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  4. Who needs security through obscurity?

Who needs security through obscurity?

Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved The Weird and The Wonderful
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  • P Offline
    P Offline
    PIEBALDconsult
    wrote on last edited by
    #1

    Am I right in thinking that a website shouldn't tell potential hackers what software it's running? :confused: http://www.codeproject.com/script/Membership/Uploads/2587207/PentaxWebStore.png[^]

    N Richard DeemingR B 3 Replies Last reply
    0
    • P PIEBALDconsult

      Am I right in thinking that a website shouldn't tell potential hackers what software it's running? :confused: http://www.codeproject.com/script/Membership/Uploads/2587207/PentaxWebStore.png[^]

      N Offline
      N Offline
      Nicolas Dorier
      wrote on last edited by
      #2

      True, it can weed out script kiddies searching for easy exploit to run. However, for a targeted attack, it does not trick the attacker very long, as there is lots of way to fingerprint the underlying server. I think a better protection is lying, not hiding. Make them believe you run on Apache while you are using IIS.

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      • P PIEBALDconsult

        Am I right in thinking that a website shouldn't tell potential hackers what software it's running? :confused: http://www.codeproject.com/script/Membership/Uploads/2587207/PentaxWebStore.png[^]

        Richard DeemingR Offline
        Richard DeemingR Offline
        Richard Deeming
        wrote on last edited by
        #3

        Who needs attacks based on vulnerabilities in the server or framework, when so many sites are open to SQLi, XSS or XSRF? :doh:


        "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

        "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined" - Homer

        L 1 Reply Last reply
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        • Richard DeemingR Richard Deeming

          Who needs attacks based on vulnerabilities in the server or framework, when so many sites are open to SQLi, XSS or XSRF? :doh:


          "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

          L Offline
          L Offline
          Lost User
          wrote on last edited by
          #4

          Who needs SQLi, when more sites are vulnerable to a DDoS? You look at the entire chain, and a weak link cannot be justified with pointing out other dangers.

          Bastard Programmer from Hell :suss: If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^][](X-Clacks-Overhead: GNU Terry Pratchett)

          Richard DeemingR 1 Reply Last reply
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          • L Lost User

            Who needs SQLi, when more sites are vulnerable to a DDoS? You look at the entire chain, and a weak link cannot be justified with pointing out other dangers.

            Bastard Programmer from Hell :suss: If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^][](X-Clacks-Overhead: GNU Terry Pratchett)

            Richard DeemingR Offline
            Richard DeemingR Offline
            Richard Deeming
            wrote on last edited by
            #5

            A DDoS will take the site down for a while, or even permanently. SQLi will leak your entire database to any script-kiddie with the right tool, and you'll end up facing massive fines and compensation claims.


            "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

            "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined" - Homer

            L 1 Reply Last reply
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            • Richard DeemingR Richard Deeming

              A DDoS will take the site down for a while, or even permanently. SQLi will leak your entire database to any script-kiddie with the right tool, and you'll end up facing massive fines and compensation claims.


              "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

              L Offline
              L Offline
              Lost User
              wrote on last edited by
              #6

              Richard Deeming wrote:

              you'll end up facing massive fines and compensation claims

              I see lots of articles where some large firm leaked passwords, but I never heard anything about "claims" or compensation. Even if you did not have the luxury of checking all the code of the outsourced devs' group for SQLi, and you'd have to rely on their word; point is that you don't ignore the rest of potential problems, simply because some other may exist. ..but yes, I do hope that claims will be more common in the future. Only then would companies have a financial incentive to keep their security up-to-date.

              Bastard Programmer from Hell :suss: If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^][](X-Clacks-Overhead: GNU Terry Pratchett)

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              • P PIEBALDconsult

                Am I right in thinking that a website shouldn't tell potential hackers what software it's running? :confused: http://www.codeproject.com/script/Membership/Uploads/2587207/PentaxWebStore.png[^]

                B Offline
                B Offline
                Bernhard Hiller
                wrote on last edited by
                #7

                Sadly, that seems to be the default setting with Apache. I've seen it often with directory listings.

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