germans .mil punts US software for security reasons

[Blank Frank]

http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/4/17679.html


German armed forces ban MS software, citing NSA snooping
                      By: John Lettice
                      Posted: 17/03/2001 at 18:59 GMT

                      The German foreign office and Bundeswehr are
pulling the plugs on Microsoft
                      software, citing security concerns, according to
the German news magazine
                      Der Spiegel. Spiegel claims that German security
authorities suspect that the
                      US National Security Agency (NSA) has 'back door'
access to Microsoft
                      source code, and can therefore easily read the
Federal Republic's deepest
                      secrets.

                      The Bundeswehr will no longer use American
software (we surmise this
                      includes Larry and Scott as well) on computers
used in sensitive areas. The
                      German foreign office has meanwhile put plans for
videoconferencing with its
                      overseas embassies on hold, for similar reasons.
Under secretary of state
                      Gunter Pleuger is said by Spiegel to have
discovered that "for technical
                      reasons" the satellite service that was to be used
was routed via Denver,
                      Colorado.

                      According to a colleague of Pleuger's this meant
that the German foreign
                      services "might as well hold our conferences
directly in Langley." We're not
                      entirely sure whose interesting video conferencing
via satellite service has a
                      vital groundstation in Denver, but we note that
Pleuger seems to have gleaned
                      this information from a presentation held earlier
this month in Berlin by, er,
                      Deutsche Telekom.

                      Which just happens, along with Siemens, to have
picked up the gig. The two
                      companies have supplanted Microsoft (and anything
else American) and will
                      be producing a secure, home-grown system that the
German military can be
                      confident in.

                      Related link:
                      Spiegel story (in German)