Do 'irresponsible' security researchers help or hinder?

Source: ZDNet.co.uk - Posted by Benjamin D. Thomas

To many software makers and security consultants, flaw finder David Aitel is irresponsible. The 20-something founder of vulnerability assessment company Immunity hunts down security problems in widely used software products. But unlike an increasing number of researchers, he does not share his findings with the makers of the programs he examines.

Last week, Immunity published an advisory highlighting four security holes in Apple Computer's Mac OS X -- vulnerabilities that the company had known about for seven months but had kept to itself and its customers. "I don't believe that anyone has an obligation to do quality control for another company," Aitel said. "If you find out some information, we believe you should be able to use that information as you wish."

Read this full article at ZDNet.co.uk

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