Binarycse Blog

Internet major Google is phasing out its internal use of Microsoft Windows operating system due to security concerns, which arose mainly after its operations were hacked recently.The directive to move to other operating systems had begun in January at Google, after its Chinese operations were hacked.

The move could effectively end the use of Windows at Google, which employs more than 10,000 workers internationally, the report added.

“We’re not doing any more Windows. It is a security effort,” FT quoted a Google employee as saying.

Another google employee said that many people have been moved away from [Windows] PCs, mostly towards Mac OS, following the attacks.

New people hired at Google are now given the option of using Apple’s Mac computers or PCs running the Linux operating system.

In early January, some new employees were still being allowed to install Windows on their laptops, but it was not an option for their desktop computers, the report added.
The May 31 Financial Times article quotes only anonymous Google sources, identifying them as several of Google’s 10,000 employees. FT reporters David Gelles and Richard Waters write: “Employees wanting to stay on Windows required clearance from ‘quite senior levels’, one employee said. ‘Getting a new Windows machine now requires CIO approval,’ said another employee.”

Google officials have not tacitly denied the Windows ban on work computers, issuing the following statement to the Reuters news agency: “We’re always working to improve the efficiency of our business, but we do not comment on specific operational matters.”

The FT calls Google’s anti-Windows policy “semi-formal” and said that some laptops of “new hires” were still being outfitted with Windows, but all internal desktop PCs for these employees would run non-Windows based operating systems.
Microsoft’s dominant operating system Windows and its leading Web browser Internet Explorer have a reputation for being vulnerable to attacks. Security experts point out that Microsoft’s market share dominance promises malware developers a significantly higher return on investment than the Mac OS platform, which owns 5 percent of the OS market. Other operating systems (including Mac OS) and Web browsers — including Google’s own Chrome Web browser — have also suffered from security vulnerabilities.