Re: Worms, Air Gaps and Responsibility

[Devdas Bhagat <devdas () dvb homelinux org>]

On 06/05/04 17:05 -0400, Jim Seymour wrote:
> Devdas Bhagat <devdas () dvb homelinux org> wrote:
> > On 06/05/04 10:34 -0400, Paul D. Robertson wrote:
> [snip]
> > > I understand where you're coming from, I'd just like to see us all make
> > > more coordinated and extensive efforts to revisit the "connectivity trumps
> > > all" mantra.
> > Let me ask a harder question: How do you get the horse to drink?
> > Connectivity shows profits in the balance sheet. Security shows up as
> > expenses. Lack of downtime does not show up.
>
> I don't give management options.  Or, more accurately, the only options
I wish.
/me ships Jim's management colourful brochures full of snake oil about
one point management and security. "YOU DO NOT NEED A SKILLED
ADMINISTRATOR TO RUN THIS POINT AND CLICK SECURITY APPLICATION."
And slightly less educated management.

Which brings up the original question, how do you educate this type of
management?

> I give them are ones with a level of security with which I'm
> comfortable.  "Comfortable" == I take *personal* ownership of its
> functionality and its security, 24x7x365.  If they should happen to
> discover, through no fault of my own, there's a "cheaper," less-secure
> way, and they want to force me to implement it: Fine.  I'll do it.  But
> when the wheels fall off (not "if," but "when"): Don't be callin' *me*
> in the middle of the night, over the weekend, or while I'm on vacation,
> cryin' about it.
>
> >  
> [snip]
> > Note that having one cheap administrator dedicated to cleaning up viruses
> > often works out cheaper than having an antivirus everywhere and kept up
> > to date. 
> [snip]
>
> My work domain isn't all that big, but even *I* can't agree with that.
Said company currently spends about 800 USD to 1000 USD on maintaining a 
team of 5 people in three round the clock shifts for running a 400+ node 
Windows LAN. Dedicating /one/ of these administrators to cleaning up 
viruses is cheaper than having antivirus everywhere.

Flip the people/system costs and you will see what I mean. Bodies are
cheap, systems are not.

<snip lots of good points>

Devdas Bhagat
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