Path: chuka.playstation.co.uk!scea!peter_alau@playstation.sony.com
From: Elliott Lee <tenchi@shell.jps.net>
Newsgroups: scea.yaroze.freetalk
Subject: Re: A new type of security threat?
Date: Thu, 29 Oct 1998 16:04:37 -0800
Organization: .
Lines: 45
Message-ID: <36390295.F5954779@shell.jps.net>
References: <36383b30.79566@news.scea.sony.com> <3638ED2D.848A957A@datasys.net>
Reply-To: tenchi@shell.jps.net
NNTP-Posting-Host: dhcp-m-62-237.cisco.com
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.03 [en] (Win95; U)

*sigh*

It depends on what you want to use BO for.  If you've got just a
small network of computers not connected to the Net, then BO is
actually pretty cool as a remote sysadmin tool.  However, once you
open up your system, anything can go wrong.  I'd suggest that if
you do install it, make sure you make an image of your system
prior to putting it on there, and make sure you keep all of your
personal stuff in non-standard directories or back them off onto
disk.  Make sure you don't store passwords to sensitive info in
plain text---always encode them.  Also, don't let it listen on the
all-to-common 37337 port.

:P

And, yes, it does do screen pretty captures.  ^_^

Darco wrote:
> 
> Matthew Hulett wrote:
> >
> >    I just came across this in cyberspace. I thought I would ask the
> > computer sauvy members in this group for any elaboration of this new
> > threat to our computers, and would provide a heads-up. Is this true?
> >
> 
> Yes, unfortunately, it is true. Back Orifice is a very nasty program
> that can be attached to any windows executable file. It was released by
> a hacking group called the "Clut of the Dead Cow" or something. The
> threat is VERY real.
> 
> If you have Back Orifice on your computer, someone can even seize
> control of all input devices (mouse, keyboard, whatever) and do whatever
> they want as long as their connection is fast enough! They can take
> screen shots, download files, erase files, etc...........
> 
> The scary thing is that there have probably been several programs like
> this around for a while now. Back Orifice was made public only to
> identify the security holes in Win95 and Win98. (This tends to make
> Microsoft work faster) The concept behind the program is incredibly
> simplistic, yet extremely effective.
> 
> Be careful.
> 
> 'Darco