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Microsoft says that for its first 90 days, Vista was one of the most secure operating systems available.

There�s certainly a lot riding on Vista�s new security model. Microsoft believes that, with Vista, it has nailed the security lid tight down � and corporate organisations are watching to see just how true that is. And doubtless, in the background, hackers are working overtime to find and exploit any security vulnerabilities.

Microsoft Windows� security reputation is, sadly, a damaged one. Before SP2, Microsoft Windows XP was being attacked right, left and centre with all manner of viruses and spyware. SP2 showed that Microsoft was willing to play hard ball when it came to security � enforcing safety features and pushing users into applying security fixes. While things certainly got better, the problem wasn�t completely solved � a fact not lost on competitors such as Apple who made good PR by comparing their security records.

Microsoft has been very bullish about its security claims for Windows Vista � and, when you brush away most of the Vista interface gloss, the one rock-solid reason to be thinking about migrating to Vista is its improved security model.

Not that the new security model was without criticism. Top security companies felt that Microsoft had gone too far and made it difficult for them to add their products into Vista. Some thought that Vista�s security still wouldn�t be enough.

But so far, according to Microsoft, things are looking very bright indeed. For its first 90 days, Vista has suffered just five vulnerabilities � from which, at the time of writing this, one is already patched. Five issues might not sound too good � but let�s look at the competition. Windows XP itself was hit with 14 vulnerabilities in its first 90 days. Mac OS X (Tiger) had 27 (yes, that�s right, even according to Apple�s own figures), Red Hat Linux had 201 and SuSE Linux had 111.

It�s good reason for Microsoft to celebrate, though security companies are quick to point out some of the flaws in Microsoft�s reasoning. The main flaw is that the figures simply show the number of security issues, not the severity of them. Also, Vista�s 90 days since being launched doesn�t fairly compare with that of other products � since Vista was only available to corporate customers for the first 30 of those 90 days, which means that it wasn�t as �equally released� as the other operating systems.

Both of which are fair points. But another fair point is that Microsoft Windows is the most deployed and the most targeted operating system, so when you take into account the significantly larger user base and the considerably larger hacker focus, then Windows Vista is doing very well indeed. Although some have said that most hackers won�t have had access to Vista for the full 90 days, that�s hardly likely to be true � since Vista was subject to such a massive public beta programme.

In any event, at just 90 days since launch it�s far too early to tell how successful Microsoft has been with the Vista security model. Most corporate organisations are sticking with what they know � especially during Vista�s early days and while some security vendors have yet to release a full Vista update.

As with all software, time is likely to show that Windows Vista is a part of the journey, not the final destination. It�s very likely that, pushed on by its early success, and despite the critics, Microsoft will continue to harden Windows with further security features, making it better still � while it also refines some of the elements of Vista security which are still receiving bad press, such as User Account Control.

But it does show that Vista security is not just a step in the right direction � it�s quite a leap.


Source:e-academy - IT training news - Microsoft rates Vista as a security success