The legitimacy of the Hotmail audit will depend on the particular security issues the auditing firm is asked to test. Management makes some assertion and the acting firm attests to that assertion. Pilla said he couldn't comment on the specifics of the audit yet. We don't know what the process is, moving forward. He also wouldn't say whether the public would ever get to review the test conducted by the auditing firm.
Any reasonable person can take a look at what's going on right now and come to their own conclusion.
If you ask me personally, I think this is an example that the system worked. Whatever the outcome, it will no doubt be logged into any case histories seeking to build a case for or against self-regulation. Wired Digital Inc. All rights reserved.