Trade-Offs to Consider Before Formulating a Solution

Before formulating strategies to combat e-mail viruses, it is important to understand four underlying trade-offs.

Plugging a Security Hole Can Mean Giving Up Functionality

Viruses work by exploiting bugs in a program, vulnerabilities in its design, human nature, or combinations thereof. If a virus exploits a bug, Microsoft and most other software vendors give them high priority and fix them as soon as they can. But plugging a security hole created by a productivity feature generally means losing the functionality offered by that feature.

Microsoft, vendors of Microsoft-compatible applications, and system implementers frequently add features or options that may increase security risks. While many critics take potshots at Microsoft for exposing features that viruses can exploit, the full picture is more complex. Recognizing that its broad base of users have diverse needs and budgets, Microsoft provides features, configuration options, and tools that allow users and organizations to make their own choices when balancing security, cost, compatibility, and functionality. However, tight security never happens out of the box—organizations must understand and weigh the options to formulate acceptable policies that balance security and functionality. For example, customers must decide whether they want to pay the higher price, both in cost and complexity, of Windows NT or Windows 2000, to gain the higher security that these operating systems offer over Windows 95/98.