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Open, closed source security about equal?

Daniel Fleshbourne Administrator Neowin @dfleshbourne · Jun 21, 2002 08:51 EDT with -1 comments

Thanks Borg77 from our BPN Forum

Proprietary programs should mathematically be as secure as those developed under the open-source model, a Cambridge University researcher argued in a paper presented Thursday at a technical conference in Toulouse, France. In his paper, computer scientist Ross Anderson used an analysis that equates finding software bugs to testing programs for the mean time before failure, a measure of quality frequently used by manufacturers. Under the analysis, Anderson found that his ideal open-source programs were as secure as the closed-source programs.

"Other things being equal, we expect that open and closed systems will exhibit similar growth in reliability and in security assurance," Anderson wrote in his paper.

News source: ZDNet