Full Disclosure mailing list archives
Re: Root password change
From: gboyce <gboyce () badbelly com>
Date: Fri, 31 Mar 2006 13:02:09 -0500 (EST)
On Fri, 31 Mar 2006, Valdis.Kletnieks () vt edu wrote:
On Fri, 31 Mar 2006 12:33:28 EST, gboyce said:In which case the person needs to remove the hard drive, and put it into a different system for the modifications (or mirroring).Time constraints. The amount of time needed to pop in a disk and hit reboot is (or should be, in this case) a lot shorter than the amount of time it takes to pull a rack-mount box out and pop the lid and play with the drives. And if your server has a lockable faceplate like most Dell rack-mounts, that can add a lot to the challenge right there (as it stops any quick "snarf a hot-swap drive and run" scheme).For the most part, if an attacker has physical access to the hardware itself, you just lose.Almost, but not quite right. If the attacker has physical access *for long enough*, you lose.
I wasn't quite clear enough I think.By "Physical Access to the hardware", I meant unencoumbered physical access. If a system is in a locked rack, safe, or has a locking case then it is indeed much more difficult.
Good point about the time though. Even an unlocked rack mount server without hot swappable drives will take some time to unrack and disassemble in order to ge the drives out and back in again.
-- Greg _______________________________________________ Full-Disclosure - We believe in it. Charter: http://lists.grok.org.uk/full-disclosure-charter.html Hosted and sponsored by Secunia - http://secunia.com/
Current thread:
- Re: Root password change, (continued)
- Re: Root password change Chris Adams (Mar 30)
- Re: Root password change spam (Mar 30)
- Re: Root password change Michael Holstein (Mar 30)
- Re: Root password change Anders B Jansson (Mar 30)
- Re: Root password change Kerry Thompson (Mar 30)
- Re: Root password change Gary E. Miller (Mar 30)
- Re: Root password change Michael Holstein (Mar 31)
- Re: Root password change Valdis . Kletnieks (Mar 31)
- Re: Root password change gboyce (Mar 31)
- Re: Root password change Valdis . Kletnieks (Mar 31)
- Re: Root password change gboyce (Mar 31)