Microsoft To Share Windows Source Code With Indian Army

The Indian Army will be using proprietary Windows source code of Microsoft with an aim to develop Secure Operating System.

“Microsoft has agreed to give the source code. Selection of a secure operating system is on,” an Army officer was quoted as saying by Deccan Herald on February 3.

Access to the source code will assist the Army to make its software more impregnable to cyber attacks. Indian Army takes every precaution in the book to secure its systems while expanding its digital footprint.

At the core of the digital backbone, lies a high bandwidth Army data network that has connected almost 2500 Army units all over the country. Several software and applications are being developed to improve the communications between the ranks.

But live streaming of the operations is still not on the cards. As a large number of IT hardware is manufactured in China, the defence forces have a screening system in place to check the presence of any hidden malware.

Sharing of the Windows source code was a matter of contention as the US firm had refused to part with the code to Indian government agencies in the past.

With the entry of the Linux in the Indian market more than a decade ago, Microsoft had stated it was willing to discuss source code sharing issues with the Indian government.