nanog mailing list archives
Re: Port scanning legal
From: Christian Kuhtz <ck () arch bellsouth net>
Date: Tue, 19 Dec 2000 19:35:24 -0500
On Tue, Dec 19, 2000 at 04:26:33PM -0800, mdevney () teamsphere com wrote:
I do not understand why people get so uppity about a scan. Let's be real here, a simple portscan is about equivalent to walking along a sidewalk and checking out the houses for open windows and doors. And about as harmful. What is harmful is what sometimes comes after that. (Not always; not usually; not even half the time I'd bet.) But the only damage a portscan does is a few packets over your network and maybe 4M of logs (depending on how you're logging). When writing and enforcing laws, it's important to punish what's harmful, not what may be harmful. Or else looking at houses as you walk down the street may be illegal.
I do think there is a difference between looking at houses and windows from the street and walking up to them and rattling the door and windows to see if it they are locked or determining what model lock, door or window is used etc. -- Christian Kuhtz <ck () arch bellsouth net> -wk, <ck () gnu org> -hm Sr. Architect, Engineering & Architecture, BellSouth.net, Atlanta, GA, U.S. "I speak for myself only.""
Current thread:
- Port scanning legal Edward S. Marshall (Dec 19)
- RE: Port scanning legal Jeff Wheat (Dec 19)
- RE: Port scanning legal Patrick Evans (Dec 19)
- RE: Port scanning legal John Fraizer (Dec 19)
- Re: Port scanning legal Shawn McMahon (Dec 19)
- Re: Port scanning legal Alex Rubenstein (Dec 19)
- Re: Port scanning legal Deepak Jain (Dec 19)
- Re: Port scanning legal Leo Bicknell (Dec 19)
- RE: Port scanning legal Jeff Wheat (Dec 19)
- Re: Port scanning legal Valdis . Kletnieks (Dec 19)
- Re: Port scanning legal mdevney (Dec 19)
- Re: Port scanning legal Christian Kuhtz (Dec 19)
- Re: Port scanning legal Todd Suiter (Dec 19)
- <Possible follow-ups>
- RE: Port scanning legal Mark Borchers (Dec 19)
- RE: Port scanning legal Roeland Meyer (Dec 19)
- Re: Port scanning legal Shawn McMahon (Dec 19)
- Re: Port scanning legal Dan Hollis (Dec 19)
- Re: Port scanning legal L. Sassaman (Dec 19)
- Re: Port scanning legal Majdi S. Abbas (Dec 19)
- Re: Port scanning legal Shawn McMahon (Dec 19)