Air Force Sends Vendors On Security MissionAir Force Sends Vendors On Security Mission

Microsoft and other IT vendors must improve security standards or risk government intervention, Air Force CIO John Gilligan says. Coding errors in commercial software account for about 80% of system penetrations, he says, and "This is clearly a national security issue." Gilligan met with Microsoft executives last fall to discuss the problem. The vendor doesn't have worse problems than others, he says, but it's the Air Force's largest software supplier. Gilligan says he's sending the same message to other large suppliers such as Cisco Systems and Oracle. "They have the opportunity to show leadership in the industry."