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Secret Repairs Preceded TCP Flaw Release

Posted by michael on from the cover-your-assets dept.

efranco cuts and pastes: "Only the math had changed. But the emergence of a workable exploit for an old TCP security hole prompted a secret initiative to fix the Internet, giving network operators a week to secure vulnerable routers. The clandestine repair effort livened an already intense period for security pros already juggling a bevy of Windows security patches." We ran a story on a this a few days ago.

21 of 204 comments (clear)

  1. Good work, Al! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Funny


    Only a week? I'm impressed at the speed with which Al Gore addressed the issue.

  2. The Internet's broken? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    When will I be able to download a fixed version?

    1. Re:The Internet's broken? by lukewarmfusion · · Score: 4, Funny

      I'll have a copy on your desk by morning.

      I once had a woman ask me if I could speed the Internet up for her presentation. I told her I'd open the valve up a little bit, just for her. *big smile* I love helping customers.

    2. Re:The Internet's broken? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Ha!! I have you beat on that. I once finished upgrading the net in a bank. The receptionist comes up to me and tells me that the network is too fast her word processor is scrolling too fast. So I tie a knot in the network cable and plug it back into her net card. I AM, the king of customer satisfaction.

  3. Secret repairs! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    The best kind!

    "What are you doing?"

    "Can't tell you."

    "When will you be done?"

    "Can't say."

    "Is there anything you can tell me?"

    "This will save your life."

    "Really?"

    "No."

    1. Re:Secret repairs! by thelenm · · Score: 2, Funny

      ... "Okay, then you're fired."

      --
      Use Ctrl-C instead of ESC in Vim!
  4. It's the users' fault! by heironymouscoward · · Score: 4, Funny

    Any user without the technical competence to inspect and repair TCP/IP packets on the fly should not be allowed to use the Internet. Such vulnerabilities only exist because people too lazy and ignorant to download the patches for their Cisco routers!

    --
    Ceci n'est pas une signature
  5. Paradox by Prince+Vegeta+SSJ4 · · Score: 5, Funny
    The TCP issue publicized yesterday was publicly known as early as 1998

    Yesterday was 1998? Whew, I thought it was 2004 and 6 years of my life were wasted

    1. Re:Paradox by Ira+Sponsible · · Score: 2, Funny

      You are correct. It IS 2004. And the last six years of your life WERE wasted.

      --
      1.Netcraft confirms:In Soviet Russia all your base welcomes a beowolf cluster of CowboyNeal overlords. 2.? 3.Profit!!1!
  6. Hooray for editing! by consolidatedbord · · Score: 3, Funny

    "We ran a story on a this a few days ago." What's a "this" ?

    --
    while true ; do echo this is my sig; done
    1. Re:Hooray for editing! by s20451 · · Score: 4, Funny

      It's a pointer to self. Useful for creating dupe stories:

      story_type dupe = this->return_story();

      --
      Toronto-area transit rider? Rate your ride.
    2. Re:Hooray for editing! by prescot6 · · Score: 2, Funny

      "We ran a story on a this a few days ago." What's a "this" ?

      It makes more sense if you read it like Mario would.

    3. Re:Hooray for editing! by mph · · Score: 1, Funny
      "We ran a story on a this a few days ago."
      I just figured that the Italian Chef from The Simpsons had been demoted to Slashdot Editor.
  7. Re:"super" exploits by The+Angry+Mick · · Score: 4, Funny

    What is a "super" exploit???

    It's the one with the red "S" on its chest . . .

    Ba dum bump.

    --

    I'm not tense. I'm just terribly, terribly, alert.

  8. Re:"super" exploits by Beatbyte · · Score: 1, Funny

    no Linux is still working on the implementation of TCP... its not well documented enough so they have to reverse engineer it

    (-:

    --
    Get paid to code OSS
  9. Fixing the internet... by Eagle5596 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Dilbert is in the Boss's office.

    Dilbert: I discovered a hole in our internet security.

    Boss: What?!!

    Boss: Good grief, man! How could you put a hole in our internet?

    Dilbert, angry: I didn't PUT it there, I FOUND it.. and it's not...

    Boss: It's your job to fix that hole. I want you to work 24-7!

    Dilbert: Actually, that's NOT my job. But I'll inform our network management group.

    Boss, yelling: PASSING THE BUCK!!! YOU'RE A BUCK PASSER!!!

    Dilbert: Forget it! There's no hole! It got better!

    Boss: That's more like it.

    Last panel, the boss is sitting alone smiling.

    Boss thinks: I fixed the internet.

    1. Re:Fixing the internet... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      That sounds like the last conversation I had with Management about network security...... ugh!

  10. Re:still on topic, troll by mustangsal66 · · Score: 3, Funny

    There are people who use Windows boxes as routers

    Now that's scary...

    Imagine the techsupport on that mess...
    ... Now right click, select BGP... Click peer...
    ... That's correct sir... it's probably not a good idea to run IIS on your core router...

    --
    Why worry? Each of us is wearing an unlicensed "nucular" accelerator on his back.
    Sig changed for readability by G.W.
  11. "Secret Repairs Preceded TCP Flaw Release" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    And now you blew it! Thanks a lot.

    Now if you'll all step this way please...

  12. Diversity by MachineShedFred · · Score: 4, Funny

    Hey! He has an Italian typing accent, you insensitive clod!

    --
    Slashdot still doesnâ(TM)t support Unicode after it was added to the HTML standard in 1997.
  13. Quick! Better patch this now! by megarich · · Score: 1, Funny

    On a kinda related note, I just heard about a high risk security flaw in the "Hello World" program. The hacker can take the output and use it as a ddos attack to break into your flawed system. No patches are available to date.