[clug] Any Public Service organisations using Linix desktop and Open Office?

[Kim Holburn]

Evaluation assurance level 1 (EAL1) - functionally tested
Evaluation assurance level 2 (EAL2) - structurally tested
Evaluation assurance level 3 (EAL3) - methodically tested and checked
Evaluation assurance level 4 (EAL4) - methodically designed, tested,  
and reviewed
Evaluation assurance level 5 (EAL5) - semiformally designed and tested
Evaluation assurance level 6 (EAL6) - semiformally verified design and  
tested
Evaluation assurance level 7 (EAL7) - formally verified design and  
tested

Wow, Windows is methodically designed, tested and reviewed?

I seem to remember that to get to CC on a system you have to seriously  
tie the system down.  (ie
"it should only be considered secure in the assumed, specified  
circumstances, also known as the evaluated configuration, specified by  
Microsoft"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Criteria#Value_of_Certification)

   I wonder if the systems in use in the PS are tied down correctly ie  
are actually running at EAL4+ or are just potentially running CC and  
it's just being used as a way to exclude linux?

On 2008/Jul/02, at 8:41 AM, Chris Wallis wrote:

> I can say with out a doubt there is no Linux desktops in a Federal  
> Public
> Service environment due to the lack of desktop distributions that  
> has been
> certified under Common Criteria evaluation. (See
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Criteria,
> http://www.dsd.gov.au/infosec/evaluation_services/aisep_pages/aisep.html
> and http://www.commoncriteriaportal.org/). The only distribution  
> that has
> Common Criteria certification that I know of for a Linux  
> Distribution is
> both SUSE Enterprise and RHEL. The full list of certified OS's can be
> found here - http://www.commoncriteriaportal.org/products_OS.html#OS.
>
> As for open office I am not sure about but with MS Office's new XML  
> format
> causing havoc where I work. I would not be suprize people still  
> using old
> versions of MS Office with Sun's ODF plugin installed. But surely  
> ODF is
> the way to go and not docx or what ever the MS format is?
>
> I say would be a advantage anyhow with government information in a  
> open
> format. So you could utilize in house software to process  
> information with
> assurance that the whole ODF specification is in the public domain.  
> (Specs
> are good!)
>
> But a tad sad that not how public service works.
>
> On Wed, July 2, 2008 8:36 am, jhock wrote:
>> Hi All,
>>
>> Does anyone know of any Public Service organisation(s) that uses  
>> Linux
>> for its desktop and Open Office?  I'm interested to see how many
>> organisations have come to their senses.
>>
>> Thanks.
>>
>>
>> John

--
Kim Holburn
IT Network & Security Consultant
Ph: +39 06 855 4294  M: +39 3494957443
mailto:kim at holburn.net  aim://kimholburn
skype://kholburn - PGP Public Key on request

Democracy imposed from without is the severest form of tyranny.
                           -- Lloyd Biggle, Jr. Analog, Apr 1961