Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!clyde!att!osu-cis!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!dinosaur.cis.ohio-state.edu!karl
From: karl@dinosaur.cis.ohio-state.edu (Karl Kleinpaste)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.wizards
Subject: Re: Autologout of unused terminals
Message-ID: 
Date: 8 Dec 88 02:34:20 GMT
References: <201.nlunix6@orcenl.uucp> <8978@smoke.BRL.MIL> <2682@sultra.UUCP> <9012@smoke.BRL.MIL> <3603@jpl-devvax.JPL.NASA.GOV> <2255@cuuxb.ATT.COM>
Sender: news@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu
Organization: OSU
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In-reply-to: dlm@cuuxb.ATT.COM's message of 7 Dec 88 22:18:45 GMT

dlm@cuuxb.ATT.COM (Dennis L. Mumaugh) writes:
   The neatest special program is the  630MTG  program  dmdlock.  If
   the  terminal  has  no  user  activity - mouse or keyboard - in a
   given time period, the terminal locks itself and 15 minutes later
   the  screen  blanks.  One has to then unlock the terminal.  Hence
   walking  away  from  the  630MTG  results  in  auto-locking   the
   terminal.

...30 seconds too late.  After all, if I'm seriously interested in
abusing dlm's terminal, I'm going to wait until, e.g., he goes for his
regular about-10am coffee break outside the machine room.  Then I'll
just step into his office before his 630 dmdlock kicks in, and by the
time it *does* kick in, I have committed whatever abuse I had in mind.

Of course, if dlm locks his office with religious fervor any time he
steps outside of it, then I'm out of luck.  But then, his dmdlock is
rather pointless, too.

Moral, of course, is never to leave your terminal unattended in the
first place.  Unless the `given time period' is measured in small tens
of seconds, it's an inadequate security device.

--Karl