Comments on: Bruce Schneier: “Keeping Control of Your Source Code Didn’t Magically Make Windows Secure”

By: mcinsand

mcinsand — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 21:30:56 +0000

Thanks! That book might make a nice holiday gift for some family members.

Regards,
mc

By: Dr. Roy Schestowitz

Dr. Roy Schestowitz — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 14:08:19 +0000

There is a whole book called “Don’t Click on the Blue E!”

http://oreilly.com/catalog/9780596009397

By: mcinsand

mcinsand — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 13:58:23 +0000

The world needs to recognize that MSIE is one of it’s greatest security risks. I have a neighbor that is an agent with the US State Department, and they have actually woken up; using MSIE is a terminable offense because of security. Countries will have to decide whether they want to leave citizens open to attack or have cute eye candy. Granted, Java has security concerns, too, but they are not nearly so great as having an browser integrated into the OS.

In the US, there are also only two manufacturers of gasoline (petrol) handling pumps, and these are now sophisticated enough to connect to the internet, call for shipments, and arrange deliveries. One of these companies uses MSIE-only, and an executive (another neighbor) dismissed customers that want to avoid MSIE for security reasons as ‘whiners.’ Petrol is dangerous and, in today’s world, we can’t leave tanks open to crackers to mishandle or misroute.

MSIE is a global security risk that we cannot afford.
Regards,
mc

By: Dr. Roy Schestowitz

Dr. Roy Schestowitz — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 13:39:06 +0000

The problem is, in some countries like Korea the ties between the OS and ‘the’ MSIE are very close due to ActiveX. Web sites too will need to get ‘fixed’.

By: mcinsand

mcinsand — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 12:24:01 +0000

Open or closed, there is no friggin’ way Windows could ever be secure given its current architecture. With everything coded together as a massive megalithic blob, cracking your way into one area gives access potential to everything else. Opening up the code would help MS out of their self-created security mess somewhat, but they can never be anything but a suite of security holes until they fix fundamental design flaws, such as getting the browser, and many non-OS utilities, out of the OS.

Regards,
mc