Microsoft and national security – be afraid, be very afraid

A colleague forwarded me this arstechnica article today, Cyber War: Microsoft a weak link in national security, and it makes for quite unsettling reading.

Disturbing view from the White House

Richard A Clarke, a former White House advisor, has published a book about the threat to US national security posed by cyber war. If what he says about the delicacy of the Microsoft systems in use and the heaviness with which Microsoft has leant on any attempts at regulation of security standards is true, it’s very disturbing.

Microsoft objects to introduction of Linux

Clarke tells us that in response to numerous serious system failures, the Pentagon began to look into Linux as it could pick and choose the elements it wanted to use and eliminate bugs much more easily. However, Clarke states that

“Microsoft gave me the very clear impression that if the US government promoted Linux, Microsoft would stop cooperating with the US government”

…and that appears to be that. Open source isn’t ignored because it’s not a good solution and a vastly superior alternative, but because Microsoft is scared for its billions of dollars.

9/11 warnings

Read it for yourself and see what you think – hysteria or sound words to be heeded? Bear in mind that Clarke was repeatedly warning the White House about Al-Qaeda before 9/11.