Slashdot Mirror
Worm Attack Prompts DoD To Ban Use of External Media
An anonymous reader writes "The Pentagon has suffered from a cyber attack so alarming that it has taken the unprecedented step of banning the use of external hardware devices, such as flash drives and DVDs [...] The attack came in the form of a global virus or worm that is spreading rapidly throughout a number of military networks."
... external media bans DOD!
Tsunami -- You can't bring a good wave down!
Do you honestly think that foreign intelligence agencies won't write Linux or Macintosh viruses if it would get them into the DoD network? The OS might be part of the problem, but users are the much bigger one.
It looks like you're trying to blow up that building. Would you like to use:
1)Grenade
2)An RPG
3)Airstrike
Dave Richards, the administrator of the Largo, Florida computer network, came up against this problem. He made the system mount USB disks as FTP shares, and made the file browser hide any executable files on the share so they couldn't be transferred.http://davelargo.blogspot.com/2008/02/hp-thin-clients-and-usb-access-for.html
I'm not surprised the DoD just completely shut the door on these things, but I think that for most admins, a solution like Dave's would be a really good compromise.
make war
Yesterday, a terrorist attack on the NHS brought three London hospitals to a halt.
The terrorists, representing an organisation calling itself "Microsoft," apparently used insecure third-party contractors to put a virus-running platform called "Windows" into critical systems in the hospitals, in order to extort money from them on an annual basis.
It is understood that a large percentage of all businesses are infected with the virus, wasting up to 25% of employees' working time and opening the companies to further attacks from related criminal organisations demanding to see all their licenses.
The virus in question, W32.SHILL/ZDNET, takes over the host's IT systems, leading to aches, pains, nausea, vomiting, pumping out prodigious quantities of faeces and a terrible compulsion to spread the infection to others. The patient also walks with a shuddering stumble and asks for their hospital meal to include tasty, tasty brains. Recovery has commenced when they have an overwhelming urge to throw their computer out of the window. "Getting this stuff out of the system makes MRSA look like a walk in the park," said one cleaner, waving his shit-encrusted hands about for emphasis.
When the infection became known, ambulances were diverted to other hospitals. "We have maintained a safe environment for our patients throughout the incident," said a spokesman for Barts NHS Trust, "keeping them in the Clostridium difficile culturing lab rather than risking exposing them to 'Windows.'"
http://rocknerd.co.uk
Forgot to disable AutoRun, perhaps. But actually, it's quite non-intuitive how to disable AutoRun in Microsoft Windows. There are several options, and none of them (and even all of them combined) will disable AutoRun and AutoPlay features in their entirety. In fact, up until recently, Windows Vista had the logic reversed for one of the AutoRun features! i.e., if you take the effort to disable the AutoRun feature, you actually put yourself at more risk. More details here:
http://www.kb.cert.org/vuls/id/889747
But luckily, there is a single registry value that can disable AutoRun at its core. Once this change is made, Windows will not interpret the Autorun.inf file on any device, effectively disabling AutoRun for all devices, including USB drives, network shares, and more. Get the scoop here:
http://www.cert.org/blogs/vuls/2008/04/the_dangers_of_windows_autorun.html
That's the whole problem with you Linux dorks! People shouldn't have to get down to that level and do such obscure things, just to be able to safely use their computer. And what you don't understand is that most people just plain won't do it! Your post is exactly why Linux will never be ready for the desktop!
"Believe me!" -- Donald Trump
Why is everything in Windows managed by tools that do not come with the default installation?
I can perfectly manage a Linux installation without 3rd party or "optional" tools found on some website. Windows requires X tools that provide basic functionality on their site, and not default on the CD.
I hate that.
Why is everything in Windows managed by tools that do not come with the default installation
We prefer to be called administrators you insensitive clod.