The US Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA) has urged the US Department of Homeland Security to avoid using Microsoft software. The Washington based association, which represents members that generate over $200 billion, has issued an open letter to Tom Ridge, Secretary of the department, urging him to review his decision to choose Microsoft for its desktops and servers. It claims that last week"s events relating to the Blaster and SoBig worms, have highlighted problems in cybersecurity.
The letter, from Ed Black, the association"s president, said:"We believe that for software to be truly secure it must be well written from the outset with security considerations given a high priority". It accuses Microsoft of being more interested in economic marketing and competition than security and said the lack of diversity within a network system "amplifies the risk emanating from any vulnerabilities that do exist".