Why is India’s Defence Ministry ditching Microsoft Windows for Ubuntu-based Maya

India’s Defence Ministry has decided to replace Microsoft Operating System in all its computers that can connect to the Internet with Maya, an Ubuntu-based OS built locally. Cyber threats and malware India’s switch to Ubuntu-based Maya OS comes at a time when cyberspace is increasingly becoming vulnerable to malware and ransomware attacks. IT software provider SolarWinds’ network management software, Orion, deployed on hundreds of computers globally was used by hackers to plant malware masquerading as a software update from the company. “While the SolarWinds attack has brought home the graveness of the cyberthreat, the move to Maya underscores the Indian government’s emphasis on using open source software to build on the India stack model,” Sameer Patil, Sr.