Microsoft warns about Windows security flaw

WASHINGTON - Microsoft Corp. warned customers Tuesday about unusually serious security problems with its Windows software that could let hackers quietly break into their computers to steal files, delete data or eavesdrop on sensitive information.

Microsoft said the only protective solution was to apply a repairing patch it offered on its Web site. It assessed the threat to computer users as "critical," its highest rating.

"This is one of the most serious Microsoft vulnerabilities ever released," said Marc Maiffret of eEye Digital Security Inc. of Aliso Viejo, Calif., which discovered the new Windows flaws.

Consumers sue Apple over iPod battery life

Apple Computer Inc., maker of Macintosh personal computers, is being sued by five consumers over claims the company made false promises about the lifespan of batteries in its iPod music player.

The plaintiffs are seeking permission to sue on behalf of iPod owners in various courts in Northern California, Apple said in its quarterly filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The company is investigating the claims, according to the filing.

Some users have complained that the iPod's rechargeable battery dies and a new battery must be purchased.

Apple spokeswoman Lynn Fox declined to comment.

Schwab to offer new structure for investors

Charles Schwab Corp., the biggest discount brokerage, said it's overhauling its services to individual investors to win more business from customers with between $100,000 and $1 million in assets.

The new structure is San Francisco-based Schwab's effort to lure clients who may be too small for competitors such as Merrill Lynch & Co. and can't get the advice they want from brokers such as Ameritrade Holdings Corp.

Adelphia asks to extend reorganization

WASHINGTON - Troubled cable giant Adelphia Communications Corp. wants to extend the deadline for filing its Chapter 11 turnaround plan by 60 days to mid-April, according to a court filing.

If the extension is granted, the new deadline would be April 17.

The court granted the last extension of the company's exclusive plan-filing period in November 2003. Since then, the nation's fifth-largest cable-television company has made significant progress in forming a plan for its reorganization, the company said in a motion filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan.