Xref: utzoo comp.org.eff.talk:2575 comp.admin.policy:400 Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!swrinde!cs.utexas.edu!asuvax!ncar!gatech!prism!ccastmg From: ccastmg@prism.gatech.EDU (Michael G. Goldsman) Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk,comp.admin.policy Subject: Student suspended for distributing /etc/passwd Message-ID: <31124@hydra.gatech.EDU> Date: 11 Jun 91 17:42:52 GMT Followup-To: comp.org.eff.talk Organization: Georgia Institute of Technology Lines: 68 I just read this on ga.general... ---------------------------------------------------------------- ---From: mcovingt@athena.cs.uga.edu (Michael A. Covington) ---Newsgroups: ga.general ---Subject: Student suspended for helping hackers ---Summary: Student deliberately compromised security of athena.cs.uga.edu ---Date: 11 Jun 91 04:21:01 GMT ---Organization: University of Georgia, Athens The University will soon be issuing a news release about this incident. In the meantime, here is a summary: (1) A number of unauthorized users have been using various University of Georgia computers. Most of them have left much more of a trail than they realized and will be hearing from us. (2) The first person actually caught as part of this incident has now been sentenced to 2 quarters' suspension, plus a probated expulsion, by the Student Judiciary. This was a U.Ga. student whose name cannot be released due to confidentiality of educational records. What this student did was mail a copy of /etc/passwd from athena.cs.uga.edu to a "hacker" who had already penetrated another system, and who wanted to use a password-guessing program to break into athena. The student was fully aware that he was assisting in a break-in. Two points that everyone may need to be reminded of: (1) Unauthorized computer use is a felony under Georgia law (which is about to become even stricter, on this point, than it is already). (2) We cannot presume that any intruder is harmless. To keep the machine safe for everyone, we have to presume that every unauthorized user intends something destructive. It's very common for an intruder to say "I meant no harm" when in fact a transcript of his session shows that he was trying to crash the machine or delete people's files. The University of Georgia has no public-access UNIX machines. If anyone gives you a password on one of our machines, please contact me. ---------------------------------------------------------------- I didn't know that doing things with an /etc/passwd would be considered unauthoprized use. the file is readable by the world after all. The uga student was not the one who broke in. I have some serious problems with UGA supending him. I am a little too "exam-week-weary" to articulate my feelings well, but I thought that you guys should know about this. What if a student runs cops on /etc/passwd... would this be considered intent to break into a system and could he thus be suspended? Well, you guys can mull it over today, I need some sleep. -Mike Goldsman -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Mike Goldsman 36004 Georgia Tech Station Atlanta Georgia, 30332, 404-872-5146