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Thread: News - Dell dropping Ubuntu option from its laptops?

  1. #17
    Lovely chap dangel's Avatar
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    Re: News - Dell dropping Ubuntu option from its laptops?

    Quote Originally Posted by Saracen View Post
    There ought to be a way to solve the patching issue though, if banks devoted some time and effort to it. Perhaps a little flash drive supplied to account holders and some automated and encrypted update process, a bit like the user updating their AV by letting the software do it for them .... but with stronger controls and protection. Perhaps an encrypted exchange between bank and user, using one of those number generators some banks use for authentication, or something similar. It just seems that it ought to be doable in a way that's both practical for "average" users, and yet secure.
    Not to be facetious but the banks do the bare minimum - they're simply not bothered until something costs them money. I remember getting quite irate at First Direct for trying to block Opera (they preferred IE!) and Firefox at one stage - infuriating as both are much more secure. This has changed, but mostly because of FF no doubt and the real demand wasn't for better security it was just the popularity of FF. I'm all for some new uber-easy-uber-secure system but would you put money on it happening in the next decade?
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  2. #18
    A shadowy flight. MSIC's Avatar
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    Re: News - Dell dropping Ubuntu option from its laptops?

    Quote Originally Posted by Saracen View Post
    I agree patching for updates is an issue, and I certainly agree about the user being the problem. It's astonishing how often you still find passwords on a PostIt stuck on the side of the monitor .... or for the security conscious, taped to that slide-out platform on most office desks.
    As someone who used to do this, yet fully (IMO) understands the risks and issues involved, i'd like to give my reasons.
    Firstly, my work-based machine requires 5 different passwords (1 for Novel /Windows logon), one for data recording system, 1 for my browser-based work email, and 2 others for apps that we use. Each of these have a time-limit on how long we can use them (which is good) and each doesnt allow a previous password to be used (also good). The problem is that each of them expire at different times (varying between 4 weeks and 6 months) and only 3 of them allow the user to change in advance of this timeframe without admin intervention, therefore they all become different very quickly. I try to use a couple of 'core' passwords, with varying extensions (which is all that I write down, not the whole password) to be able to use the systems.

    I agree with the principles of security, but it directly gets in the way of useability for me, and having to ring admin ("you are 10th in the queue, please hold...") is a PITA. i acknowledge it's not ideal, but bring on reliable face recognition, or similar.
    Last edited by MSIC; 04-08-2010 at 11:22 AM.
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    Re: News - Dell dropping Ubuntu option from its laptops?

    Only if, as you say, it saves them money. I would have thought it would, though.

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    Re: News - Dell dropping Ubuntu option from its laptops?

    Quote Originally Posted by MSIC View Post
    As someone who used to do this, yet fully (IMO) understands the risks and issues involved, i'd like to give my reasons.
    Firstly, my work-based machine requires 5 different passwords (1 for Novel /Windows logon), one for data recording system, 1 for my browser-based work email, and 2 others for apps that we use. Each of these have a time-limit on how long we can use them (which is good) and each doesnt allow a previous password to be used (also good). The problem is that each of them expire at different times (varying between 4 weeks and 6 months) and only 3 of them allow the user to change in advance of this timeframe without admin intervention, therefore they all become different very quickly. I try to use a couple of 'core' passwords, with varying extensions (which is all that I write down, not the whole password) to be able to use the systems.
    I've got a similar problem, but larger magnitude - with not only various remote systems splattered around the globe, but also local virtual machines. Having seen the major-league bollocking* that colleagues got for (a) using a small diary "locked" in a desk drawer or (b) a password "protected" Excel sheet on a network share, I figured that I better do something else. Ended up using a (paid for) password manager app running on my works PC - figured that was safe given that the password app is 256bit AES and password protected, running in a password and dongle protected Windows user, on a PC that's running whole disk encryption.

    (* the bit of HP that I work for are pretty hot on security, their security folks obviously enjoy their work and get out of the wrong side of the bed every morning).

    What about using something like KeePass (http://keepass.info/index.html), it seems to have a pretty good reputation and it's free? Better still, use the portable edition and store it on an IronKey (Basic edition is about £80 for 4GB) - although if you're using an IronKey then the "Personal" edition seems to have password store/management anyway. I'm wondering whether the Android edition of KeyPass would be useful for my personal passwords etc (replacing the Palm app that I'm using at the moment).

    Or, you could use a csv or text file stored in a small TrueCrypt volume. Bung that on a normal USB stick and it'll be cross-platform too.

    HTH, Bob (apologies that this is off-topic)

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    Re: News - Dell dropping Ubuntu option from its laptops?

    Quote Originally Posted by MSIC View Post
    As someone who used to do this, yet fully (IMO) understands the risks and issues involved, i'd like to give my reasons......
    I sympathise. And that's not totally unusual either.

    But what you have there is also an example of poor security management. There has to be a balance between security, and the level of user inconvenience. If you have passwords up the wazoo like that, the result is likely to be that people, ought of practicality or sheer frustration, short-circuit them, in which case, they light as well not have the security in the first place.

    It sounds like what you've got is a piecemeal with no coherence or strategy. If companies do that, to that extent, it shouldn't be too surprising when people "cheat".

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    Re: News - Dell dropping Ubuntu option from its laptops?

    Ack, our domain has a 3 retry count for passwords before locking people out - this is stupid - even paranoid admins advise 10 as a minimum..
    Crosshair VIII Hero (WIFI), 3900x, 32GB DDR4, Many SSDs, EVGA FTW3 3090, Ethoo 719


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