Tags: Microsoft

Microsoft confirmed National Security Agency’s involvement in development of Windows Vista

Software Company Microsoft has confirmed that the National Security Agency (NSA) stepped in to help them develop a configuration of its next-generation operating system to meet the requirements of the U.S. Department of Defense.

NSA Spokesman Ken White added in a statement that it was the first time that the agency worked with a company prior to the release of an operating system.

NSA helped the company in making sure that the operating system product was both secure and compatible with existing government software.

White added: “This allows us to ensure that the off-the-shelf security configuration that the DOD customer receives is at a level that meets our standards. It just makes a lot more sense to be involved up-front, than it does to have the tail wag the dog.”

This involvement of NSA in the development of Vista was first reported in a news item in the Washington Post.

Marc Rotenberg, executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) spoke on this report: “There could be some good reason for concern. Some bells are going to go off when the government’s spy agency is working with the private sector’s top developer of operating systems.”