Source code controversies not just about security

In February 2004, Microsoft confirmed that several million lines of Windows NT and Windows 2000 source code had been leaked and had made its way to the public on Internet peer-to-peer networks and relay chats. Security analysts were widely quoted as wondering how and if the stolen source code would be used for malicious intent and how widespread any attacks on the network might be. The immediate discussions about the incidents might have focused on the most obvious implications of network vulnerabilities - those more easily discovered in readable source code than in compiled operating system or application code - the events responsible for those discussions could also be fairly narrowly defined. If someone stole proprietary source code, or otherwise let proprietary source code be leaked for malicious purposes, he or she was clearly in the wrong. But stemming such leaks, especially in larger companies that design and write some of the world's most used and critical software, can be incredibly difficult.