Re: Technology Firm With Ties to Microsoft Fires Executive Over Criticism (2 Messages)

[InfoSec News <isn () c4i org>]

Forwarded from: Paul Robichaux <paul () robichaux net>

Oh puhleeze. Your agenda is showing, Rick. This is not news, for two
reasons:

1. Geer claimed to be speaking for @stake. He wasn't. @stake fired
him. This is not "reflective of Microsoft's ... ability to silence
experts" as much as it is @stake's attempts to control who gets to
speak for them. There have been numerous other cases where public
statements by faux spokesmen which purported to be "company policy"
ended up costing the offender a job.  This is no different. After all,
if MS was so able to silence people, how come Georgi Guninski isn't
locked in a basement somewhere in Redmond? If it's so effective at
quelling criticism, why is Russ Cooper still a free man?

2. CXO Magazine (whoever they are) are free to accept, or not, paid
advertising from any source. A biased and one-sided report such as
this probably wouldn't be welcomed by any of the mainstream
publishers; I didn't see any ads mentioning it in any of the other
advertising-supported newsletters I receive.

Cheers,
-Paul


-=-


Fowarded from: Dan Verton <Dan_Verton () computerworld com>

Rick,

I have to disagree a little with what you said here about Geer. I
broke this story yesterday, but was unable to confirm that he had in
fact been fired. However, what this shows (and you are right that this
does not spell good things for security) is that even the best minds
in IT security lack even the most basic political skills that are
absolutely necessary to the success of important ideas. Why 7 top
security professionals who are well-respected would claim
"independence" and then allow their independent thinking (and a very
valuable report) to be undermined by an entangling alliance with a
staunch anti-Microsoft bashing organization (the CCIA) makes no sense
at all. They are responsible for doing a disservice to their own
scholarship. And with all of the money and infrastructure that these
guys had access to that would have enabled them to publish a truly
independent report with no such entangling alliances means that none
of this had to happen.

Dan Verton



> From: InfoSec News <isn () c4i org>
> Reply-To: InfoSec News <isn () c4i org>
> Date: Fri, 26 Sep 2003 03:24:44 -0500 (CDT)
> To: isn () attrition org
> Subject: [ISN] Technology Firm With Ties to Microsoft Fires Executive Over Criticism
>
> Forwarded from: Richard Forno <rforno () infowarrior org>
>
> Very disturbing developments.....and we wonder why IT security will
> never really improve....look no further than this story to learn
> why.
>
> -rick
> Infowarrior.org
>
>
> http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGASNQR81LD.html
>
> By Ted Bridis
> The Associated Press
>
> WASHINGTON (AP) - The chief technology officer for a technology firm
> that works closely with Microsoft Corp. lost his job after he helped
> write a study critical of the insecurity of Microsoft software.
>
> Daniel E. Geer Jr., an expert with nearly three decades studying
> technology and computer security, learned Thursday he was no longer
> employed by AtStake Inc. of Cambridge, Mass.



-
ISN is currently hosted by Attrition.org

To unsubscribe email majordomo () attrition org with 'unsubscribe isn'
in the BODY of the mail.