Root account

[Brian Fahrlander]

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Pete Holsberg wrote:
> Brian Fahrlander keyed the following on 4/18/2007 8:27 PM:

> logwatch? Where do I get it?

   It's in the repos.
> 
> 
>> you'll see just how bad it is.  It's also a good reason to use
>> usernames with parts of the first AND last names, not just "george" and
>> a password of "password".  They try them by the millions per day,
>> literally.
>>   
> 
> That's very interesting. I used to admin a Unix system -- started out in 
> an AT&T 3B2 and ended up on a Sparc running Solaris. Usernames were 
> assigned by a script; first 7 chars of the last name plus first initial 
> was the default simplest case, but friends got whatever they wanted, 
> usually their initials. I've had no reports of any successful break-ins!

    Ah, the 3B2; I remember hearing you'd GET one of those things, and
500 acres of land, if you'd move to Australia where they were trying to
set up a think-tank of some sort.

    If your Sun box isn't on the net, you probably won't notice them.
But every night-or-two I get a boatload of requests, which are all
meaningless, since I use RSA-keys-only.  But for those that don't know,
they need to.

> None reported so far.

    Let's try to keep it that way.  :>  The script idea is a great
thing; when these guys try, they try several hundred combinations which
usually include "admin" and "test".  I actually got compromised on one
of those, once.  :/

>> I've used Unix since 1989; trust me- great idea to keep it the
>> default way.
> 
> Got you by 3 years! :-) But I'm just getting back into it after a 
> Windows-only period of more than 6 years!!

    Well, I learned, one autumn day that Unix was WAY advanced over DOS;
I worked out a text file containing my resume and "lp filename" and
waited for the huge daisywheel to start flying.  A guy came looking for
me, "Hey- did one of you send a print to our New Mexico location?"

   :stun:

    We were still salivating over one of the contractors getting a new
386 with an entire FOUR megs of ram....and this machine's connected
cross-country!

    My start in computers was wiring Z80's in my bedroom...I used to
strain to listen to other people who said the word "computer" in the
restaurants....now I cringe when I hear it; it's always a virus.  :/

    It's been a long, strange trip, I can tell ya that much.

- --
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 Brian Fahrländer                 Christian, Conservative, and Technomad
 Evansville, IN                              http://Fahrlander.net/brian
 ICQ: 5119262                         AOL/Yahoo/GoogleTalk: WheelDweller
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