[ubuntu-uk] Ubuntu (linux) vulnerabilty?? Comment please

[Robert McWilliam]

On Wed, 20 Jun 2007 12:48:58 +0100
alan c <aeclist at candt.waitrose.com> wrote:
> Would there be a procedure to use browser/s with a different 'user'
> password, with much lower privileges than the normal user, so that
> when browsing the 'user-low' being used is not allowed to download
> anything knowingly or not (without password)? Accepted that the the
> user-low is still using a browser which may have weaknesses.
> 

Yes. I just found this procedure by playing around so there may be a
better one. 

First you need to have another user to run firefox as, and you need to
tell the xserver that local users can connect to it (not just the user
who owns it) with:
	xhost +local:

then you can start firefox as another user with:
	gksudo -u browser firefox

where browser should be replaced with the user you created for
browsing. 

You can play with what the new user is allowed to do to limit the
damage that taking over firefox can do.

The same procedure can be used to run any app with reduced or escalated
privileges.

________________________________________________________
Robert McWilliam     rmcw at allmail.net    www.ormiret.com

Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age 18.
	-- Albert Einstein