Security

If Open Source Software allows anyone to modify it, how can it possibly be secure?

Although you can view and modify the source code of Open Source Software that does not mean that the changes immediately become part of the program. The code must be linked and compiled into executable files that are then distributed and run. You control your executable files, so there is no danger of students modifying source code. It is highly unlikely that you will personally ever see the source code unless you specifically seek it out.

By the same token, inappropriate additions to the source code of Open Source Projects are not possible. The community stewards that control these projects review any additions to the official code of the project. For this reason, it is nearly impossible for unscrupulous people to sneak malicious code into the software.

Open Source Software is also often safer than commercial software because it plays by the rules of operating systems. Many pieces of commercial software implement powerful features that are nice and convenient, but this can create dangerous holes through which viruses can sneak into your system. Since most of these applications are not as widely used as their popular commercial counterparts, malicious coders rarely target Open Source Software.