Green Hills calls Linux 'insecure' for defense

NEW YORK — A storm has erupted in the embedded community, with real-time operating systems house Green Hills charging that Linux is fundamentally insecure and wide open to security breaches by "foreign intelligence agencies and terrorists."

"If Linux is compromised, our defenses could be disabled, spied upon or commandeered," O'Dowd continued. "Everyday new code is added to Linux in Russia, China and elsewhere throughout the world. Everyday that code is incorporated into our command, control, communications and weapons systems. This must stop."

Several programmers on the Linux street are also giving O'Dowd some pushback. In a reader's forum on the LinuxDevices.com Web site, a developer who identified himself only as "Concerned citizen" posted a lengthy rebuttal. "[Linux] has features, security, and strengths that are not easily compromised by a foreign agency," he wrote. "Let's not forget that the terrorists that Mr. O'Dowd refers to used proprietary software for attacks on the USA. They have Windows machines and Flight Simulator, you might recall."

"Mr. O'Dowd makes the common mistake of confusing obscurity with security," said Ready. "Open Source is actually more secure than closed source proprietary software because the oversight of technology content is broader and deeper. Instead of just one company monitoring its own contributions — or potentially hiding security holes and exploits — a worldwide community of interested parties actually oversees Linux to make it strong and secure. That's why the NSA — the most security-conscious organization in the world — chose to standardize on Linux, and even supplies its own version of secure Linux."