Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!nuchat!sugar!karl
From: karl@sugar.uu.net (Karl Lehenbauer)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: Internet UNIX (BSD) virus
Keywords: UNIX, BSD. Virus, worm
Message-ID: <2971@sugar.uu.net>
Date: 9 Nov 88 04:32:29 GMT
References: <13232@oberon.USC.EDU> <2954@sugar.uu.net> <13280@oberon.USC.EDU>
Organization: Sugar Land Unix - Houston, TX
Lines: 32

The fact is that at least the Internet virus *had* a password guessing
program.  An Amiga virus wouldn't need one.  

At least on Unix you have to get root to completely break it.  
Every Amiga program is root.

At least on Unix you have to exploit some bug to get in.
On the Amiga, every program program is already all the way in.

Operating systems without support for memory protection can *never* be made 
anything other than "wide open."  Operating systems running on computers
with memory protection at least have a foundation for providing *some*
security.  If you don't agree that this is true, let me know, and why.
If you do, then you must agree that Unix at least has the potential to
provide some security (and does in fact provide some security) and 
unprotected machines like the PC (under DOS), Mac and Amiga do not.

I never said that Unix wan't vulnerable and I think it's funny that the
quote (of peter@sugar) Marco chose to put in  his "dedication" of the virus
was correctly caveat-laden about the vulnerability of Unix.  THe latest virus
exploited widely known security holes.  You BSD guys didn't even try
to make your systems secure.

That the Internet virus would spread a lot faster than an Amiga one would be
expected because it has far greater connectivity and throughput than
we Amiga owners have.  This says nothing bad about Unix, except perhaps
that its ubiquity and ease of programming has enhanced its connectivity
and broadened its programmer-base, hence making it more vulnerable.
-- 
-- "We've been following your progress with considerable interest, not to say
-- contempt."  -- Zaphod Beeblebrox IV
-- uunet!sugar!karl, Unix BBS (713) 438-5018