An alleged software glitch in the Windows 7 operating system, which some claim has been triggered by the latest security update, has led to what has been called the “black screen of death”, where the user is greeted with a blank screen upon login.
David Kennerely, from internet and PC security firm Prevx, said that while starting the Windows operating system is normal it is after logging on that the problem begins: “There is no desktop, task bar, system tray or side bar. Instead, you are left with a totally black screen and a single My Computer Explorer window. Even this window might be minimised, making it hard to see.”
This is not just a problem for Windows 7, he said, but also for users of Vista, XP, NT, W2K, W2K3 or W2K8.
Claiming this may effect millions of people, Prevx has offered its own solution for the “black screen of death” with its free Black Screen Fix.
Meanwhile, Microsoft told the BBC it did “not match any known issues” and has therefore not as of yet issued a patch while a Microsoft representative told Cnet that customers should “test and deploy” its November security updates if they were experiencing this problem.
By Marie Boran
Photo: The “black screen of death” that occurred on Windows 7 is a blank screen that greeted a user after they logged in.
