Path: utzoo!utgpu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!julius.cs.uiuc.edu!apple!sun-barr!lll-winken!taurus!cs!spl From: spl@cs.nps.navy.mil (Steve Lamont) Newsgroups: alt.hackers Subject: Re: Great Christmas Worm Message-ID: <1416@cs.nps.navy.mil> Date: 14 Sep 90 04:04:23 GMT References: <9009122126.aa05627@mvax.cc.ic.ac.uk> <1411@cs.nps.navy.mil> <1990Sep13.145046.7262@Matrix.COM> Reply-To: spl@cs.nps.navy.mil (Steve Lamont) Organization: Foo Bar Brewers Cooperative Lines: 50 Approved: me In article <1990Sep13.145046.7262@Matrix.COM> /dev/null writes: >Nix on Fie. If you think people couldn't write things like this without seeing >it, you must be mistaken. This is the MOST SIMPLISTIC hack ever. > >If you are going to post something, post something that the average LUSER could >NOT do. 8-) (or not). You misunderstand my reply. I would just rather that things like this not be spread around. We have a VM/CMS system and some moron here is likely to try it out without understanding what they're doing. We had one joker pull a similar stunt and crash the system when it ran out of spool space. >I guess this means that "SECURITY BY OBSCURITY" is the way to go, huh? > >The fact that Unix World (or some such) published the base of the Internet >worm, and that you can PURCHASE the REAL SOURCE to the worm from some hacker >magazine means that they too should burn? > >Gee, I guess Gene Spafford should not have published his paper on the worm... >might give me some ideas... > >NAH..... Sorry, but I guess I didn't make myself terribly clear. I am not opposed to discussing security matters. The original posting was *not* a discussion of this rather simplistic "worm," though. It was simply the worm itself, with no commentary, analysis, or discussion whatever. In the text of the code was the admonition "don't waste your time reading this, just run it" or words to that effect. I'll be happy to discuss the structure of this piece of junk in any open forum. I'll even explain to the non-REXX literate how it works and suggest ways of making it more obtuse with a liberal sprinkling of "Interpret" instructions to obscure some of the more obvious parts of it, if you wish. If anyone believed that I was criticising the follow up poster (and I can, in retrospect, see how that interpretation might be honestly made), I assure them that this was not my intention. Just another reminder that in this essentially written medium, one must be conscious that readers will naturally interpret words in different ways. spl (the p stands for pink, as in blushing.) -- Steve Lamont, SciViGuy -- (408) 646-2752 (subject to change at random) NPS Confuser Center / Code 51 / Naval Postgraduate School / Monterey, CA 93940 "You're okay," said Honeysuckle. "The dogs like you." - Charles Bukowski, "How to Get Published"