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From: pengo@tmpmbx.UUCP (Hans H. Huebner)
Newsgroups: news.admin,news.sysadmin
Subject: Re: A *Big* Thank You
Message-ID: <1294@tmpmbx.UUCP>
Date: 6 Nov 88 19:59:34 GMT
References: <361@itivax.UUCP> <367@execu.UUCP>
Reply-To: pengo@tmpmbx.UUCP (Hans H. Huebner)
Organization: netmbx GbR, Berlin, West Germany
Lines: 29

In article <367@execu.UUCP> dewey@execu.UUCP (Dewey Henize) writes:
>On the next area of consideration, who's gonna get hold of the bastard
>that caused this and beat the shit out of him?  Having a daddy that's a 
>supposedly high security muckety-much should, if anything, imply that the
>[censored] should know a lot better...  And its not like the law is gonna
>do much, the isn't even a clear picture of what laws are broken by ruining
>the days of hundreds or thousands of people..
Maybe you should better thank this guy as well, since he revealed some
nasty bugs in widespread operating systems.  He SURELY showed everyone that
computer systems are not secure, and that security IS a thing one has to be
aware of.  Just imagine what would have happened if the worm/virus had
contained some nasty code to destroy files or the like.  The sendmail bug
certainly gave the worm access rights to destroy mail and eventually other
vital system information.

I'd be careful in generally judging hackers as bad guys.  Better think about
the possibilties bugs can give to your favoured opponent.  Every hour spent
in the last week to get rid of the worm is a good investment in the security
of future software products.

Let's be happy that it is over, and that the Internet is now more secure.

	Hans

-- 
Hans H. Huebner, netmbx     | PSIMail: PSI%026245300043100::PENGO
Woerther Str. 36            | DOMAIN:  pengo@tmpmbx.UUCP
D-1000 Berlin 20, W.Germany | Bang:    ..!{pyramid,unido}!tmpmbx!pengo
Phone: (+49 30) 332 40 15   | BITNET:  huebner@db0tui6