IBM developerWorks: Open source software: Will it make me secure? | Linux Today

IBM developerWorks: Open source software: Will it make me secure?

Written By
Web Webster
Web Webster
Dec 24, 1999

[ Thanks to Nik
Shafiruddin
for this link. ]

“Will opening up your software improve its security? The main
benefit of open-source software as it relates to security is what’s
been called the “many eyeballs” phenomenon — letting more people
scrutinize your code makes it more likely that bugs, especially
security-related bugs, will be found and repaired in a more timely
manner. Certainly, this phenomenon can help you find problems in
your code that you otherwise may not have found. However,
there’s no guarantee that the people scrutinizing your open
source will find any security problems in your code, much less all
of them. Nor does it guarantee that anyone who does find security
problems will actually report them.”


Complete Story
.

Web Webster

Web Webster

Web Webster has more than 20 years of writing and editorial experience in the tech sector. He’s written and edited news, demand generation, user-focused, and thought leadership content for business software solutions, consumer tech, and Linux Today, he edits and writes for a portfolio of tech industry news and analysis websites including webopedia.com, and DatabaseJournal.com.

Linux Today Logo

LinuxToday is a trusted, contributor-driven news resource supporting all types of Linux users. Our thriving international community engages with us through social media and frequent content contributions aimed at solving problems ranging from personal computing to enterprise-level IT operations. LinuxToday serves as a home for a community that struggles to find comparable information elsewhere on the web.

Property of TechnologyAdvice. © 2026 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.