The researcher added that the Month of Apple Bugs project succeeded in its original aim of raising the level of awareness around Mac security. "I would really hope that people got the point that there are most definitely some things under the OS X hood that need a closer look," Finisterre noted. Mac experts note that while the exploits discovered by the researchers were never known to have successfully compromised an Apple system, hundreds of thousands of Microsoft Windows systems were hijacked and used as part of "bot nets," or networks of compromised computers that together deliver millions of spam email messages across the globe, according to BBC News. Finisterre said Apple has become more open to discussing security issues, but that the company was uninterested in dialog regarding security matters in the past. "They have certainly given some extra efforts on the backend to open up lines of communication, at least with me," he said. "I chat quite regularly with some of the security engineers." Finisterre said there are no current plans for the MoAB website to continue its efforts, citing real life and the cost of living alongside the fact that the entire project was done for free. "If someone wanted to invest some of their own resources I would be more than willing to continue."