FCC Rules Open Source Code Is Less Secure

An anonymous reader writes "A new federal rule set to take effect Friday could mean that software radios built on 'open-source elements' may have trouble getting to market. Some US regulators have apparently come to the conclusion that, by nature, open source software is less secure than closed source. 'By effectively siding with what is known in cryptography circles as "security through obscurity," the controversial idea that keeping security methods secret makes them more impenetrable, the FCC has drawn an outcry from the software radio set and raised eyebrows among some security experts. "There is no reason why regulators should discourage open-source approaches that may in the end be more secure, cheaper, more interoperable, easier to standardize, and easier to certify," Bernard Eydt, chairman of the security committee for a global industry association called the SDR (software-defined radio) Forum, said in an e-mail interview this week.'"

Comments

Re:Unless, of course, I'm an evil corporation

[Anonymous Coward]

At least, if they blow up the plane, they have to purchase a minimum of 4 tickets. That way, with the failure rate on attempted plane bombings, airlines are likely to break even.

Godwin

[PetriBORG]

Its only the second comment and this thread is already Godwin'd

Only on Slashdot!

Re:The enemy knows the system

[WrongSizeGlass]

Read the wikipedia article, it is enlightening and very insightful. Wikipedia uses /. mod points now? I wonder if I have to RTFA there to post?

Re:Unless, of course, I'm an evil corporation

[TheRaven64]

At the end of the day, the most dangerous thing is an intelligent mind

I believe the Department of Education is working on addressing this issue.