Skip to content
  • Categories
  • Recent
  • Tags
  • Popular
  • World
  • Users
  • Groups
Skins
  • Light
  • Cerulean
  • Cosmo
  • Flatly
  • Journal
  • Litera
  • Lumen
  • Lux
  • Materia
  • Minty
  • Morph
  • Pulse
  • Sandstone
  • Simplex
  • Sketchy
  • Spacelab
  • United
  • Yeti
  • Zephyr
  • Dark
  • Cyborg
  • Darkly
  • Quartz
  • Slate
  • Solar
  • Superhero
  • Vapor

  • Default (No Skin)
  • No Skin
Collapse
Code Project
  1. Home
  2. Other Discussions
  3. The Weird and The Wonderful
  4. Experienced developers know all about security :sigh:

Experienced developers know all about security :sigh:

Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved The Weird and The Wonderful
databasesql-serversysadminwindows-adminsecurity
15 Posts 9 Posters 100 Views 1 Watching
  • Oldest to Newest
  • Newest to Oldest
  • Most Votes
Reply
  • Reply as topic
Log in to reply
This topic has been deleted. Only users with topic management privileges can see it.
  • M martin_hughes

    The current cast of idiots, no - but the last crowd... When I worked for this bunch of simpletons (in the pre-HMV/Waterstones days: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottakar's[^] They had an "online ordering" system powered by Access '97, called 'Snowy'. One day 'Snowy' bit the bullet, and muggins here was called in to sort out the mess. Unfortunately I was unable to save the 'wonderous' GUI end of the application, however I did walk away with the data aspect of the system... ...and what a system! Hundreds of un-normalized tables, no relationships, only a passing attempt at primary keys... and thousands of plain text user details received over the web (which I later found out were sent via email from the website to the "Internet" Dept, including, but not limited to: passwords, personal info such as date of birth and security confirmation questions and credit card details - including expiry dates! I burned the entire shooting match to CD - I still have it somewhere :)

    D Offline
    D Offline
    Dave Kreskowiak
    wrote on last edited by
    #6

    martin_hughes wrote:

    ...and what a system! Hundreds of un-normalized tables, no relationships, only a passing attempt at primary keys... and thousands of plain text user details received over the web (which I later found out were sent via email from the website to the "Internet" Dept, including, but not limited to: passwords, personal info such as date of birth and security confirmation questions and credit card details - including expiry dates!

    :omg: :wtf: You didn't happen to save the coloring books, did you? I mean what other documentation could they have had?

    A guide to posting questions on CodeProject[^]
    Dave Kreskowiak Microsoft MVP Visual Developer - Visual Basic
         2006, 2007

    M 1 Reply Last reply
    0
    • D Dave Kreskowiak

      martin_hughes wrote:

      ...and what a system! Hundreds of un-normalized tables, no relationships, only a passing attempt at primary keys... and thousands of plain text user details received over the web (which I later found out were sent via email from the website to the "Internet" Dept, including, but not limited to: passwords, personal info such as date of birth and security confirmation questions and credit card details - including expiry dates!

      :omg: :wtf: You didn't happen to save the coloring books, did you? I mean what other documentation could they have had?

      A guide to posting questions on CodeProject[^]
      Dave Kreskowiak Microsoft MVP Visual Developer - Visual Basic
           2006, 2007

      M Offline
      M Offline
      martin_hughes
      wrote on last edited by
      #7

      Sadly not - but I did liberate a (new, untouched) copy of E-Commerce for Dummies from the IT & Communication Manager's office :)

      D 1 Reply Last reply
      0
      • M martin_hughes

        Sadly not - but I did liberate a (new, untouched) copy of E-Commerce for Dummies from the IT & Communication Manager's office :)

        D Offline
        D Offline
        Dave Kreskowiak
        wrote on last edited by
        #8

        Apparently they were too embarassed to read it. Nor have they watched the News either, bringing up all kinds of credit card fiascos in the last 5 years. Management - what do we pay them for again? ;P

        A guide to posting questions on CodeProject[^]
        Dave Kreskowiak Microsoft MVP Visual Developer - Visual Basic
             2006, 2007

        1 Reply Last reply
        0
        • M martin_hughes

          Security? Security? `Security' isn't a dirty word, Blackadder. `Crevice' is a dirty word, but `security' isn't. Where I work there are several chiefs, but only one indian - namely me. Now these "chiefs" are all highly "experienced", so clearly what I suggest is completely without merit. Such as when I suggested that Application Security and User Permissions should be handled in the Application, and not left to the Database's role management, this was rebutted with "in all the applications I've ever worked on, that approach has never been successful". And when I suggested that the Application should have one, limited!, user account/role in the Database, this was laughed off, and in went the developer creating a seperate database account for each and every user. And then, when I was reaching the end of my tether, I suggested that password security was absolutely critical, I was later surprised to find in the registry, under the application's settings a Key containing connections. Further investigation showed that each connection contained the user name and PLAIN TEXT password for each user, including the Administrator. And not just an Application Administrator, but a fully fledged SQL Server 2005 Administrator. :sigh::-D:laugh:;P

          K Offline
          K Offline
          KarstenK
          wrote on last edited by
          #9

          This very dangerous for you, because such chiefs are running your company into trouble. :(( "Get Away while you can" :mad:

          Greetings from Germany

          M 1 Reply Last reply
          0
          • K KarstenK

            This very dangerous for you, because such chiefs are running your company into trouble. :(( "Get Away while you can" :mad:

            Greetings from Germany

            M Offline
            M Offline
            martin_hughes
            wrote on last edited by
            #10

            Too true - but the comedy value of things going horrible wrong all the time is worth it :)

            K 1 Reply Last reply
            0
            • V Vasudevan Deepak Kumar

              Pete O`Hanlon wrote:

              password to be password

              or password to be sa :-D or password to be 'blank' :-D:-D

              Vasudevan Deepak Kumar Personal Homepage Tech Gossips

              S Offline
              S Offline
              Sathesh Sakthivel
              wrote on last edited by
              #11

              :laugh::laugh:

              Regards, Satips.:rose: Don't walk in front of me, I may not follow; Don't walk behind me, I may not lead; Walk beside me, and just be my friend. - Albert Camus

              1 Reply Last reply
              0
              • M martin_hughes

                Too true - but the comedy value of things going horrible wrong all the time is worth it :)

                K Offline
                K Offline
                KarstenK
                wrote on last edited by
                #12

                I know the "Mouse is starring at the snake" Story too much out of my own experience, so I made the princiole decision, if I am in such case I gotta do something. One option is ALWAYS "run away".:~

                Greetings from Germany

                1 Reply Last reply
                0
                • V Vasudevan Deepak Kumar

                  Pete O`Hanlon wrote:

                  password to be password

                  or password to be sa :-D or password to be 'blank' :-D:-D

                  Vasudevan Deepak Kumar Personal Homepage Tech Gossips

                  A Offline
                  A Offline
                  Adam Maras
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #13

                  Might as well just sticky-note the password to the front of the server and e-mail it to the whole company...

                  P 1 Reply Last reply
                  0
                  • A Adam Maras

                    Might as well just sticky-note the password to the front of the server and e-mail it to the whole company...

                    P Offline
                    P Offline
                    Paul Conrad
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #14

                    May as well keep the key to the front door under the door mat, too :rolleyes:

                    "Any sort of work in VB6 is bound to provide several WTF moments." - Christian Graus

                    1 Reply Last reply
                    0
                    • M martin_hughes

                      Security? Security? `Security' isn't a dirty word, Blackadder. `Crevice' is a dirty word, but `security' isn't. Where I work there are several chiefs, but only one indian - namely me. Now these "chiefs" are all highly "experienced", so clearly what I suggest is completely without merit. Such as when I suggested that Application Security and User Permissions should be handled in the Application, and not left to the Database's role management, this was rebutted with "in all the applications I've ever worked on, that approach has never been successful". And when I suggested that the Application should have one, limited!, user account/role in the Database, this was laughed off, and in went the developer creating a seperate database account for each and every user. And then, when I was reaching the end of my tether, I suggested that password security was absolutely critical, I was later surprised to find in the registry, under the application's settings a Key containing connections. Further investigation showed that each connection contained the user name and PLAIN TEXT password for each user, including the Administrator. And not just an Application Administrator, but a fully fledged SQL Server 2005 Administrator. :sigh::-D:laugh:;P

                      J Offline
                      J Offline
                      javaJones
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #15

                      you must work at my company... I'd laugh but it hurts too much.:(:((

                      1 Reply Last reply
                      0
                      Reply
                      • Reply as topic
                      Log in to reply
                      • Oldest to Newest
                      • Newest to Oldest
                      • Most Votes


                      • Login

                      • Don't have an account? Register

                      • Login or register to search.
                      • First post
                        Last post
                      0
                      • Categories
                      • Recent
                      • Tags
                      • Popular
                      • World
                      • Users
                      • Groups