security
The multi-platform password cracker Ophcrack is incredibly fast. How fast? It can crack the password "Fgpyyih804423" in 160 seconds. Most people would consider that password fairly secure. The Microsoft password strength checker rates it "strong". The Geekwisdom password strength meter rates it "mediocre". Why
security
Scott Wasson at The Tech Report notes that two of his family members fell victim to the eCard email exploit that has been making the rounds lately: I just dropped off a package containing my dad's laptop at the FedEx depot this afternoon. I spent parts of several
legalese
If you've used a computer for any length of time, you've probably clicked through hundreds of End User License Agreement (EULA) dialogs. And if you're like me, you haven't read a single word of any of them. Who can blame you? They&
security
In How to Clean Up a Windows Spyware Infestation, I documented how spyware can do a drive-by infection of your machine through your web browser. To be absolutely clear, I never clicked on any advertisements, or downloaded and executed any files. All I did was open a GameCopyWorld web page
security
I recently upgraded my dedicated racing simulation PC, so I was forced to re-install Windows XP SP2, along with all the games. As I was downloading the no-cd patches for the various racing sims I own, I was suddenly and inexplicably deluged with popups, icons, and unwanted software installations. I
authentication
Dare Obasanjo's May 26th thoughts on the facebook platform contained a number of links to the Facebook API documentation. At the time, clicking through to any of the Facebook API links resulted in a login dialog: It struck me as incredibly odd that I had to login just
security
The Ghost In The Browser: Analysis of Web-based Malware (pdf) describes how Google is leveraging their overwhelming search dominance to combat browser malware installations. In a blog entry last summer, Matt Cutts said: Given how much I hate web pages that install malicious software or abuse browser security holes, I&
security
I picked up a free copy of 19 Deadly Sins of Software Security [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0072260858/codihorr-20] at a conference last year. I didn't expect the book to be good because it was a free giveaway item from one of the the vendor
security
The One Laptop Per Child [http://www.laptop.org/] operating system features a new security model-- Bitfrost [http://wiki.laptop.org/go/OLPC_Bitfrost]. It's an interesting departure from the traditional UNIX and LINUX security model. > The 1971 version of UNIX supported the following security permissions on
windows vista
Now that Windows Vista has been available for almost a month, the comparative performance benchmarks are in. * Windows XP vs. Vista: The Benchmark Rundown (Tom's Hardware) * Windows Vista Performance Guide (Anandtech) It's about what I expected; rough parity with the performance of Windows XP. Vista'
security
I'm no fan of the classic login/password scheme. I can barely remember any of the zillion logins and passwords I have. More often than not, I end up using the "forgot password" link. Which means, in effect, that my email account is my global password.
security
I recently got into a spirited discussion about Akismet. What is Akismet? When a new comment, trackback, or pingback comes to your blog it is submitted to the Akismet web service which runs hundreds of tests on the comment and returns a thumbs up or thumbs down. Akismet is awfully