement on this new leak, but we’ve reached out to the company to ask for more information and we will update the story when an answer is received.