Word from Microsoft's chief technical officer Craig Mundie that the company "may offer security abilities on a paid basis" makes me wonder: How long will it be until MS sells you only as much--or as little--security as you are willing to pay for? Think of it, Microsoft could grade the security of its products the same way the USDA grades beef! Its "choice" server software would be sold only to the finest corporations at premium prices. And its "prime" operating systems would go to people who are willing to pay a little more for a better grade of protection than a "select" version of Windows XP that might come on a new PC.
As Microsoft products age and their level of security declines, this grading process might actually make sense. The newest servers and operating systems would obviously be the safest; if they were released in large quantities, hackers might not be able to find their vulnerabilities and exploit them so quickly.
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