Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site intelca.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!mit-eddie!genrad!decvax!decwrl!sun!idi!intelca!cem From: cem@intelca.UUCP (Chuck McManis) Newsgroups: net.followup Subject: Re: Must computer systems be an armed camp? Message-ID: <464@intelca.UUCP> Date: Mon, 17-Dec-84 14:11:13 EST Article-I.D.: intelca.464 Posted: Mon Dec 17 14:11:13 1984 Date-Received: Thu, 20-Dec-84 01:14:57 EST References: <817@bnl.UUCP> <229@looking.UUCP> Organization: Intel, Santa Clara, Ca. Lines: 37 Brad Templeton writes : >"Laws against theft attack the symptom, not the problem. What are truly >necessary are bolted doors, security patrols, guard dogs, and fully >authenticated access procedures. Anybody who protects their house with >something as easily breakable as glass is ASKING to be broken into. >Anybody who leaves their door unlocked might as well give their property away." >Yet this is the sort of attitude I see posted to the net. When I grew up >we never locked our house or car unless away for a long period like >a vacation. There was a much more common attitude back then that it was >WRONG to invade other people's property whether it was easy or not. If you >find a wallet with I.D. on the ground do you take the money just because >it's easy? > Now children are a different story. They are immature and don't understand As I see it, it would not make sense to leave a bank unlocked and unprotected after hours, or a toy store. The computer systems most often broken into are not "private" systems, but rather "business" systems. Wouldn't it be a bit dreary to break into someones IBM PC and steal their recipie(sp?) file? It has historically been true that if you heard a modem tone on the answering line that you were listening to some big and intriguing computer. However these days, and even more so in the future, you will probably be listening to someones home computer. When that is the case, all computers will benefit since random modem seeking programs will not be nearly as effective if they return 150 phone numbers rather than say 10. The effort needed to find a computer will exceed the threshold of many password hackers and the problem will be reduced. A perfectly clever way to hide your modem from these guys is to have you phone answered by an answering machine that talks for a while >30 sec and then kicks in the modem, most search programs will have long since given up. --Chuck -- - - - D I S C L A I M E R - - - {ihnp4,fortune}!dual\ All opinions expressed herein are my {qantel,idi}-> !intelca!cem own and not those of my employer, my {ucbvax,hao}!hplabs/ friends, or my avocado plant. :-}