Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!usc!wuarchive!uunet!shaman!jiro
From: jiro@shaman.com (Jiro Nakamura)
Newsgroups: news.software.b
Subject: Re: filters to detect uuencode binaries
Message-ID: <1991May24.021735.5926@shaman.com>
Date: 24 May 91 02:17:35 GMT
References: <1991May23.190827.24459@hou.amoco.com>
Sender: jiro@shaman.com (Jiro Nakamura)
Organization: Shaman Consulting
Lines: 36

In article <1991May23.190827.24459@hou.amoco.com> zdkm01@hou.amoco.com (Dave  
Moore) writes:
> We are currently in the process of establishing a corporate UseNet 
> network.  It will consist of Cnews servers, interconnected using
> nntp.  Due to management concerns over copyright infringements and
> viral attacks I would like to know if anyone is familiar with filters
> that may be applied against a file to determine if it contains an
> uuencode binary.  

  Although I understand your concerns, I assure you that you are using the  
wrong means to protect against them. Copyright infringments can come over  
non-uuencoded forms (excerpts from books springs to mind, because of the recent  
flurry over them). Viral attacks can come over from e-mail (the Internet virus)  
or people who don't watch their Bourne shell auto unpackers while running as  
root.....
   I'd say that it'd be a productivity loss more than a legal gain. What  
happens if I want to send someone at your company a source package? I usually  
tar, compress, uuencode them. What? A uuencode filter??!?!? Well, I'll just  
have to crypt or btoa it then. Are you going to have a btoa filter too? 
    Education is the best means to solve your problems. Also, cut out the feeds  
that are most likely to have virii or copyright infringments on them. Cut the  
alt.* and rec.* feeds, cut the comp.binaries.* feeds, comp.source.* feeds, if  
you are really paranoid.
    You are not attacking the real source of your problem, ignorance on the  
part of your users, and ignorance on the part of people who post stupid things.  
I think you should work on the human element before blaming or "fixing" the  
electronic one.

   My 2c.

   - jiro nakamura
     jiro@shaman.com
-- 
Jiro Nakamura				jiro@shaman.com
The Shaman Group			(607) 256-5125 VOICE
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