Microsoft Lets EU Governments Inspect Source Code For Security Issues

itwbennett writes: Microsoft has agreed to let European governments review the source code of its products to ensure that they don't contain security backdoors, at a transparency center in Brussels. The second of its kind, the new center follows on the heels of the first, built last June in Redmond, Washington. Part of Microsoft's Government Security Program, the company hopes the centers will create trust with governments that want to use Microsoft products. "Today's opening in Brussels will give governments in Europe, the Middle East and Africa a convenient location to experience our commitment to transparency and delivering products and services that are secure by principle and by design," said Matt Thomlinson, Vice President of Microsoft Security.

Comments

Re:Can they compile from source?

[Anonymous Coward]

Nope. They have to consult the code on dedicated workstations and it is forbidden to bring in a laptop or mobile phone.

Source: Belgian public television website (in Dutch)

Re:Can they compile from source?

[Tatarize]

Can they compile it on site and get the hash codes from it, or export the compiled binaries back somewhere to check them out?

Because if not, this is entirely bullshit.

Just remove the backdoors from the source and show them the source without all the backdoors. See, no backdoors, or reason to suspect the compiled binaries you get are the ones compiled from that source.