BajaNomad

HACKERS

Skeet/Loreto - 2-2-2008 at 10:35 AM

Question: For Anyone>


Is it Possible for someone to Hack into the Nomad Board and make Multiple "Replies"?
Can a Hacker get into the Forum and change the Numbers to show Massive Replies.

I remember that it took many Days for the Relpies to "JR' to get to 1,000..

Would like someone to Explain if Possible.

Skeet/Loreto

David K - 2-2-2008 at 10:40 AM

Since the days of jrbaja, membership (and unregistered viewership... 'lurkers') has probably doubled or more... I am sure Doug can give you the technical answer Skeet, but my guess is no... and why would anyone want to increase the number of replies...? just count them...

Skeet/Loreto - 2-2-2008 at 10:51 AM

Thnaks David:
It is hard for me to imagine that a Thread I started would go voer 5,000 Hits!

In the Past it appeared that Posters got tired of my "Regilious Rants" about DOPE and Naked Ladies, Berlerley, etc. in a few Post.

Stay Loose David and keep up the Adventure.

Skeet/Loreto

Ask Bill Gates

MrBillM - 2-2-2008 at 11:11 AM

When discussing "Bad" Hackers, the word Never should NEVER be used.

There are some really Smart Mischief makers out there, although it is unlikely any of them would concern themselves with something so trivial.

BTW, the reason I say "Bad" Hackers is that the word "Hacking" has been returned to its original meaning within the Tech community. All of the PC magazines and Forums refer to it constantly in the positive way. Very confusing.

BMG - 2-2-2008 at 11:33 AM

I don't know how someone could change the 'replies' total since those could be counted and confirmed. Also, when a post is deleted, the reply count drops.

As for 'views', you can keep opening and closing a thread and increase the view count.

Hackers vs. Crackers

BCSTech - 2-2-2008 at 06:51 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by MrBillM
BTW, the reason I say "Bad" Hackers is that the word "Hacking" has been returned to its original meaning within the Tech community. All of the PC magazines and Forums refer to it constantly in the positive way. Very confusing.
One reason for this is because originally "Hacker" was a positive term to many. Among other things, a Hacker was someone who could come up with a novel fix, AKA "Hack," to solve a software problem. A negative term for someone who breaks into web sites or steals data from people or computers is a "Black Hat" or "Cracker." But there is a lot of overlap between the two fer sure.

Elaboration

MrBillM - 2-2-2008 at 07:25 PM

I had thought I was making the point clearly without being verbose when I said the term was returning to its "Original" meaning, but I'm sure that some may have missed it. Thanks.

Speaking of Hacking (good, bad or otherwise), I downloaded a file yesterday using Bit Torrent after going from one site to another to find it had disappeared and, both times, the Antivirus immediately deleted it as a "Trojan Horse" which it no doubt is, but in this case it's what I need since it's Supposed to lie to the system about what it's doing. Being a bit slow, it took me two attempts before it occurred to me to turn off the security temporarily.

BCSTech - 2-2-2008 at 07:34 PM

You wanted to download a Trojan?!?:O

BajaNomad - 2-3-2008 at 05:26 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Skeet/Loreto
Is it Possible for someone to Hack into the Nomad Board and make Multiple "Replies"? Can a Hacker get into the Forum and change the Numbers to show Massive Replies.

- Possible? Yeah sure. It would be an issue with passwords and/or software exploits if it happened. But has it happened here? No.

And to change #'s such as replies, etc, you don't do it on the front end of the forum software - you'd have to access the database separately.

:smug:
Quote:
I remember that it took many Days for the Relpies to "JR' to get to 1,000..

Would like someone to Explain if Possible.


Two things:
1. As mentioned, the site's visitor traffic is a multiple of what it was prior to August, 2006. The forums.bajanomad.com portion of the site is on its own dedicated computer ("server") to handle this traffic these days.

2. And regarding your comment alluding to your previous posts.... there are a large # of people visiting here that have never seen those - as only a few (as a percentage) actually search back through the archives.

--
Doug

[Edited on 2-3-2008 by BajaNomad]

Skeet/Loreto - 2-3-2008 at 07:44 AM

Thanks Doug. Appreciate your Comments.

To Mr. Bill. Now I dont' know whether to say "Hackers" or "Crackers" always thought Crackers were from the South.

Skeet

Onward Trojan Soldiers

MrBillM - 2-3-2008 at 10:26 AM

Not ALL Trojans are bad (at least in the eyes of the End-User).

A good definition:

"......a Trojan horse, or simply trojan, is a piece of software which appears to perform a certain action but in fact performs another such as a computer virus. Contrary to popular belief, this action, usually encoded in a hidden payload, may or may not be actually malicious, but Trojan horses are notorious today for their use in the installation of backdoor programs. Simply put, a Trojan horse is not a computer virus in most cases. Unlike such malware, it does not propagate by self-replication......."

A Trojan is simply a file that masquerades as a diiferent type of file in order to fool the operating system and perform a function. Sometimes that function is something we want to do that Bully Bill Gates doesn't want us to. Dollar Bill, starting with XP, has made the process of moving the O.S. from one computer to another (or even some upgrades on the same computer) so convoluted and burdensome, that it is too much to work with. It has worked to curtail many counterfeit O.S. installs, but it's also become a pain in the Tailpipe for those who aren't doing anything wrong.

Luckily, I have enough computers available, three of them essentially spares, that I can modify and crash them at will while researching interesting items, the newest being an IBM refurb I bought for my stepson at $200. He quickly got hit by a drive-by virus which wiped out the hard drive. While I was cleaning that up, I bought another HP refurb for $200 and gave it to him. The IBM is now my mostly "modern" testbed.

BCSTech - 2-3-2008 at 10:47 AM

Ok, still not sure from that explan if I understand what it is you're doing there, but "Bueno Suerte."

Other Members less knowledgeable might benefit from reading a little more about Trojan Horses:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trojan_horse_%28computing%29

Being Obtuse

MrBillM - 2-3-2008 at 12:45 PM

MS Bill's Bully-Boy spies are everywhere. It's amazing how quickly they stamp out files, sites, etc when they find something they object to because they may lose control, or more especially, a buck. It's good not to be too specific about anything, even now, when nothing illegal is being done.

You're correct in saying that, generally speaking, a Trojan-Horse is a bad thing, but that's only because that is the most frequent use of it. When your Antivirus looks at a file, it is looking for characteristics which is why it will often catch a file it doesn't have in its database of signatures. In this case, it is an .exe file that is masquerading as a .dll file. Immediately BAD to the Antivirus.

Most people have nothing to worry about if they're running a decent AntiVirus program. Trojans are one of the things that the programs easily catch because the structure of their code doesn't jibe with their file extension.

BajaNomad - 2-3-2008 at 02:02 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by MrBillM
Most people have nothing to worry about if they're running a decent AntiVirus program...
...or Linux as their operating system.

The quality of the current releases, price point (e.g. "free"), and continued - and increasing - community development and support of these "desktop" releases of Linux look to me as though they will be a very big challenge for MS in the marketplace going forward.

http://www.distrowatch.com




[Edited on 2-3-2008 by BajaNomad]

The Linux Threat - Microsoft and others Agree

MrBillM - 2-3-2008 at 02:19 PM

I believe it was in last month's issue of PC magazine that there was a short column on the increasing legal challenges that MS and other Big Guys are using to target many software creators who are using Linux code to write programs. The lawsuits claiming infringement on their products are another example of the Thuggery employed by the larger corporations to intimidate those with limited financial resources. The whole idea is to put fear into everyone that might write any open-source software that would compete. Although Linux is just a pimple in the overall market, the competition will do whatever's necessary to squash them.

In the same magazine there was an article regarding the tyranny of the current crop of EULAs (end user license agreements) that you're required to agree to before any use of the software. Unfortunately, they've been upheld by the courts so you have the decision of allowing them to do just about whatever they want or DON'T use software you've already bought. "YES, I agree" and you're hooked.

Although I've been toying with Linux (Ubuntu) for a relatively short period, I LOVE it. It is secure. Nothing gets in unless you allow it. It's not for everyone, though, because it requires a level of administration that most Windows users don't want to deal with. Linux is the answer for most of those Windows-Haters who turn to MAC and pay outrageous prices for the equipment. For a lot less, they could buy a Windows PC and load Linux in a dual-boot mode, turning to Windows only when absolutely necessary.

BCSTech - 2-3-2008 at 10:39 PM

So putting it all together, I can trust Trojan Horse programs written by Black Hats who hack Micro$oftware to not hack me? Hokay! ;D