Does Open Source make sense for security programs?

Open Source software is great when it comes to productivity applications. That’s because many different programmers can see the source code of an application and write plug-ins or suggest improvements to make the application more efficient and improve the users’ final experience. When talking about security though, do you really want hackers to see how your firewall or antivirus software works? Isn’t it a complete contradiction?

Clearly it’s not for some developers, as they believe in the efficiency that open source necessarily has. The advantage of having different programmers who can spot errors or weakness in the code is the great advantage of Open Source, even when it comes to security. As soon as a mistake or bug is spotted, it can be reported and fixed by the main developers who are taking care of the official distribution. It’s the principle of peer review; Open Source software undergoes a process of continuous improvement and frequent updates which leads to a more reliable product. The point Open Source supporters make is that knowing how something works doesn’t necessarily allow you to know how to crack it. Even if we know how a safe works, we will never be able to open it if it’s well designed.

If you want to give Open Source software security programs a try here’s a list of the most famous:

• Clamav
• Moonav
• Killtrojan
• Openantivirus

There are also other free solutions for your PC protection. Here’s the best free software selected for you:

Antivirus:

• Alwil Avast! 4.6 Home Edition
• Aviva AntiVir PersonalEdition Classic 7
• AVG 7 Free AntiVirus

Anti spyware:

• Adaware
• Spybot – Search & Destroy
• SUPERAntiSpyware

Anti-Trojan:

• a- squared

Firewall:

• ZoneAlarm