Linux Enhanced Security (SELinux) has been part of the main kernel for two decades to implement access control security policies. It is now widely used to improve the security of Linux servers and other systems.
Those new to Linux may not know that SELinux comes from the US National Security Agency (NSA). The new Linux 6.6 kernel, however, removes all references to the NSA.
The United States National Security Agency reportedly developed the original code for Security Enhanced Linux and was the primary original developer. The NSA has continued to contribute to SELinux over the years, and as its adoption has grown, other developers, both individual developers and organizations, have begun to help develop it.
But in the last decade a lot has been heard about the NSA due to various scandals, and some open source fans did not want the NSA's involvement in SELinux constantly making critical remarks. Although there are NSA developers still working on SELinux, starting with Linux 6.6, the "NSA" tags are removed - in part to make it seem like it's not just an NSA thing.
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Stephen Smalley said he changed "NSA SELinux" to simply "SELinux", stating "we've come a long way since the original NSA submission, and I think SELinux is a true community project at this point, so removing the NSA branding has meaning".
