Microsoft signs source code browsing agreement with China

People's Daily Online ^ | September 27, 2003 | Lee Jia

[HAL9000]

Microsoft signs source code browsing agreement with China

The Source Code Browsing Lab of the China Testing and Certification Center for Information Security Products was officially founded on the morning of September 25. Microsoft is the first commercial software company that signed the operating system source code browsing agreement with the Chinese government. However, Prof. Wu Shizhong, director of the Center, said that it was too early to say whether Microsoft's operating system is safe or not.

The Source Code Browsing Lab of the China Testing and Certification Center for Information Security Products was officially founded on the morning of September 25. Microsoft is the first commercial software company that signed the operating system source code browsing agreement with the Chinese government. However, Prof. Wu Shizhong, director of the Center, said that it was too early to say whether Microsoft's operating system is safe or not.

Frequent appearance of loopholes in the past couple of years and attacks from hackers have aroused users' doubts about the security of Microsoft's operating system. Since this system's source code is not open to the public, many countries, including China, adopt the open source code Linux operational system, a rival of Microsoft, at the time of government procurement, the reason for this is that open source code software is more advantageous to national information security.

As shown in Microsoft global domain, China is the 18th country that signs an agreement on government security with the company. Maggie Wilderotter, senior vice-president in charge of Microsoft's global business strategy, said that her company takes an active part in government-built security projects.

The source code browsing agreement between China and Microsoft commenced in February this year when the China Testing and Certification Center for Information Security Products, on behalf of the Chinese government, signed the Government Security Plan (GSP) Source Code Agreement with Bill Gates, chairman and chief software designer of Microsoft, during his China visit. The establishment of the Source Code Browsing Lab represents an important process of the agreement.

At the inauguration of the Lab, the seven work units undertaking national information security projects signed the first batch of appendixes to the GSP on additional personnel. They and the Testing and Certification Center can browse the source code of the Microsoft operating system and engage in information security related research by the method as stipulated in the agreement.

Dr. Lu Chengzhao, deputy head of the Net and Information Group under the State Council Informationization Work Office, said that the operating system is the base of information network, e-government, and e-commerce, the signing of the source code browsing agreement is the first step taken in bilateral cooperation.

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Related news from People's Daily -

Microsoft Opens Windows Source Code to China

Microsoft Gives Chinese Government Access to Windows Source Code

[Reeses]

Our government should stop using Microsoft software immediately. This is a major threat to national security.

[shadowman99]

I guess we won't be seeing the MS trolls of this thread. They conveniently ignore MS bad news. MS helping the commies

SHOCK!

At least with Linux it's passive - anybody can pick up the source at do what they will. But MS is Actively helping the Reds!!!

[HAL9000]

I guess we won't be seeing the MS trolls of this thread.

We may not be seeing them, but they are out there - trying to get this article deleted. They are ashamed of the truth: Microsoft will bend over backwards to kowtow to the Chinese Communist government while they screw the customers in the U.S.

[eno_]

They are TRYING to counter the obvious fact that if your government is a serious intelligence target for the U.S. government, you want to verify the absence of back doors in your software.

Unfortunately for Micrsoft, the way it works is like this: Our givernment leans on Microsoft to tell intelligence and LEAs about vulns BEFORE anyone else knows so that they can be exploited in foreign (and domestic) spying. So the Chinese and Russians can stare at miserable source code until they go blind and it will not change the security, or lack of it, in using a Microsoft product.

If you don't want to be snooped, use open source systems. That isn't the whole solution, but it is a critical part of the solution.

[gore3000]

Wonder if MS is going to fix any problems that all these agreements find or whether they will leave them unchanged as they have done many times until public furor forced them to do some real programming.

Besides this kowtowing to the commies, it shows that MS has been forced to do many times what it had never done before - open up the code for examination by outsiders. In fact, they have kept the code so secret that even their own programmers are only allowed to know bits and pieces of it.

[joesnuffy]

Once upon a time in America
this was called treason.....
my how things have changed
Hey Joe McCarthy...guess you werent paranoid...
enough

[CodeMonkey]

Ever notice how people like Ann Coulter who think that ol' Joe was a hero and that Bush's critics are traitors are eerily silent on saudi-funded Wahabism in the US's Islamic schools and mosques? Back in the day that would have been like the Soviet KGB openly recruiting on college campuses without any interference....

[ShadowAce]

Hmm. So much for the "1 hour in a room full of lawyers and no recording devices."

I'm moving to a new laptop and my ping list hasn't made it over yet. If there's someone you think would be interested, let them know.

[Coral Snake]

So the great closed source "patriots" that Golden Eagle, Bush2000, and TheEngineer support so much are helping the

COMMIES!!!, CSBITAIALMAO!!!

and this streight from the COMMIES' own "people's newspaper no less.

[rdb3]

The Penguin Ping.

Wanna be Penguified? Just holla!

Got root?

[per loin]

Soon the Chinese software company, Commisoft, will release their new operating system, Doorways PX. Because Doorways PX will appear to be a complete ripoff of Windows XP, Microsoft will be very upset, but as Commisoft will only licence Doorways PX with back-engineering strictly forbidden, Microsoft will not be able to do a thing about it.

[TechJunkYard]

Prof. Wu Shizhong, director of the Center, said that it was too early to say whether Microsoft's operating system is safe or not.

LMAO!

[TechJunkYard]

IIRC, they also get to modify, so they can create their own "distro" if they want.

Who is the USA-hating lib who's in charge of this project?

[tubavil]

It's completely safe!

Communist China has no problem with our government and and business sector running it.

[tubavil]

The bottom line is China is such a huge market ms will do whatever it takes to get their dollars.

After the commies have learned everything they can about 'blows, they will adopt a secure platform.

[Bush2000]

Hmm. So much for the "1 hour in a room full of lawyers and no recording devices."

This article only tells half the story. The other half is that the Chinese won't merely be handed a disc with the source code. Browsing doesn't mean copying. Browsing doesn't mean there won't be supervision by Microsort. Likewise, there are portions of the Windows code that aren't even available to anyone -- even under the Shared Source Initiative. But you'd never know that, based on posts from the usual trolls...

[Bush2000]

So the great closed source "patriots" that Golden Eagle, Bush2000, and TheEngineer support so much are helping the COMMIES!!!

Uhhhhh, rrrrrrright, Sybil. /SARCASM

MS is "helping" them by charging them for software, thus moving Chinese dollars to the United States.