But he did explain that the NIPC has never seen an effort this big. Although the commission says it's receiving cooperation from Russian and Ukrainian authorities, neither nation has a reputation for stellar law enforcement. First of all, software companies that fail to safeguard their products should be subject to legal action for damages, says Gilligan. At the same time, they should help create better solutions to the existing system of applying patches to flawed programs. The complexities inherent in mixing and matching different software systems funds dozens of multibillion-dollar consulting companies.
Every systems administrator is the equivalent of the head of maintenance for an airline.
His job is to not only maintain the planes, but create the blueprints for the planes, too. But building in safety measures need not be so heavyhanded. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is already testing a system called SafePatch that would automate the patching process and smooth over many of the conflicts inherent in the process. Merchants that don't measure up could get fined. Meanwhile, software-industry efforts to obtain even stronger legal protections against lawsuits have ground to a halt, with only Maryland and Virginia agreeing to pass these oppressive statutes.