Firewall Wizards mailing list archives
Re: LangaList security item
From: jseymour () linxnet com (Jim Seymour)
Date: Thu, 30 Jun 2005 08:26:42 -0400 (EDT)
"Brian Loe" <knobdy () stjoelive com> wrote:
From the LangaList - pretty sad it has to be said. Posting since it mighthave some relevance to previous posts about DSL wireless routers supplied by ISPs.
I'm reminded of when I first went looking for DSL service. I was on the phone with tech. support, asking about the DSL device I would get--whether it was a router, with packet-filtering capability, or a bridge. Answer: Bridge. Me (horrified): "But that means your customers' PeeCees are exposed directly to the Internet, their back-sides hangin' out in the breeze, with no protection at all!" Tech: "Yeah, but they don't know the difference, and wouldn't know what to do about it even if they did." Nice attitude. Needless to say, *that* ISP did not get my business. I soon found out that ISP's attitude was common. "Oh boy, *this* is gonna be a disaster," I thought. Little did I know how right I was.
It's obviously not in AOL's interest to advertise their LACK of security, all the while advertising their improved security.
I had to dig, and dig hard, to get down to (up to?) a level of tech. support that could answer my router/bridge question. It's not that the sales droid and 1st-line tech. support people wouldn't answer my questions, they *couldn't* answer them. They didn't understand what I was talking about. [snip]
Oh, jeez---- if anything, AOL members need more protection than others!
[snip] Which may explain why AOL is doing what they're doing--whatever that is. So, you take a common consumer/residential broadband connection, which has no protection at all, add a wireless AP, configured, by default, in open mode, add an electronic petri dish or two, and what do you have? Jim -- Note: My mail server employs *very* aggressive anti-spam filtering. If you reply to this email and your email is rejected, please accept my apologies and let me know via my web form at <http://jimsun.linxnet.com/scform.php>. _______________________________________________ firewall-wizards mailing list firewall-wizards () honor icsalabs com http://honor.icsalabs.com/mailman/listinfo/firewall-wizards
Current thread:
- LangaList security item Brian Loe (Jun 29)
- Re: LangaList security item Jim Seymour (Jun 30)