Allchin Takes the Stand

Microsoft

Jim Allchin, group vice president for platforms at Microsoft, was questioned at length by states' attorney Kevin Hodges on Microsoft's security strategy and how it might affect remedies proposed by the states to punish Microsoft for its anticompetitive behavior.

One proposal laid out by the states is that Microsoft make publicly available its Windows operating system code for the next decade. The company has repeatedly said during the current phase of the trial that such a move would be tantamount to throwing away priceless intellectual property that Microsoft has spent untold dollars to develop.

Opening code pertaining to security features is a risky move, Allchin said to U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly. He explained that Microsoft took a hard look at the security features of its Windows operating system after a vulnerability in the software's Universal Plug and Play feature was publicized last December.

Hodges suggested that as Microsoft took steps to bolster its products' security--such as preventing certain pieces of code from being made public--it might then be in noncompliance with the states' recommendations.

Allchin replied that the portion of the states' proposal related to exposing code controlling user authentication, encryption and other security-related features could compromise the security of Microsoft's customers' PCs.

Microsoft's compliance team is "methodically walking through" each chunk of code in the OS, Allchin said, to ensure that the company complies with the proposed remedy. But the company puts its foot down at the exposure of certain elements of code, he said.

Allchin singled out the protocol controls related to message-queuing. If that portion of code was publicized, unethical hackers could take advantage of the weakness in the system. Allchin, noting that he had some trepidation about even alluding to the message-queuing flaw in court, said that Microsoft is in the process of correcting it.

Allchin said the choice to expose sensitive code was analogous to hanging your house keys outside your front door and telling everyone where they are.

"I don't expect [there will be a large number of [protocols that Microsoft would like to remain undisclosed, but those few are very important," Allchin said.

Allchin may provide additional testimony in a re-direct questioning period on Wednesday.