Linux security is a ‘myth’, claims Microsoft

Nick McGrath of Microsoft in the UK, has been quoted as stating that Linux security is nothing but a myth.This would be fine if during the entire interview McGrath had something a little more concrete than ‘Who is accountable for the security of the Linux kernel’. While Linux has consistently proven itself to be a secure OS; not to mention extremely stable, Microsoft’s best argument is really quite weak in this circumstance.

The only area in the entire interview that I found to be accurate was the statement that ‘the operating system does not have the solution stack that they were expecting’. Fair enough, this is true in many cases. But don’t try that silly argument stating that Linux is not secure. This is simply not true. You show me a secure MS OS and I will show you a flying pig. Windows compatibility; yes. Windows security; give me a break.

A senior Microsoft executive, speaking exclusively to vnunet.com, has dismissed Linux’s reputation as a secure platform as a “myth”, claiming that the open source development process creates fundamental security problems.

Nick McGrath, head of platform strategy for Microsoft in the UK, said that the myths surrounding the open source operating system are rapidly being exploded, and that customers are dismissing Linux as too immature to cope with mission-critical computing.

“The biggest challenge we need to face centres on the myth and reality. There are lots of myths out there as to what Linux can do. One myth we see is that Linux is more secure than Windows. Another is that there are no viruses for Linux,” said McGrath.

“Who is accountable for the security of the Linux kernel? Does Red Hat, for example, take responsibility? It cannot, as it does not produce the Linux kernel. It produces one distribution of Linux.