courtesy of Gibson Research Corporation:
"First two targets of new $5 Million "Fink Fund"
created to aid law enforcement's pursuit of
malware authors and perpetrators.
In a recent press conference, Microsoft was joined by the FBI,
the U.S. Secret Service, and Interpol to announce the establishment of
the "Anti-Virus Reward Program", initially funded by $5 million of
Microsoft petty cash ...
My own take on a "bounty" . . . is that $250,000 is a lot of money.
Since malware authors operate in communities, and want to talk and
share among themselves, placing a bounty on the heads of those who
create successful malware will dramatically change the dynamics of that
community overnight.
I was unhappy to see Microsoft start charging for technical support,
since Windows bugs should not create a profit center. Similarly,
there's a concern that threatening malware authors — which is easy and
inexpensive — may replace true security in Windows — which is difficult
and expensive. Such bounties, while arguably effective, focus upon the
symptoms rather than curing the cause. The long-term result will be
lower Windows security leveraged by a deeper and more determined
malware underground."
8:54:05 AM 
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