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Technology Stocks : All About Sun Microsystems -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?


To: QwikSand who wrote (19256)9/3/1999 1:22:00 PM
From: JC Jaros  Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 64865
 
Microsoft, the NSA, and You

cryptonym.com

Research Triangle Park, NC - 31 August 1999 - Between Hotmail hacks and
browser bugs, Microsoft has a dismal track record in computer security. Most
of us accept these minor security flaws and go on with life. But how is an IT
manager to feel when they learn that in every copy of Windows sold, Microsoft
has installed a 'back door' for the National Security Agency (NSA - the USA's
spy agency) making it orders of magnitude easier for the US government to
access their computers?

While investigating the security subsystems of WindowsNT4, Cryptonym's
Chief Scientist Andrew Fernandes discovered exactly that - a back door
for the NSA in every copy of Win95/98/NT4 and Windows2000. Building on
the work of Nicko van Someren (NCipher), and Adi Shamir (the 'S' in
'RSA'), Andrew was investigating Microsoft's "CryptoAPI" architecture
for security flaws. Since the CryptoAPI is the fundamental building
block of cryptographic security in Windows, any flaw in it would open
Windows to electronic attack.



To: QwikSand who wrote (19256)9/3/1999 3:10:00 PM
From: Stormweaver  Read Replies (1) | Respond to of 64865
 
So why doesn't the fiercely proud "Open Source Community" fix it?

Open source is a hackers dream. They can look for flaws in the internal workings much more readily.

Cheers
James