Slashdot Log In
Practical Unix & Internet Security
from the updated-classic dept.
Practical Unix & Internet Security is divided up into six sections:
The first section covers the basics of computer security, tracing the history of Unix and security, as well as providing details of what should be in a good security policy.
The second section covers the building blocks of security, authentication, users and groups, filesystems, cryptography, physical security for servers, and personnel security.
Network and Internet security are focused on in the third section, with emphasis on modems and dialup security, TCP/IP networks, securing TCP and UDP services, Sun RPC, NIS, Kerberos, LDAP, NFS, and SAMBA, and finishing up with a chapter dedicated to secure programming techniques.
Day-to-day operations are the focus of the fourth section. Keeping up to date, making backups, defending accounts, using integrity checking tools, and auditing, logging, and forensics are all expanded upon in detail over five chapters.
The fifth section rounds off the main part of the book by describing how to handle security incidents. Special focus is given to discovering a break-in, protecting against programmed threats, Denial of Service Attacks (& DDoS), legal options, and a chapter on who you can trust.
The Appendixes make up the sixth and final section. Not a spot is wasted in the appendixes, which begin with a Unix security checklist, and then outline Unix processes, provide extensive links to both paper and electronic resources, and conclude with a sub-section on security organizations.
Among the topics I found most interesting were: Access Control Lists (ACL), Pluggable Authentication Modules (PAM), the section about 128-bit keys and dictionary-based passwords, connection laundering, honeypots, the false syslog example, and the example detailing a call to Microsoft's anti-piracy help line. The real-life examples scattered throughout Practical Unix & Internet Security keep the security sections from seeming overwhelming. This is one of the few books that I've found ever chapter of the appendix useful, so don't overlook them as simple reference pages.
Normally one-liners are reserved for movie discussions but for those who've already delved into Practical Unix & Internet Security here are a few of my favorite one-liners:
- "...we do believe that making files readable and writable by everyone leads to many evil deeds." - talking about the octal mode 666.
- "Humidity is your computer's friend." - just before static discharge kills your entire system.
- "Beware of Key Employees." - warning against making one person so key that their departure could cause your company irreparable harm.
- "You mean, you don't really have a copy? [of Windows 98]" - the last part of a conversation with Microsoft's Anti-Piracy line. The company which called Microsoft's was tracing some intruders who had uploaded a copy of Windows 98 to the company's web site and was using the site to peddle warez. Microsoft was just about to launch Windows 98. The example shows just how clueless some help desks can be.
One of the great things about Practical Unix & Internet Security is that it is appropriate for a wide audience. There is relevant material for system administrators, security, company decision makers, even the guy sitting at the accounting terminal. Despite its massive size Practical Unix & Internet Security is entertaining enough to be read cover to cover. (It's good for the arm muscles too.) Though it is easy to read, beginners should probably reread their system manual before plunging headlong into this book. All in all Practical Unix & Internet Security continues to be one of those must-have books for any Linux user.
You can purchase Practical Unix & Internet Security from bn.com. Slashdot welcomes readers' book reviews -- to see your own review here, read the book review guidelines, then visit the submission page.
Practical UNIX... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Practical UNIX... (Score:4, Funny)
Parent
the thing i always want to know (Score:5, Interesting)
What does this book offer that I can't easily find by asking google or google groups?
Re:the thing i always want to know (Score:5, Insightful)
No power requirements and need to connect to the Internet. Very handy feature.
Parent
Re:the thing i always want to know (Score:3, Interesting)
Perhaps I should have been more specific and said "networking books." When the topic is Internet Security, chances are pretty good you have a network connection available to you at the time when you are asking the questions.
Re:the thing i always want to know (Score:3, Insightful)
That having been said, Linux security is pretty well documented and easy to search on google. If only Windows had a bit of security, then M$ could have a book of its own as well. Sadly, Wind
Re:the thing i always want to know (Score:3, Informative)
Re:the thing i always want to know (Score:2)
Re:the thing i always want to know (Score:4, Funny)
What's this "offline" thing you mention? I've never heard of it.
What's their website?
Parent
Re:the thing i always want to know (Score:3, Funny)
Re:the thing i always want to know (Score:3, Funny)
It's also not nearly as impressive for that geek-babe you've had your eye on to catch you searching google as to catch you reading this.
Re:the thing i always want to know (Score:2)
Re:the thing i always want to know (Score:2)
One centralised Corporation makes it REAL easy to control the flow of knowledge.
For now, it's some urban exploration and scientology. Wonder what it'll be tomorrow?
Re:the thing i always want to know (Score:5, Funny)
A book.
KFG
Parent
Get for just $27! (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Get for just $27! (Score:3, Informative)
Or get it for just $21.47 used... (Score:2)
Froogle isn't anywhere near as good as addall.com for books, or pricegrabber.com & pricewatch.com for tech.
--
At least you have your health! (Score:3, Funny)
UUCP (Score:5, Informative)
Sendmail (a program) is not an alternative to UUCP (a protocol). Even if you are talking about the UUCP software and not the protocol, the alternative is pppd, not sendmail.
Sendmail still supports UUCP, but most distros do not enable that support, and hardly anyone uses UUCP anymore.
HP-sUX still needs UUCP (Score:2, Interesting)
One MORE reason why HP-UX is the most GODAWFUL WORST *NIX on the FUCKING PLANET!
Re:HP-sUX still needs UUCP (Score:3, Insightful)
Because the uucp uid still owns all the serial port hardware. You need UUCP so that your modems will work, even though they are not running the UUCP protocol.
This is irrational. Presumably you could create any user/group you wanted and give it access to this hardware, so long as the users that the programs that need access to this hardware run as are also part of that group/that user. BUt why mess with perfection? If it works, there is no reason to change it. There is nothing magic about the name uu
Re:UUCP (Score:2)
But the main selling point of UUCP was to be able to handle scheduled intermittent connections.
This was useful before the Internet got its mojo on, when Email was delivered in batches in a fido-style bucket brigade. "This Email is for California, dial up Chicago at midnight and have them pass it on".
Usenet also started on UUCP (yes, Usenet existed before the Internet) but migrated to NNTP ov
Re:UUCP (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:UUCP (Score:2)
Simson Garfinkel... (Score:5, Funny)
this vs. Robert Slade in comp.risks (Score:4, Interesting)
cheers...ank
is there a digital copy with the book? (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:is there a digital copy with the book? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:is there a digital copy with the book? (Score:4, Informative)
If you [have|want] to manage large quantities of Linux servers, pay closer attention to the Linux on zSeries materials since its customary to run hundreds of virtual Linux servers at a time, and they still need to be managed. Same goes for HPC clusters. Since these books are written by different people, its neat to hear the tack they've each taken to managing large-scale communities. One book even touches on configuring a Linux virtual server on a zbox with LEAF [sf.net] to serve as a software firewall for the remaining machines.
You laugh!
Parent
and also importantly... (Score:4, Insightful)
Hey... (Score:5, Funny)
One of the great things about Practical Unix & Internet Security is that it is appropriate for a wide audience
I resemble that remark.
This sounds like something I want on my shelf... (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:This sounds like something I want on my shelf.. (Score:2)
You must not have met my parents, or many people who are not that computer literate. To many, many people a computer is just a tool they use to make life easier. It should not be a full time job to administer.
The problem is with all the hackers, port sniffers, crackers, and the like. I want to see some harsh penalties which send people to jail just for looking.
This book is overkill for slammer/blaster (Score:3, Insightful)
You don't need a 1000 page book on security to patch your systems against worms; you need a 1 page book on common sense.
Sample Chapters (Score:5, Informative)
Here's my book (Score:2)
good book for beginners (Score:2)
www.xml-dev.com [xml-dev.com]
Re:good book for beginners (Score:4, Interesting)
I learned all the great stuff about TCP Wrappers and how it was revolutionizing inetd. When I went to my Slackware box to try to implement, it was already done! Same for shadow passwords. Its funny in that, even being a 7 year user and an RHCE, it still seems like commercial UNIX was in the dark ages until the early 90's just based on those two features alone. Not to say MS was any better (my god no), but to require applications to have root privs to bind to a low port and have world-readable password hashes just seems like something from a million years ago. Different times, those were.
I *still* have to instruct local UNIX pros on the virtues of ssh over telnet. If the X forwarding over ssh doesn't sell them on it, password collectors like ettercap will, every time
Parent
Re:good book for beginners (Score:2)
Seriously, the chapter given (11), was more of a prelude and background to chapter 12, which is securing TCP and UDP services. Don't be too misled.
Re:1000 pages (Score:4, Informative)
Real World Linux Security
Parent
Re:1000 pages (Score:2)
Basically, my only gripe about it is the case studies, which were one of the reasons that I bought it. They're all what he and his buddies did during the 70s to academic systems that they already had physical access to. Duh. Oh, that and him using a 'case study' to bitch about MCI.
He's also the first person I've ever read advocating the use of active blocking software, though he makes a good case for his (pretty kludgey) o
Re:viruses (Score:4, Insightful)
Since people frequently use tools like NIS, rdist, rsync/ssh, and LDAP to create single authentication domains that span multiple physical boxen, somebody could use one of the usual social engineering tricks to get root on a single box and then load a boot-sector infector into the
Best that *nix sysadmins remain on guard, regardless.
Parent
Re:viruses (Score:5, Funny)
Sounds like a nerd garage band.
Parent
Re:viruses (Score:3, Funny)
Re:viruses (Score:2)
Not with the facist-nazi SAs I have in my group. Root should really never be handed out. "sudo" may not be perfect, but it's a far better alternative. The only reason we give root out is for very specific servers and for limited amounts of time.
The other thing is that your trusted server had better not be loading .profile from remote boxes anyway, certianly not for root. Even our everyday users have scripts they have to run to set u
Re:Passwords are a bad idea (Score:2)
The only secure system is an open system that allows the public to find out what is going on. The open source bazaar will take care of the rest.
Re:Mode 666? (Score:5, Informative)
777 is rwxrwxrwx : Read, Write & Excutable for all
666 is rw-rw-rw- : Read, Write for all
remember octal? r=4; w=2; x=1
r + w = 4 + 2 = 6
rho
Parent
Re:Mode 666? (Score:2)
_u___g__o
rwx rwx rwx = 111 111 111
rw- rw- rw- = 110 110 110
110 in binary is 6 in decimal.
Re:Mode 666? (Score:2)
Re:Sheesh. (Score:2)
What the world needs is a book on WINDOWS security. Not YABOUS.
This [sourcemage.org] is the answer to your Windows security problem.