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Experts, IT managers say Microsoft should forget bounty, focus on security
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November 05, 2003 (Computerworld) -- WASHINGTON -- Microsoft Corp.'s $5 million reward fund to catch virus and worm writers drew mixed reactions today from IT security managers and experts, some of whom would rather see the company use the money to improve Windows security than chase bad guys.
Flanked by officials from the FBI, the U.S. Secret Service and Interpol, Brad Smith, Microsoft's general counsel, detailed the program and its two first rewards, which were set at $250,000 each, for the authors of the MSBlast.A worm and the Sobig virus (see story).
The reward money, said Smith, is intended to help authorities "catch, prosecute and convict people who break the law by launching malicious viruses and worms on the Internet."
Law enforcement officials said they welcome Microsoft's help. "Efforts like this, which involve the private sector, are going to be critical to our success," said Peter Townsend, deputy assistant director of investigations at the Secret Service. With most of the nation's critical infrastructure under private-sector control, "this cannot be solved by the private sector alone; it cannot be solved by the government alone."
Connie Sadler, IT security director at Brown University in Providence, R.I., said the money would likely be better spent improving the security of the Windows operating system. "I would rather see Microsoft make a solid investment in prevention and containment" of viruses, said Sadler. Right now, it's up to users to build barriers that limit the damage from a virus or worm, she said.
Brown, for instance, has firewall rules that prevent one dorm from talking to another if a problem occurs, said Sadler. "It would be nice to see some network operating system that would help us do that," she said.
Hugh McArthur, information security officer at Reston, Va.-based Online Resources Corp., an online bill-processing firm, also had doubts about the reward's effectiveness. "At the highest level, it's one way of Microsoft making themselves a little bit better," said McArthur. "But I think it does not address the underlying issue that the vulnerabilities that the worms and viruses attack still exist.
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