SuSE Linux Enterprise Server 8 gets Common Criteria Certificate
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
This non-standard SuSE Security Announcement does not provide any details
about security incidents and is posted to suse-security-announce@suse.com
for your information. Read the full press release about the successful
Common Criteria Certification of the SuSE Linux Enterprise Server 8 below.
The SuSE Security website has been redesigned. To read more about the
certification (such as the Security Target), please direct your browser to
http://www.suse.de/security/
=============================================================================
IBM and SuSE Linux Earn First Security Certification of Linux
ARMONK, N.Y. and Oakland, CA, August 5, 2003 -- IBM and SuSE Linux today
announced that the two companies have achieved the first ever security
certification of Linux, taking the critical next step in the maturation of
Linux and enabling the adoption of Linux by governments and companies around
the world for mission critical environments.
IBM and SuSE Linux have achieved Common Criteria Security Certification for
SuSE Linux Enterprise Server 8 running on IBM eServer xSeries. The Common
Criteria (CC) is an internationally recognized ISO standard (ISO 15408) used
by the Federal government and other organizations to assess security and
assurance of technology products. The CC provides a standardized way of
expressing security requirements and defines the respective set of rigorous
criteria by which the product will be evaluated. It is widely recognized
among IT professionals, government agencies, and customers as a seal of
approval for mission-critical software.
"We are pleased that Linux has reached this important security milestone
through the joint efforts of IBM and SuSE," said Fritz Schulz, Defense
Information Systems Agency. "The Common Criteria certification of Linux
will be a critical factor as Linux is applied to mission critical
environments."
SuSE Linux Enterprise Server 8 on IBM eServer xSeries has earned an
Evaluation Assurance Level 2+ certification, commonly referred to as EAL2.
IBM and SuSE also announced today that the companies have filed for a higher
level of security certification for Linux, the Controlled Access Protection
Profile with EAL3+ across the IBM eServer product line, which is expected
later this year.
In addition to the Common Criteria certification, SLES 8 on IBM eServer
platforms will meet the Common Operating Environment (COE) standard later
this year. This will lead to a product that simultaneously meets Common
Criteria and COE requirements. This standard, unique to the US Department of
Defense (DoD), addresses functionality and interoperability requirements for
commercially acquired IT products. The COE specification is used to verify
the look and feel and function of software products as they are joined with
government customized code. The COE is broadly recognized as a standard
computing environment across the U.S. Government command and control
systems.
"IBM and SuSE's landmark decision to submit the SuSE Linux Enterprise Server
product to Common Criteria testing challenges the view of many skeptics that
open source systems could not withstand such testing due to the difficulty
of establishing processes in an open-source environment. This announcement
demonstrates IBM's commitment to enterprise infrastructure that is secure,
cost effective and open," said IBM Senior Vice President of Technology and
Manufacturing, Nicholas Donofrio. "With this announcement, we continue to
build upon our commitment to delivering Common Criteria certification across
the IBM eServer platforms. Most importantly, the Common Criteria
certification further validates the security and quality of open source
software, not only for Global Government, but for other industries with
critical security requirements."
"SuSE is the world's only open source operating system manufacturer which has
technically demonstrated Common Criteria proficiency that can control and
minimize security risks through a comprehensive quality assurance process,"
said Richard Seibt, Chief Executive Officer, SuSE Linux. "The Common
Criteria evaluation marks yet another first for SuSE, and will further
reassure companies of the high quality and security of the SuSE Linux
Enterprise Server."
Sponsored by IBM, the evaluation was completed by atsec information security
GmbH, one of the world's leading vendor-independent IT security consulting
companies, accredited in Germany by the Federal Office for Information
Security (BSI).
Under Common Criteria, products are evaluated against strict standards for
various features, such as the development environment, security
functionality, the handling of security vulnerabilities, security related
documentation and product testing. In certifying SLES 8 on IBM xSeries,
atsec information security GmbH evaluated how SuSE Linux develops, tests and
maintains its products, as well as assessing the processes in place at the
company for handling security issues in its software. IBM and SuSE have
committed to release key components of the Common Criteria evaluation to the
CCeLinux Consortium and Linux development community, by the end of the
month. In addition, IBM and SuSE will continue to work with the open source
development community to actively enhance Linux security to make Linux even
more secure than it is today.
"We congratulate IBM and SuSE for their commitment to information security
as evidenced by the recent successful evaluation and certification of SuSE
Linux Enterprise Server 8. This Linux server product joins a growing list of
commercial products evaluated under the international security standard
Common Criteria---providing greater assurance in the component products
used to build more secure information systems for the federal government,"
said Ron S. Ross, Ph.D., National Institute of Standards and Technology.
In addition to IBM's ongoing commitment to accelerate the development and
certification of Linux as a secure, industrial strength operating system,
IBM will continue to invest in ongoing certifications for new and existing
IBM products. Common Criteria certification is anticipated for IBM's premier
virtualization technology, z/VM, in the upcoming year. z/VM allows
mainframe customers to run tens to hundreds of instances of the Linux
operating system on a single IBM zSeries server. IBM's suite of middleware
products are also in line for Common Criteria certification on Linux. IBM
Directory has just completed evaluation under the Common Criteria. WebSphere
Application Server and Tivoli Access Manager are in evaluation today, and
several other Software Group products are being prepared to enter the
evaluation process.
About IBM
IBM is the world's largest information technology company, with 80 years of
leadership in helping businesses innovate. Drawing on resources from across
IBM and key IBM Business Partners, IBM offers a wide range of services,
solutions and technologies that enable customers, large and small, to take
full advantage of the new era of e-business. For more information about IBM
and Linux, visit www.ibm.com/linux.
About SuSE Linux
SuSE Linux is the international technology leader and solutions provider in
Open Source operating system software. SuSE's unique expertise in Linux and
its largest development team worldwide dedicated to Open Source software has
contributed to the recognition of SuSE as the most complete Linux solution
available today. SuSE Linux is a privately held company focused entirely on
supporting the Linux community and Open Source development.
###
SuSE is a registered trademark of SuSE Linux AG. Linux is a registered
trademark of Linus Torvalds. All other trademarks mentioned herein are the
property of their respective owners.
IBM, the IBM logo, and the IBM e-business Logo are registered trademarks of
International Business Machines Corporation.
Regards,
Roman Drahtmueller,
SuSE Security.
- --
- -
| Roman Drahtmüller
participants (1)
-
Roman Drahtmueller