Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) is moving to better protect Hotmail users from hackers and scammers. To address the problem of poor passwords, the company says it will start evaluating passwords selected by users, and will enact measures to compel them toward stronger passwords. To address the growing problem of hijacked accounts, Microsoft has also added the ability for Hotmail users to file a report if they suspect a friend's account has been hacked. According to Dick Craddock, the Microsoft group program manager responsible for Hotmail, friends often find out about a hijacked account ahead of the victims--hardly surprising given that they are almost always the first recipients of spam or phishing messages sent out from the stolen account.

Now, Hotmail users who identify messages that are obviously not from their friends can report the case to Microsoft by simply clicking on the "Mark As" menu and selecting the "My friend's been hacked!" option. Microsoft will combine this information with other "signals" to determine if the account has indeed been compromised. If marked as such, the account will no longer be usable and the legitimate user will be automatically put through an account recovery to help them regain control of the account. 

On the downside, it may be possible for this feature to be abused. As observed by The Inquirer, "If you fall out with a friend they could mark your account as being hacked simply to annoy you."

For more:
- check out the Windows Blog post
- check out this article at eWeek
- check out this article at The Inquirer

Related Articles:
Phishers go after White House officials' Gmail accounts
Microsoft brings down Rustock spam botnet
Microsoft rolls out disposable Hotmail accounts using aliases