MS opens source code to inspire trust

NEWS

Microsoft, long a proponent of keeping source code secret, plans to publish the source code to a critical part of its Palladium project to enhance security, a representative of the software giant said on Monday. The component -- some thousands of lines of source code -- is the basic foundation of the security proposed in Microsoft's project and, as such, is the linchpin for the software giant's trusted-computing platform. "We will be publishing the source code because people will need to trust this," said Mario Juarez, group product manager for the Palladium project at Microsoft. "To get people to believe in what is happening in that little piece of code is critical." On Monday, Microsoft took the wraps off its project, code-named Palladium, to design new hardware and software that could better guarantee the security of user data and let companies control data that they "own" while on a consumer's PC. However, as part of the public push for acceptance of its technology, Microsoft plans to release the source code to the guts of the software component, called the "secure processing environment." In the past, Microsoft has argued that opening such critical code could undermine security. But Juarez doesn't think so. "Not at all," he said. "In fact, it enhances the security of the code. The RSA (encryption) algorithm was published at the outset; that's why it's trusted today." That admission could undermine the company's repeated claims that opening the Windows source code would hurt the security of the company's flagship operating system. The company has used the assertions to fight against potential antitrust penalties that would require it to show competitors pieces -- or all -- of its code. During testimony in the antitrust case against Microsoft, Jim Allchin, senior vice president for Windows, said that any remedy that required the company to reveal the operating system's source code would strengthen hackers' and virus writers' ability to circumvent protections. "The more creators of viruses know about how antivirus mechanisms in Windows operating systems work, the easier it will be to create viruses or disable or destroy those mechanisms," Allchin testified. Programs that are published under open-source tenets allow anyone to look at the software's source code. Unlike, say, Microsoft Windows XP, which only comes packaged as extremely difficult-to-understand binary code, an open-source program lets people copy or modify code to include improvements -- as long as the new code is republished. The open-source software community and closed-source advocates have long argued that their own development process leads to better security. Both sides, however, have had major breaches in security. Microsoft's Web server had an easily exploitable hole that led to the Code Red worm epidemic almost a year ago. Linux and other Unix-like systems had a major flaw in the WU-FTP server, a popular program for hosting files for downloading. That flaw allowed numerous hackers and some worms to break into unpatched servers. A recent research paper argued that open-source and closed-source software had essentially the same security. While Microsoft's Juarez doesn't promise that the source code to the secure processing environment will be open source, he did say that it will be published. Bruce Perens, an open-source evangelist and creator of the open-source definition, said that Microsoft does seem to be contradicting its prior statements. "I think what Microsoft is admitting is that it can disclose the source code to the whole world, and not necessarily hurt the security of the program," he said.

ZDNet UK's Developer News Section delivers the latest headlines together with the best UK jobs, right to your browser. Have your say on all developer topics. From j2ee, to C++, from Visual Basic to Javascript plus much more. Share your experience with others on the Developers Forum. Let the editors know what you think in the Mailroom.

Post your comment

In order to post a comment you need to be registered and logged in.

You can also log in with Facebook. Log in or create your ZDNet UK account below

By signing up for this service, you indicate that you agree to our Terms and Conditions and have read and understood our Privacy Policy. Questions about membership? Find the answers in the Community FAQ

ZDNet UK Live

@GrueMaster. I prefer horses for courses rather than one size fits all. I, and I suspect most other computer users, do not really wish to have...

2 hours ago by Moley on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

The product that scares me every time I have to use it is the Office 2007 version of Excel. The first bug that I found was applying the median...

2 hours ago by greycynic on Ten flawed products that derail productivity

Nice review and very informative. One thing I'd like to add (in reply to whs001's 1st question), the main reason to have the same interface from...

3 hours ago by GrueMaster on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

I'be been using Mint 12 since the RC came out, and I am far more happy with the Cinnamon, the Mate, and, yes (with extensions), theGnome 3...

4 hours ago by Frederick Wrigley via Facebook on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

Excellent article. One small correction, though--although a fresh installation of Linux Mint 12 will, indeed, provide the user with a version of...

5 hours ago by bdantas on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

In related news, the ISPs club together to get the members of the Home Affairs Select Committee (ya goofed on that part, ZDNet UK) copies of "The...

5 hours ago by Alan Ralph via Facebook on MPs urge ISPs to take down terrorist material

In related news, the ISPs club together to get the members of the Home Affairs Select Committee (ya goofed on that part, ZDNet UK) copies of "The...

5 hours ago by Alan Ralph via Facebook on MPs urge ISPs to take down terrorist material

For Gnome 2 die-hards, it is possible to add icons to the bottom panel (or top top panel, if you prefer) which provide the exact Gnome 2...

6 hours ago by Moley on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

Your comments would seem pretty naive and immature. Your 'solution' appears to be, "gee, let's all just give in to the hackers and give them...

6 hours ago by ramwellian on Cloud computing security: no more oxymoron?

"Interesting thought ... If you installed Win7 as a dual boot on a machine that previously only had Linux, and it wrecked your Linux installation,...

6 hours ago by BugStalker on Windows 7 Declares War on GRUB

This is an excellent summary of Ubuntu and Mint and the interface differences between them. Most such articles take a very partisan position for...

6 hours ago by whs001 on A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

@ewallace. Not so clear. Anyone can obtain the text, for example from here http://www.ustr.gov/webfm_send/2379. I support ACTA so long as it and...

7 hours ago by Moley on ACTA: Facts, misconceptions and questions

I think WinRT is fantastic. I just wish it was an option for people that didn't want to go through Microsoft's App Store with its attendant...

10 hours ago by 45283 on Why Windows 8 needs architectural hygiene for WOA

Nine people? £30m? Who's back pocket is that lot going in? And IF they say it is for new buildings, what about all the ones the government has...

11 hours ago by Burn-IT on Police set to launch three £30m e-crime hubs

Just to be clear, nobody knows what is in the text of ACTA, here is a photograph of the text of ACTA http://twitpic.com/8h9iju as submitted to the...

11 hours ago by ewallace on ACTA: Facts, misconceptions and questions

Unfortunately main issue is that ASUS is refusing to accept that they make some mistake on this version of asus Transformer prime. 1 - GPS sensor...

12 hours ago by fgvrg56 on Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime Wi-Fi & GPS problems?

@Marcus A fair question. Just talked with Archos which said it was working on an announcement for next week....

13 hours ago by Ben Woods on Archos confirms G9 Ice Cream Sandwich update schedule

Any update on this, considering the claimed "first week of February"?

14 hours ago by Marcus Karlsson via Facebook on Archos confirms G9 Ice Cream Sandwich update schedule

Bill Goodrich : Just as al_langevin pointed out, with Windows Server 2008 there is no Services for Macintosh anymore. It's gone, not available....

23 hours ago by apexwm on Windows Server 2008 drops the ball for Mac compatibility

Replying to an old topic that I'm currently facing with my CEO (who is on a Mac). Our servers are primarily Windows Servers, office is about...

1 day ago by txtrainguy on Windows Server 2008 drops the ball for Mac compatibility

Featured white papers

Latest jobs

MS opens source code to inspire trust

Daily Newsletters

Topics

Related stories

Study: Open, closed source equally secure

Microsoft shares source code with students

More flaws threaten Windows

Perens: Linux could learn from Apple

Post your comment

ZDNet UK Live

Latest in Application Development

Perens: Linux could learn from Apple

Featured white papers

Latest jobs

Test Analyst - Business Intelligence /Data Warehousing

Test Analyst - Business Intelligence /Data Warehousing

Technical MI Manager - 50-60k - Leeds

Inside ZDNet UK

A tale of two distros: Ubuntu and Linux Mint

2012 Predictions: VCE FastPath, VI SAN Probe & Hadoop

BlackBerry Bold 9790

Case study: How cloud enables growth

Ten factors that make Ubuntu 11.10 a hit

Toshiba Portégé Z830-10P Review

BT's archive: Pictures from the vault

News & Analysis

Reviews

Blogs

Resources

About Us

Member Services

Special Features

Advertising Features

ZDNet UK / News and Analysis / Application Development

MS opens source code to inspire trust

Daily Newsletters

Topics

Related stories

Post your comment

Get ZDNet UK's daily newsletter

Enter your email address to sign up

ZDNet UK Live

Latest in Application Development

Featured white papers

Latest jobs

Inside ZDNet UK

Resources

About Us

Member Services

Special Features

Advertising Features