[TUHS] Non-US Unix Activities

[Dave Horsfall]

On Fri, 7 Apr 2017, Dave Horsfall wrote:

> The problem is that some of them are still alive :-)

Oh, OK; I'll leave out the names...  This is the story of the Great Root 
Password Disaster.

Way back at UNSW (University of New South Wales for the Aussie-bereft), 
the major Unix players decided to use a common root password (yes, 
really!) so that they could access each others' systems.  I was working 
for the CSU (Computing Services Unit for the UNSW-bereft) and I thought it 
was a stupid idea, and refused to join.

Well, the obvious happened...  The password must've been leaked (as 
passwords do) because every box got hacked, except mine.  Naturally, I got 
blamed for it; here's a chrome-plated hint: never blame me for something 
that I did not do...  And I still don't know what their shared root 
password was.

More stories as I dredge them up from my addled memory.

-- 
Dave Horsfall DTM (VK2KFU)  "Those who don't understand security will suffer."