Virus busters clash over open source security

A WEE SPAT has broken out between virus-busters over the security merits of open source software.

While McAfee reckons open source's very openness makes it easy to fiddle with, rival Trend Micro reckons it's the openness that makes dodgy code easy to spot.

In fact, Trend Micro reckons open source operating systems are more secure than commercial rivals. "You could run Linux as an all-around operating system or Open BSD for critical servers. By using multiple Linux distributions, risks are mitigated", says to Raimund Genes, CTO of Trend Micro.

Raimund also points out that open-source developers "openly talk about security," so patches can be "immediate--as soon as something happens." Proprietary vendors with closed code have to rely purely on their own resources to push patches out, he reckons.

"When it comes to open source operating systems, malware writers actually highlight problems with codes and bring them to the attention of the public, which means loopholes in codes can be fixed and made available to everyone else", he said in a statement this morning. µ