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Microsoft Delivers Secure China-Only Cut of Windows 10 (theregister.co.uk)

Posted by BeauHD on from the cut-of-the-pie dept.

Earlier this week, CEO of Microsoft Greater China, Alain Crozier, told China Daily that the company is ready to roll out a version of Windows 10 with extra security features demanded by China's government. "We have already developed the first version of the Windows 10 government secure system. It has been tested by three large enterprise customers," Crozier said. The Register reports: China used Edward Snowden's revelations to question whether western technology products could compromise its security. Policy responses included source code reviews for foreign vendors and requiring Chinese buyers to shop from an approved list of products. Microsoft, IBM and Intel all refused to submit source code for inspection, but Redmond and Big Blue have found other ways to get their code into China. IBM's route is a partnership with Dalian Wanda to bring its cloud behind the Great Firewall. Microsoft last year revealed its intention to build a version of Windows 10 for Chinese government users in partnership with state-owned company China Electronics Technology Group Corp. There's no reason to believe Crozier's remarks are incorrect, because Microsoft has a massive incentive to deliver a version of Windows 10 that China's government will accept. To understand why, consider that China's military has over two million active service personnel, the nation's railways employ similar numbers and Microsoft's partner China Electronics Technology Group Corp has more than 140,000 people on its books. Not all of those are going to need Windows, but plenty will.

3 of 98 comments (clear)

  1. Secure by name by manu0601 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    They call it secure, but provide no information about security features. From TFA:

    The Register has asked Microsoft to explain the security features of Windows Red, but had not received a reply at the time of writing. You know the drill: we'll update this story if Microsoft sends any information.

    1. Re:Secure by name by Fire_Wraith · · Score: 4, Interesting

      China does have source code review rights, and are probably pretty concerned about anything that phones home to the USA.

      What I'll find really ironic, though, is if they just end up with the China version of Windows 10 stripping out all the privacy invasion and ad related crap. If that's the case, I might just have to see if I can get my hands on a Chinese copy of Win 10 instead.

  2. How about the rest of us? by wvmarle · · Score: 4, Interesting

    So let's take MS's claims of a more secure Windows at face value.

    This means two things. First of all, the Windows they released to the market is unnecessarily insecure, and MS knows that.

    Secondly, why would they only offer this enhanced security to the Chinese, and not to the rest of the world?

    All software ought to be as secure as possible. If there are security enhancements available, a vendor ought to roll them out to all their users. Here MS is failing in both: Windows can be (much) more secure than it is, and they're not releasing this improvement to the rest of their users.

    That, or MS is lying through their teeth to get into China. That may be possible, but while you can say a lot of bad things about the Chinese government, their people by and large are definitely not stupid so there has to be at least some weight to the claims of MS.