Download the research paper (English)

Article from Cryptome.org (English)

Article from Boston Herald (English)

"Geer said he was told Wednesday he no longer had a job at the company. 'I was forced out,' he said. 'It was a surprise. I expected to have a long and never-ending career at the company,' Geer said. The exact reasons - and timing - of Geer's departure from AtStake was the source of intense controversy yesterday. The report from Geer and six other computer-security experts argued the complexity and dominance of Microsoft's Windows operating system in federal agencies made the government prone to cyber attack - a national security threat."

---

People in developed countries are waking up to what people in "third-world" countries have been saying for some time: using MS software is a national security threat.

But instead of actually addressing the problem, once again the messenger has been shot. We are almost assured of two outcomes to this story. Either we will hear nothing more about it, or, if it can't be silenced, then a new messenger will appear with a better brand of suit and more impressive credentials. He or she will certainly reassure us that MS software is secure and superior to any other.

Denial is not a survival mechanism in this case and will not solve the problem. Please think carefully about the consequences of the lack of security in your own computer system and take action as quickly as you can. Right now is a very good time to start using Linux and to learn the nuts and bolts of security. If you still can't switch over on your main system, install it on an old system and start learning in a way that's more comfortable to you. If you need help, find a Linux User's Group in your locale and go to an install fest, or join an on-line mailing list and ask stupid questions. Remember that asking stupid questions is the fastest way to being able to ask non-stupid questions.

From the webalizer statistics, I can see that 40% of the people who visit this site are still running MS Internet Explorer. Although I post to this site using many different browsers, depending upon where I am, my main system runs Konqueror, Mozilla, or Opera. It is becoming increasingly obvious to me that the answer to security is to take personal responsibility for you own; Mr. Gates is not going to do it for you.

Willy Smith, reporting from Costa Rica