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HP Enterprise Let Russia Scrutinize The Pentagon's Cyberdefense Software (reuters.com)
"A Russian defense agency was allowed to review the cyberdefense software used by the Pentagon to protect its computer networks," writes new submitter quonset. "This according to Russian regulatory records and interviews with people with direct knowledge of the issue." Reuters reports:
The Russian review of ArcSight's source code, the closely guarded internal instructions of the software, was part of Hewlett Packard Enterprise's effort to win the certification required to sell the product to Russia's public sector, according to the regulatory records seen by Reuters and confirmed by a company spokeswoman. Six former U.S. intelligence officials, as well as former ArcSight employees and independent security experts, said the source code review could help Moscow discover weaknesses in the software, potentially helping attackers to blind the U.S. military to a cyber attack. "It's a huge security vulnerability," said Greg Martin, a former security architect for ArcSight. "You are definitely giving inner access and potential exploits to an adversary."
It's another example of the problems security companies face when they try to do business internationally, according to Reuters. "One reason Russia requests the reviews before allowing sales to government agencies and state-run companies is to ensure that U.S. intelligence services have not placed spy tools in the software."
Long-time Slashdot reader bbsguru has his own worries. "So, opening your code for review because it is demanded by a potential customer? What could possibly go wrong? HPE may find out, and the U.S. Military is among the many clients depending on the answer."
It's another example of the problems security companies face when they try to do business internationally, according to Reuters. "One reason Russia requests the reviews before allowing sales to government agencies and state-run companies is to ensure that U.S. intelligence services have not placed spy tools in the software."
Long-time Slashdot reader bbsguru has his own worries. "So, opening your code for review because it is demanded by a potential customer? What could possibly go wrong? HPE may find out, and the U.S. Military is among the many clients depending on the answer."
What treason? This story is utter garbage, HP weren't revealing US secrets, they were submitting their OWN software for review to win sales. Every large company does this for governments and sometimes private sector as well. Microsoft, IBM, Apple, Oracle etc etc all do this and if they didn't they would all be a fraction of the size they are now as none of them would get international government business.
You mean like the network connected smart HP photocopy/scanning machine that are almost everywhere in Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, and FedEx Offices (formerly Kinkos).
Russians having access to that would be some sweet revenge. After all, we used Xerox copiers and Xerox maintenance people to keep copies of all the documents Russian government officials photocopied for years.