, 2002-04-03
We all know that outdated network software is security hazard. The solution: hard-wired expiration codes that self-destruct an old program when it's past its prime.
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Death to Old Software
2002-04-03
Steve (1 replies)
Steve (1 replies)
Death to Old Software
2002-04-03
Anonymous (1 replies)
Anonymous (1 replies)
The point to Open Source, or at least the Freedom part of Open Source, is that you should not be forced into anything. This Freedom includes, among other unalienable rights, the right for a System Administrator to be stupid.
The use of aged software is not always stupid. While only slightly a security issue, I can think of many versions of Informix that I would rather be running than the latest.
Clearly there is a relationship between having a secure system and having a current one. Tools should be in place to assure this, and the article vaguely suggests where this should be, in the package management system. It should be easy, within a proper package management system, to determine the age of an installed package, to determine if a later version is available, and to warn on conditions around this. But, except at the users (read: System Administrator, or their management's) _SOLE_ discretion, should this ever be mandatory.
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Link to this comment: http://www.securityfocus.com/comments/columns/72/11626#11626