🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <9302314.5488@mulga.cs.mu.OZ.AU> carl@montebello.ecom.unimelb.EDU.AU (Carl Brewer) writes:
|>In article <1jotp8INNiu@matt.ksu.ksu.edu> probreak@matt.ksu.ksu.edu (James Michael Chacon) writes:
|>>senetza@sigma.uleth.ca (Len Senetza) writes:
|>>
|>>>this assumes that root has . in its path, and how many root accounts
|>>>out there do?
|>>
|>>A scenerio like this assumes that the sysadmin is a pretty trusting person
|>>and probably already has large security holes in the system.
|>
|>a scenario like this assumes that the sysadmin should not be a sysadmin.

Now, Remember that the majority of sysadmins are part-timers who have better
things to do in their company than tighten up the security holes that the
vendors leave in the systems they sell. In most small companies I have seen
where there are just a few Unix, VMS, OS/2, DOS, Mac or-whatever-boxes the
least computer-illiterate person is usually the person who is expected to
spend a couple of hours a day looking after the systems. It's unfair saying
that this sysadmin shouldn't be a sysadmin just because the vendors can't
be bothered making the systems more secure. Tell me the following: when I
install my shining new Sun desktop server option, is there a '.' in root's
path? Is there any access control on exported file systems? Is there a '+'
in /etc/hosts.equiv? The default security in a new installation should be
high, it then would be up to the sysadmin to open up his system to suit his
needs, instead of running the risk of having the system full of holes because
he hasn't known of them. If the system then was full of large security holes
I would agree with your statement, now you're shooting the pianist because
the piano-vendor sold the bar-owner a crap piano.



-- 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ove Hansen, Cisco Systems Europe                  | Mail: ohansen@cisco.com  
16, avenue du Quebec,   Z.A. de Courtaboeuf       | Tel:  +33 1 60 92 20 56
91961 Les Ulis cedex, France                      | Fax:  +33 1 69 28 83 26