I came up with a good strategy with this when Vista came out. Here is my list of computers over the ages.
Windows 3.1 (parents' computer)
Windows 95/98 (parents' computer)
Windows XP (my first personal PC)
Windows XP/Ubuntu dualboot (my first laptop and second laptop)
switched ubuntu for archlinux on my second laptop (first laptop's ps died)
Note that XP was the LAST windows I ever had. When someone asks for help, 90% of the time it is vista (7 will start soon I'm sure). I simply tell them "Sorry, I don't use Vista and they changed everything so I don't know how to use it".
Tell them you don't want to or don't have time and they'll keep complaining and badgering you. Tell them you don't know anything about that OS and they will eventually get the picture and stfu.
No, but at least it will only affect THAT user, and a simple edit of their startup apps will render the threat useless. In windows, the trojan can modify the application itself, in linux it can only mess with the user's settings and startup list. BIG DIFFERENCE!
That's actually one of the things I do when troubleshooting a machine. I open taskmanager and google all the process I don't recognise. It was in doing this that I realised just how god damn many extra processes quicktime, java, itunes, wmplayer, etc need running when the application HAS NOT BEEN STARTED YET.
Windows was designed from the ground-up to allow applications (and trojans/etc) to do things the regular user shouldn't even be allowed to do, but part of the problem is that people have become so accustomed to applications pulling unwaranted stunts that they don't think twice about it. Hopefully when mac and linux get better software support (mac is getting there), the users won't put up with that crap and software writters will finaly learn their place.
Does it need to list all of them, or just one? Because I can guarantee you that if ANY user can do something, root (the default for sudo/gksu/etc) can!
The only thing COFEE does that backtrack doesn't is copy the RAM. Unless the person is using encryption, in which case a non-computer-forensics person (who the product is targeted at) shouldn't be anywheres NEAR the machine, there is no reason to preserve the volatile memory. In fact, if a person is that paranoid (and still running windows), chances are the application will end up triggering a dead-switch.
Any computer forensics expert worth their degree will tell you NEVER to do anything to a running machine suspected of being rigged. They don't even shut it down, just pull the plug. If they want to recover the RAM, they have about 3 minutes to do so (through a clean boot) before the "volatile" memory is gone.
Go buy a good quality Creative player and some inner-ear headphones and decent bit-rate music. Anyone who hasn't burst their eardrum will hear the difference.
P.S.: I think, we, the people, should have our own intelligence service. With the ability to filter out things that were aquired with proper methods. With a huge knowledge base. With native "agents" in every country. In every company and government office. And with trust relationship management. Make it a game. And let millions of people play it. Let's see who 0wns who then ^^ (Yes I know... nice dream though.)
Especially since every single gps-enabled phone has a VERY crappy gps in it. Anyone who does serious (I'm talking trackers, hunters, back-woods campers and geocachers) will tell you that a standalone unit is the only way to go.
If they have the right (given by the author) to sell the original works, there is almost* nothing stopping them from changing it.
* there was a case in Canada where a sculpter was able to force a mall to whom he'd sold a sculpture to remove christmas lights from his sculpture because it "defaced" it.
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installing stuff with Synaptic is not going to cause security problems.
Just make sure you block port 22 on your router :P
Note that XP was the LAST windows I ever had. When someone asks for help, 90% of the time it is vista (7 will start soon I'm sure). I simply tell them "Sorry, I don't use Vista and they changed everything so I don't know how to use it".
Tell them you don't want to or don't have time and they'll keep complaining and badgering you. Tell them you don't know anything about that OS and they will eventually get the picture and stfu.
No, but at least it will only affect THAT user, and a simple edit of their startup apps will render the threat useless. In windows, the trojan can modify the application itself, in linux it can only mess with the user's settings and startup list. BIG DIFFERENCE!
You, my friend, just set yourself up for a lifetime (yours or hers) of tedious "can I download X" with no way to get away.
Sucker
That's actually one of the things I do when troubleshooting a machine. I open taskmanager and google all the process I don't recognise. It was in doing this that I realised just how god damn many extra processes quicktime, java, itunes, wmplayer, etc need running when the application HAS NOT BEEN STARTED YET.
Windows was designed from the ground-up to allow applications (and trojans/etc) to do things the regular user shouldn't even be allowed to do, but part of the problem is that people have become so accustomed to applications pulling unwaranted stunts that they don't think twice about it. Hopefully when mac and linux get better software support (mac is getting there), the users won't put up with that crap and software writters will finaly learn their place.
Yeah, your toe is VERY smelly!
Does it need to list all of them, or just one? Because I can guarantee you that if ANY user can do something, root (the default for sudo/gksu/etc) can!
...displays an account with the proper rights automatically.
Last I checked, 99.99% of the time, root is an account with the proper rights.
Also, patenting formulae and algorithms is only allowed in software patents.
There, fixed that for you.
That's like saying you can translate an english book to french, sell the french version and not get hit by copyright.
Yeah, good luck with that one...
Same time we stop making fun of Brittney. WHEN IT'S DEAD!
The only thing COFEE does that backtrack doesn't is copy the RAM. Unless the person is using encryption, in which case a non-computer-forensics person (who the product is targeted at) shouldn't be anywheres NEAR the machine, there is no reason to preserve the volatile memory. In fact, if a person is that paranoid (and still running windows), chances are the application will end up triggering a dead-switch.
Any computer forensics expert worth their degree will tell you NEVER to do anything to a running machine suspected of being rigged. They don't even shut it down, just pull the plug. If they want to recover the RAM, they have about 3 minutes to do so (through a clean boot) before the "volatile" memory is gone.
Go buy a good quality Creative player and some inner-ear headphones and decent bit-rate music. Anyone who hasn't burst their eardrum will hear the difference.
How is that relative to my comment?
Meanwhile the same thing could be done using html, css and javascript while using half the code and a thenth of the CPU usage.
P.S.: I think, we, the people, should have our own intelligence service. With the ability to filter out things that were aquired with proper methods. With a huge knowledge base. With native "agents" in every country. In every company and government office. And with trust relationship management. Make it a game. And let millions of people play it. Let's see who 0wns who then ^^ (Yes I know... nice dream though.)
I believe we call that wikipedia.
I just read the entire wikipedia article, and I've done all of that, and more, with backtrack for FREE.
Because iPods (all of them) have very mediocre sound quality. Send that to a large speaker and it is going to sound like absolute CRAP!
If Windows fails to install it rolls back to the state before installation ... anything up to and including a new OS install.
So that giant white and blue warning that read "WARNING: formatting your harddrive will destroy all data" was a lie?
Especially since every single gps-enabled phone has a VERY crappy gps in it. Anyone who does serious (I'm talking trackers, hunters, back-woods campers and geocachers) will tell you that a standalone unit is the only way to go.
Could you please elaborate on that, I fail to see how this relates to a wiki at all.
If they have the right (given by the author) to sell the original works, there is almost* nothing stopping them from changing it.
* there was a case in Canada where a sculpter was able to force a mall to whom he'd sold a sculpture to remove christmas lights from his sculpture because it "defaced" it.
It's a copyright, not a changeright.
Yeah, cause grep -R " " * is so hard...
Hmm, you're right. that should be 09/11/2001.