Re: OS to know.

[Alloishus BeauMains <all0i5hu5 () gmail com>]

Well, also, you should consider that Linux is written in C/C++, with
most console based networking tools written in C.

As a result, most of the applications that security folks use are in
Linux for two reasons: 1. Free 2. Able to be reprogrammed to suit
needs.

The fact that you don't need to learn MFCs, Visual Basic, or sometimes
now even .NET means that it is easier to reprogram those open source
tools.

I think this is changing, however. There are quite a few skilled
younger .NET programmers. I do not think it will be long before we see
those kids using programmatic holes in Windows to create more security
tools.

Lastly, I would also encourage someone to learn Windows. There are a
few windows tools that are handy in quite a few situations. Cain and
Able comes to mind.


On 10/17/05, Depp, Dennis M. <deppdm () ornl gov> wrote:
> I think the key statement here is "many have been ported to windows".
> If they were ported to windows the needed to exist somewhere else first.
> Most of the security tools first become available on Linux.  As a result
> this is often the platform of choice for security administration.  A
> second reason is Microsoft's poor track record w.r.t. secuirty.  While
> Redmond is getting better, their previous poor performance still haunts
> them.
>
> Dennis
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Josh Tolley [mailto:eggyknap () gmail com]
> Sent: Friday, October 14, 2005 2:59 PM
> To: Ramki B
> Cc: security-basics () securityfocus com
> Subject: Re: OS to know.
>
> Linux is preferred because the apps security people want to use run on
> Linux. Yes, many have been ported to windows, but most of the
> scanning, testing, assessment tools that security geeks want to use
> are written for Linux.
>
> -Josh
>
> On 10/12/05, Ramki B <bramkie () gmail com> wrote:
> > Most of the Security personel use Linux, in fact their laptops have a
> Linux
> > partition for this purpose (even Microsoft guys do this, I have seen
> couple
> > of them).
> >
> > But I have always wanted to know why linux is prefered?
> >
> > Ramki
> >
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: John Williams [mailto:ibmros () hotmail com]
> > > Sent: Wednesday, October 12, 2005 1:42 AM
> > > To: security-basics () securityfocus com
> > > Subject: OS to know.
> > >
> > > I am a graduate student at George Mason University obtaining
> > > my MS in Information Security and Assurance. What operating
> > > system is used more for security administration in the
> > > private sector versus the government sector?
> > > Pretty much I would like to know what operating system I
> > > should focus on if I wanted to pursue a government career in
> > > security or if I wanted to purse a career in the private
> > > sector. Thanks.
> > >
> > >
> > > Mark Jacobs
> > >
> > > _________________________________________________________________
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