If the USA wants secure copmuting infastructure, safe from "terrorist" attacks, they will resist this initiative, which would seem to be doomed anyway.

Any safety gained would be illusory. The assumption is that one of the "coalition" companies will find all the vulnerabilities... With the greatest respect to the old l0pthers, the companies involved have hardly been major contributors in this area - sure they release something every now and again, but for the main part they are busy keeping their vulnerability scanners up to date with the Joneses...

The true "hackers" (white, black or grey) will not sign (or be invited/allowed to sign) up to this - they're mostly teenagers, Uni-students or part-time players...

If you have any doubt, find and read ANY document describing the mindset of hackers - old school or new tech.

They will continue to "play" and find bugs. BugTraq et al will still publish what they find. (If not them, then phrack).

Microsoft have nothing to bribe them with - Pity the same can't be said about the government.

More worrying still is the notion of nation states or organised criminals finding vulnerabilities. They presumably already do, and don't release them. They will still find them, and will have a longer period of exclusivity...

I just *love* how the very people who made the internet as "safe" as it is today are now being told by business that their work is done - even though it is so oviously NOT.

Is it "profits before people"?

The DMCA will be seen in retrospect as the most anti-libertarian, short-sighted piece of legislation - a great example of legislation through ignorance, fear and lobbying.

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