OpenOffice security is questioned

French researchers have pinpointed some security issues, but OpenOffice.org says the only bug discovered has already been fixed

A report into the security of OpenOffice has caused a stir in the open source community by highlighting six security “issues” around the open source office suite.

OpenOffice has said only one actual bug was discovered, which has been fixed already. But the research, by the French Ministry of Defence, also points out that many security flaws have already been discovered in Microsoft Office applications, claiming that these are “easily transportable to OpenOffice”.

According to the report, titled “In-depth analysis of the viral threats with OpenOffice.org documents”, this means that the “general security of OpenOffice is insufficient”, Infoworld reported.

The report goes on to counter claims from the open source community that OpenOffice is inherently more secure than Microsoft’s Office products. “The viral hazard attached to OpenOffice.org is at least as high as that for the Microsoft Office suite, and even higher when considering some… aspects,” the researchers wrote.

Full story: ZDNet UK