Comments on: The effectiveness of “security through obscurity” http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntucat/the-effectiveness-of-security-through-obscurity/ Random musings from the radical feminist Christian antiracist left - some having to do with Ubuntu Fri, 19 Mar 2010 00:45:46 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Simon http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntucat/the-effectiveness-of-security-through-obscurity/comment-page-1/#comment-2089 Simon Sat, 23 Aug 2008 15:49:32 +0000 http://ubuntucat.wordpress.com/?p=407#comment-2089 > In Windows, if you need emergency administrative access, you need to boot a CD I haven't used Windows for a while, but IIRC, with XP, this was only the case with the Professional and Server editions. The Home edition was configured such that Safe Mode (F8 during bootup) gave you admin access, in order to allow Grandma's forgotton login password to be fixed with a minimum of fuss. I don't know whether this has changed in Vista, though. > In Windows, if you need emergency administrative access, you need to boot a CD

I haven’t used Windows for a while, but IIRC, with XP, this was only the case with the Professional and Server editions. The Home edition was configured such that Safe Mode (F8 during bootup) gave you admin access, in order to allow Grandma’s forgotton login password to be fixed with a minimum of fuss. I don’t know whether this has changed in Vista, though.

]]> By: ubuntucat http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntucat/the-effectiveness-of-security-through-obscurity/comment-page-1/#comment-1928 ubuntucat Sat, 02 Aug 2008 05:21:44 +0000 http://ubuntucat.wordpress.com/?p=407#comment-1928 Good catch, mc. Glad I'm no longer an English teacher. How humiliating! Good catch, mc. Glad I’m no longer an English teacher. How humiliating!

]]> By: mc http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntucat/the-effectiveness-of-security-through-obscurity/comment-page-1/#comment-1927 mc Sat, 02 Aug 2008 02:57:30 +0000 http://ubuntucat.wordpress.com/?p=407#comment-1927 Also, typo: "door to your house under your welcome mat." Also, typo: “door to your house under your welcome mat.”

]]> By: mc http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntucat/the-effectiveness-of-security-through-obscurity/comment-page-1/#comment-1926 mc Sat, 02 Aug 2008 02:55:51 +0000 http://ubuntucat.wordpress.com/?p=407#comment-1926 The way I see it, hiding recovery mode would be a terrible idea, because obscuring actual, useful tools will contibute to a person's headache when they have data loss. Making somebody totally unfamiliar with the command line edit the grub line and append 'single' just seems like something which, given a large enough sample size, will lead to some failures. Security through obscurity can be used in combination with "real" security in reducing the headaches of a sysadmin or desktop user, but it's nothing I'd want to sacrifice serious functionality for. The way I see it, hiding recovery mode would be a terrible idea, because obscuring actual, useful tools will contibute to a person’s headache when they have data loss. Making somebody totally unfamiliar with the command line edit the grub line and append ’single’ just seems like something which, given a large enough sample size, will lead to some failures.

Security through obscurity can be used in combination with “real” security in reducing the headaches of a sysadmin or desktop user, but it’s nothing I’d want to sacrifice serious functionality for.

]]> By: cyberdork33 http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntucat/the-effectiveness-of-security-through-obscurity/comment-page-1/#comment-1925 cyberdork33 Fri, 01 Aug 2008 19:41:46 +0000 http://ubuntucat.wordpress.com/?p=407#comment-1925 I keep my door under my rug... what's wrong with that ;) I keep my door under my rug… what’s wrong with that ;)

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