If that is the case, could this problem be solve by installing linux? I am not a linux fan, but the point of the source code being open and review by millions of people starts making me feeling more secure.
NSA does not need Microsoft's help to break into computers.
"National Security Administration doesn't need Microsoft to break into computers." vs "The National Security Administration doesn't need Microsoft to break into computers."
Too much of a tangent, perhaps?
I did enough research to conclude that it was not a settled issue. Its clear that if the initials were lower case and referred to a generic agency that deals with national security it would be "the national security agency" similar to the "the fishing tackle section of a sporting goods store." On the other hand a gander at DoD's style guide[1] makes it clear that they do not like the "the."
I'd love to see why you think its opposite. That's not dickish, that's a desire to answer a question that's been nagging me for a long time.
[1] http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/writing/Writing_St...
From the english.SX:
"Is it proper to use “the” before the name of a government organization?" http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/76976/is-it-prope...
"Using the definite article with acronyms and initialisms" http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/30596/using-the-d...
"Definite article with proper nouns, titles followed by a common noun" http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/2327/definite-art...
"The definite article usage with objects that have names" http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/16988/the-definit...
"Capitalising the definite article in names" http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/84288/capitalisin...
Similarly, "the Department of Defense", "the National Security Agency".
Don't believe it? See what the agency calls itself on its website: http://www.nsa.gov/
Though I do not think this story has anything to do with MAPP.
MAPP or no MAPP, Microsoft does not have the technical capability to produce reliable exploits for all of the vulnerabilities it's made aware of.
Also, we both know NSA has a (less-well-known) charter for coordinating vulnerability response and computer security across the agencies; NSA has a public huge defensive interest in this stuff as well.
NSA doesn't need Microsoft to enable it to break into arbitrary Windows machines. But it might need their help to keep up with every attack vector on Microsoft code, which is what you need to do if you're doing defensive work.
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20130614/02110223467/micros...
I'm not at all sure Linux is the solution; the only plausible culprit for whom that would be a barrier is a non-state actor doing a modern variety of "Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Becket). But the reported sophistication of the attack makes that less likely that previously speculated, and I assume that "Linux" is not a high enough barrier to a state actor.
It's the setup I'm using now.
If not, you're subject to a "black bag" job that could easily bypass all your protections, e.g. a physical key logger that would pick up your password/pass phrase that unlocks your disk encryption so you can use it.
Otherwise, do you surf the net from it? I don't take all your precautions, but I do run my browsers in a dedicated VM that has limited access to the rest of my infrastructure.
Pretty much. It's a single user MacBook Air, and I carry it with me at all times, never leaving it out or in the open, or even at home. For suspicious individuals, the CIA can obtain a warrant without notifying the individual, and search his/her apartment/home at convenient times when away, so I never leave it at home, either.
It's pretty much the only computing device I have that has highly sensitive data on it. I don't really care if they take my Kindle Fire; the only stuff on that is books and personal email.
It doesn't really matter, because I've also set up a randomizing encryption passcode generator that only works with a synthetic amino acid solution that corresponds to my genome that I carry in a vial around my neck. If under duress, all I have to do is break the vial, and the system will be impenetrable. I also have another sample of the synthesis in my home, but government people can only access it with a warrant -- which they probably won't have.