Opinion: Blame the ‘WannaCry’ ransomware attack on our own NSA

To the editor: I think I have this right, but I’m not sure: (“The ‘WannaCry’ malware: A public service announcement indirectly from the NSA,” editorial, May 16)

Years ago, Microsoft released its Windows XP operating system, which turned out to have a flaw. Our own National Security Agency discovered that vulnerability and weaponized it, kind of like turning a vitamin-deficient food into a deadly poison.

Hackers stole the weapon, published it and then made something called “ransomware” out of it. Last week, it was set free into cyberspace to infect all the non-protected, non-updated, XP-operating computers around the world, which we now know included a considerable number of institutional and private systems.

Microsoft and its non-protected users must feel chagrined. The NSA, on the other hand, should feel nothing but shame.

John Pierson, Pasadena

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To the editor: If Microsoft were a car company and released a defective product, there would be mandatory recalls of nearly 20-year-old systems and millions of dollars in fines.

But, because Microsoft is a technology company, it whines about the government failing to subsidize its quality-control efforts.

Microsoft should be offering millions (or even billions) to the NSA for the work it may do to find these problems rather than abiding by its current policy of shifting the blame for its failures to others.

Keith Price, Los Angeles

The writer is a computer scientist.

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