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Anti-Censorship Efforts And Port Scanning
scubacuda writes "According to Wired, the University of Toronto's Internet Censorship Explorer permits people test the limits of national and organizational Internet-blocking schemes. Users enter a target URL (and a country), and the software then scans the ports of available servers in that country, looking for open ones to connect on from behind that country's firewall. Many consider port scanning a gray area, as it's often used by various hackers to find vulnerabilies that can be exploited."
> If you come to my house and try all the doors to see what's open to the general
> public, you'll probably get shot or at least get to see how well your head is
> capable of decelerating a baseball bat.
Except your home isnt a public place.
Your home is a private place, for you.
So to extend that to computers.
Your PC behind a firewall is a private place.
Did anyone claim it was OK to attempt to break in through a firewall?
No. So please stop arguing that point.
A webserver is indeed a public place.
Its more compared to the general use lodge at the park down the street.
And let me tell you, if you attacked me while i was attempting to see if the doors were open on that public general use lodge, you would clearly be in the wrong for doing so.
When you run a webserver, you are allowing the general public. If you dont want the general public there, take measures, ANY MEASURES AT ALL, to stop them!
Leaving a webserver on a public network with no filters, firewall rules, IP access lists, or authentication, can not in any way be argued as taking measures to prevent access to it. You wouldnt have a leg to stand on.
Its akin to putting a tarp down on the ground, setting out your , no walls or screens or covers or anything, then complaining when people look at that is laying out in the open.
If you dont want that stuff being looked at, dont put it there in public.
Same difference with a webserver.
As for your comment of not polite. Inviting people into your home, then shooting them for tresspassing is what _I_ call impolite. That is basically what you are trying to justify being OK.