Yet another reason to move to Linux....... Security Nightmare: Chinese Government Has Microsoft Windows Source Codes The Chinese government has the keys to the kingdom as far as software information is concerned. And they were essentially given it through a Microsoft tech program designed to improve the software. Only problem? The Chinese government used it to search for vulnerabilities in Windows to penetrate U.S. government computers. They managed to “slurp up” 50 megabytes of government emails as a result.
If code leaks were really their concern, why move to "open source" where all your source code is available? Letting anyone - including Russians and Chinese - "contribute" open source code doesn't seem all that palatable to me. Those "many eyes" of security didn't find hacked CVS repositories or flawed crypto algorithms very quickly. I'm wondering if BSD may be the safest route to go even if it's - what seems like - 10 years behind. Computers could come in real handy if you're trying to rebuild a society.
Chinese hacked and manufactured Macs or Chinese hacked and manufactured PCs. Both Mac users and Linux users on an individual basis have a small dregree of safety but if/when they launch an attack it will hit critical systems running gatesware and the house of cards will tumble. I just like having an OS that works and is not made by a guy named Gates or Jobs but Macs are pretty cool.
Once the Internet Crashes, our Computers will be Engineering Tools, and storage devices, rather than communications systems. So, If you're a Prep'er you need to consider that, in your Preps. A little Solar, and a working TerraByte of information and Tech Manuals, will be worth a lot....
A Panasonic Toughbook and a solar setup is my "at-ready" kit. I also have a secure military grade 4GB memory stick just in case. Plenty of e-books and manuals to keep me in good shape, too.
If something is worth saving, I try to get it and store it on one of two separate terabyte externals. One reason I prefer Linux is, you can always switch the OS without having to mess with all the microshaft restrictions. Of course, if the net was ever to go down, we would lose updates, but still be able to have a working OS for off grid use. If any of that happens, I doubt many of us would be spending much time messing with computers. We would have much greater things to worry about.
