Print - Security Guru Leaves Microsoft

Amid the major shake-ups in management at Microsoft, one of the company's more notable security guru's, Jesper Johansson, announced that he is leaving the company to work for the online retailer giant Amazon.com. Johansson said that as of September 5 he will become the Prinicipal Security Program Manager at Amazon.

Reflecting on his past 5 years of employment at Microsoft, Johansson wrote in an email to Microsoft employees (part of which was posted to his blog ), "This was a very difficult decision for me and has taken a long time to make. All in all, I have had a great five years to look back at. So much has changed in security at the company since I came here. It has been a remarkable ride to see the turn-around and having been able to play part of if for this long. The hardest part of this transition will be not being part of this ride any longer and not being able to work with all the great people I have worked with here."

During his time at Microsoft Johansson served as a Senior Security Strategist in the company's security technology unit. Johansson also co-authored a book, "Protect Your Windows Network," with Steve Riley who also works in Microsoft's security technology unit. Mark Russinovich, who recently joined Microsoft as part of the acquisition of Winternals and Sysinternals , said of the book that "Jesper and Steve have done an outstanding job of covering the myriad of issues you must deal with to implement an effective network security policy. If you care about security this book is a must have."

Wha? Someone left Microsoft and bonch hasn't posted that MS is dying yet? Did Apple just take over MS's marketshare when we had our heads turned? Whoa ... hold on hold on hold the f u c k on... I think we spend too much time worring over this guy. I admit, his ravings are amusing and I come here for his free entertainment but man. I can't believe one, COUNT 'EM: ONE, anti-MS guy has us all up in arms and on the defensive on a consitant basis. That kinda makes us more sad than him.

http://finance.myway.com/jsp/nw/nwdt_rt.jsp?section=news&feed=bus&src=202&news_id=bus-wen3356&date=20060803 Hahaha...Apple is a relic of the 80’s and DYING. It is used by anti-establishment teenagers and pseudo-intellectual college-dropouts. A Mac is only good for making a compilation of music to get stoned with and saying “NO!” to the man. (Remember: You are unique…just like everyone else). Windows is for business applications on enterprise architecture. See you at the local steakhouse my Microsoft rep took me to eat for the million dollar contract we just signed including $20k per processor for a SQL2005 license for a 6-node 64-bit cluster. Hmm. How many iMacs would have to be sold for a crazy profit margin like that?

Paul, why not report on the numerous security gurus who have *joined* Microsoft recently? Here's two examples: 1. Adam Shostack (http://www.emergentchaos.com/archives/2006/06/im_joining_microsoft.html). One blogger even mentions hell possibly freezing over (http://www.discourse.net/archives/2006/06/adam_shostack_joins_microsoft.html). 2. James Whittaker, who "most recently worked as a professor of computer science at Florida Tech where he ran a huge software security research team. James created the “How to Break…” book series with Addison Wesley." (http://blogs.msdn.com/michael_howard/archive/2006/05/05/590906.aspx) So, yes, people do leave Microsoft--they're a big company! But people join Microsoft as well. And the addition of the two I mentioned above is huge--Shostack is well-known for being very critical of Microsoft, and Whittaker is a well-known securtiy author. Microsoft's dedication to security is getting stronger every day, yet the media seems to only focus on the bad things. Not just focusing on security bugs, but on *one* security expert leaving. Never mind the fact that numerous experts have *joined* in the past months and years--that fact gets hardly a mention.

"So, yes, people do leave Microsoft--they're a big company! But people join Microsoft as well. And the addition of the two I mentioned above is huge--Shostack is well-known for being very critical of Microsoft, and Whittaker is a well-known securtiy author." Actually, that's what I was wondering about. All these journalists and analysts talk about people who are leaving the company. There's hardly any mention of people who join MS. This does give the impression that Microsoft is in deep trouble and gives some credibility to bonch's "Microsoft is dying" theory.

Shostack and Whittaker were both covered by the media. Maybe you just missed it. Microsoft isn't dying but they do have serious problems. Longhorn was supposed to have shipped in 2003. Now it's 2006 and it still isn't ready. Go find any other company that's 3 years late on their flagship product and see if the analysts don't talk about them the same way.

"Microsoft isn't dying but they do have serious problems." They ARE dying. They're irrelevant now. The only reason people continue to use Windows and Office is because their apps and documents are compatible with them, not because they choose to. That's an important thing to remember. Nobody chooses to use the crappy Windows operating system. They're forced to tolerate it because it comes installed on their PC. Vista is more of the same, and is beginning to look like a buggy toy OS. Even Paul Thurrott says Vista is nowhere near ready.

People come and people go all the time. That is a fact of the real business world...just like mis-stating profit!!! There goes all of that profit from the 12% market share!!! http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,206993,00.html --tayme

" Nobody chooses to use the crappy Windows operating system." That comment is so stupid and idiotic that I refuse to give it a decent response. Definition of a troll (wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_troll) "In Internet terminology, a troll is someone who comes into an established community such as an online discussion forum, and posts inflammatory, rude, repetitive or offensive messages designed intentionally to annoy or antagonize the existing members or disrupt the flow of discussion, including the personal attack of calling others trolls." Which of the above posts comes from a troll?

"All in all, I have had a great five years to look back at. So much has changed in security at the company since I came here." BWAHAHAHAHAHA 2001 was known as "The Year of the Virus" ( http://antivirus.about.com/od/virusdescriptions/a/2001virus.htm ), so perhaps if you're comparing 2006 to 2001, you might be able to make that point. Still, the fact remains that "Microsoft Security" is the oxymoron of the industry, and if you call security problems that cost industries Billions of dollars a year in lost productivity "progress"...well, we know who's *really* drinking from the Flavor-Aid bucket, don't we? What's even more laughable is that Amazon would hire a security expert from Microsoft to serve as "Prinicipal Security Program Manager". That's a bit like hiring an alcoholic to run a liquor store.

BONCH! I told you not to show those auditors the books. You were supposed to burn them with the ehat of a MacBook Pro. When they're carting me off to prison I expect you to come along so I can trade you for cigarettes. http://apple.slashdot.org/apple/06/08/04/0513233.shtml