December 2003 - cypherpunks-legacy

"Virus Alert" chain letter
by L. McCarthy 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Dear AOL Postmaster: The message below has apparently been circulating quite widely. Personally I doubt the authenticity of the claim, and strongly suspect that it's just an annoying attempt to create a chain letter. In any event, it would be handy to hear some sort of statement from AOL about this matter to stem the tide of largely unproductive speculation on various mailing lists. I'm cc:ing this to the cypherpunks list <cypherpunks(a)toad.com>, and encourage you to cc: your reply to the list. I recommend posting some sort of announcement to the comp.virus newsgroup as well. Thanks very much for your time. - -L. McCarthy <lmccarth(a)cs.umass.edu> Forwarded message: > Subj: Read this A.S.A.P.-- VIRUS (fwd) > > * WARNING * > > THere is a virus being sent on Online America by E-mail. If > you get anything called "Good Times", DO NOT READ IT OR > DOWNLOAD IT. I repeat, do not read it or download it. It is > a virus that will earase your hard drive. Please forward this > message to everyone you have an address for. It will help > them a lot. -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 2.6.1 iQCVAwUBLuVdWGf7YYibNzjpAQHivQQAi8XCc4BMXVM70wDio2UZHcm7frLtmHc/ yR8ym75pKZbuN5f69MiN+OAYsV5l33TsJFIJ6Z8nEgzQwyF4a04NLfLLWNmm7CwG IX3Dc6oJhgv3xDp/o+Y8MsJyyqKRrEeXP0UcLWt/lG71dK6TSpS6TwlF38OnY/v4 ykJvT4qII2M= =3a+r -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

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Re: (Fwd) Read this, Virus info!!
by Andrew Lowenstern 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

Michael K. Sanders writes: > Has anyone actually seen this 'Good Times' thing? I highly doubt > it. And seriously, an e-mail virus? Get real. and Ian Farquhar writes: > And pigs fly too. Laugh if you want, but this has been possible for years under NeXTSTEP. With it's Display PostScript system and rich text mail reader, it's easy to send a PostScript trojan horse via e-mail. As soon as the message is read, the Mail app tries to display the text and any images inside, which is probably what it should do. However, because EPS images are really just PostScript code, you can do write a PostScript program that does all sorts of nasty things, which includes reading and writing files, stick an EPS header on it, and drop it into a mail message. The recipient's mail reader will cheerfully run the received EPS image through the PS interpreter... All of the EPS trojan horses I have seen do cute, but harmless, things like melt your screen, make windows fly around, rearrange your dock, or display animation before returning things to normal, but they could just as easily erase your home directory or just about anything else. After this major security hole became public knowledge, NeXT provided for 'secure' postscript contexts (safe-DPS if you will) where some of the nastier postscript operators were disabled. Anyway, it's more than possible, even when the designers didn't originally bargain for any type of 'enabled mail.' And with the proliferation of Display PostScript based X servers and MIME mail tools, and other more advanced mail systems on other platforms, we will probably see much more of this type of thing. andrew

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Looking for Hackers' Story
by sghahn＠math1.kaist.ac.kr 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

I am looking for the sources about the general aspects of the hackers. I am writing an article for a Korean journal <The Database World>. I am writing about the origins, the history, the developments, the new trends, and its impact on the industry, etc. Pla Please send me an e-mail if you know any good sources. Thanks in advance.

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Argh, apologies
by L. Todd Masco 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- My most sincere apologies: due to a Truly Heinous filesystem lossage mode, (thanks, DEC, for ultrix 4.2!) the sign/forward service cypherpunks(a)hks.net has been broken since late Wednesday and everything through it has been lost. I just got back from DC/MD/VA and corrected the problem. I've modified things so that this will not happen again (at worst, signing and forwarding will be delayed until the queue is manually run). Again, I very much apologize for this. - -- Todd Masco | It's sometimes difficult to be too loud about your cactus(a)hks.net | enumerated rights when you're busy exercising your cactus(a)bb.com | unenumerated rights. - --- [This message has been signed by an auto-signing service. A valid signature means only that it has been received at the address corresponding to the signature and forwarded.] -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 2.6.2 Comment: Gratis auto-signing service iQBFAwUBLumIeyoZzwIn1bdtAQFU6AGAu3BVYAsmo+8+mVRRhm5i4rPijBDOjUC0 b00JXC27ejVCzr2ZGis1f1pbwH+/9bDJ =xfn3 -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

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Re: Good times virus (ANSI BOMB?)
by adam.philipp＠ties.org 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- >On Dec 7, 1:04am, ADAM GERSTEIN, _THE_ MACGURU wrote: >> Need I remind you of a certain Robert T. Morris? Does the "Internet Worm" >mean >> anything to you? Sure, it wasn't actual email, but it did use email and other >> means of transport to cripple the net in a matter of hours. > >The Internet Worm used the sendmail DEBUG mode to execute commands on >a remote system. It did not propogate itself via email messages, which was >what the original (ridiculous) warning claimed. > >I can't feel a lot of sympathy for people who took this announcement >seriously. Such stupidity reaps its own rewards. Although the concept of "text viruses" seems a bit far fetched to some people, there these lovely toys known as ANSI bombs. Essentially they work in a similar method to the some techniques used in the sendmail bug, but they are MS-DOS specific, they will use embedded ANSI codes to run programs as the files is viewed... anyone know what will happen if deltree /XXX (where XXX represents an unpublished string of characters) is run from the root directory of a DOS hard disk? Its gone, quickly. Sure the files can be undeleted, but undeleting a whole disk is tricky business... Maybe Good Times is a hoax, but ANSI bombs exist and using a DOS ANSI text viewer will surely be a foolish thing to do on any downloaded text file... If anyone feels the need for proof I collected a few a while back, but really don't see the need to post them...heh heh. Adam Philipp PS: Please no comments about superiority of MACs or LINUX boxs because they are immune to ANSI boms...that ought to be clear enough... - -- PGP Key available on the keyservers. Encrypted E-mail welcome. SUB ROSA: Confidential, secret, not for publication. -Black's Law Dictionary GJ/CS d H S:+ g? p? au+ a- w+ v++ c++ UL+ UU+ US+ P+ 3 E N++ k- W++ M-- V po- Y++ t++ 5+ jx R G' tv+ b+++ D++ B--- E+++ u** h-- f++ r+ n+ y++-- - --- [This message has been signed by an auto-signing service. A valid signature means only that it has been received at the address corresponding to the signature and forwarded.] -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 2.6.2 Comment: Gratis auto-signing service iQBFAwUBLuVnPSoZzwIn1bdtAQEjeAF+Pi65kg9SMBZ1bzO5gJBsumi5x2vJFgqC o0hc3bMaqLYb5WY/jlaAtWURtzXzOUc6 =/53s -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

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public key algorithms and Netscape
by eric＠remailer.net 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

The claim was made here by someone at Netscape that no suitable public key algorithms existed other than RSADSI technology. I don't remember how explicit this claim was; it may have been an implication of some more general statement. I note that the folks at Netscape must never have heard of elliptic curve algorithms for public key technology. I would hazard that representatives at RSADSI stated or implied that such technology was covered by their patents. I would then ask if they said so in writing. Making claims about a patent that are knowingly false is grounds for vacating the patent. The IEEE P1363 working group on cryptography standards is moving forward with elliptic curve cryptosystems but not with RSA because of patent issues. Coincidence? Eric

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THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
by Sandy Sandfort 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SANDY SANDFORT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C'punks, Tim May wrote: ... I don't want to see my local cops have all of their actions videotaped and reviewed for quite another reason--I don't want a "mechanization" of the enforcement process! Won't happen. First, cops are already required to enforce some stupid laws; the mechanism used is "quotas." Second, the vast number of laws makes total enforcement impossible. Third, the cops aren't pulling a fast one when they use their discretion to cut someone loose. I've even seem them do it on the TV show "COPS." That discretion is clearly within their powers. It's the "let's-whack-the-hippie" sort of discretion that is denied them. ... I have some good opinions of the California Highway Patrol ... even a cop-disliking skeptic like me can be convinced that some good is done is by them, and that not all cops are bad.... I agree; and Mussolini did make the trains run on time . . . My proposal is not anti-cop; it's anti- *bad* cop. Good cops *benefit* from protective surveillance; and *all* cops benefit from having their exact location known when the feces impacts the turbine. S a n d y ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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OFF LINE
by Sandy Sandfort 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SANDY SANDFORT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C'punks, I am moving back to California. I fly out tomorrow evening. I will be off-line for a day or two at least. Go ahead and send me stuff; I'll get to it as soon as I can. S a n d y ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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uSuRa anonymous remailer [update]
by Alex de Joode 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

I have registerd the domain-name replay.COM at InterNic. XS4all has installed some sort of MX-handling for my account, usura(a)xs4all.nl, so my new address wil be usura(a)replay.com. The remailer that is operated from that account is now also reachable at the replay.com address. The usura(a)xs4all.nl remains valid. Raph Levien has updated the address in his automated pinger; here is the updated PGPkey for the usura(a)replay.COM remailer: -----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- Version: 2.6.2 Comment: Replay and Company Limited. mQCNAi4wTh8AAAEEAMb9gl6NlZHy4FdjADel4d+C+Th7+inTOV4mEsKk+N/QfJAj BN6YPnJ9bm+Ch19FrR1KeTwrpluP6J+GdJrMkVSosvIqBPpSRgOs7nvMhnn3Tnrn uUFZVDYslQ1wRZvFbTpCEW8TzgVhGy6HMznxEC4ttnOq8pFRFUpL3asf+toVAAUR tCt1U3VSYSBhbm9ueW1vdXMgcmVtYWlsZXIgPHVzdXJhQHJlcGxheS5DT00+iQCV AgUQLu0YykpL3asf+toVAQGqhAQAuAnqzqRc5MzYGHmzBVjvUxnEuHiwju4EZmIO OZ5wbxd62gNDV7Nj+M3yj5pnSuwLBL/AOjxLEGRQ49HwvCOLy0wtJWulsg71Pi+y sPkUrP9uq7Aa381Rkwcrcje73WGvFcv89LGtcZlvuiqeNatubbvEgeC9VWb5ovEq jZFLvEI= =snZE -----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- EnJoY. -- Exit! Stage Left. <URL:mailto:usura@replay.com> Alex de Joode <URL:http://www.xs4all.nl/~usura>

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Re: THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS
by snyderra＠dunx1.ocs.drexel.edu 17 Dec '03

17 Dec '03

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- At 9:13 PM 12/12/94, Sandy Sandfort wrote: >My proposal is not anti-cop; it's anti- *bad* cop. Good cops >*benefit* from protective surveillance; and *all* cops benefit >from having their exact location known when the feces impacts the >turbine. sed -e "s/cop/citizen/g" sed -e "s/cop/employee/g" sed... Bob [For the sed-impared: s - search and replace string 1 with string 2. g - do it multiple times per line.] -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 2.6 iQCVAwUBLu0bQeS0CjsjWS0VAQEmzAP+OV59f7hR8CKi6UC13k2x/Fj1QylXPSaj /nR614LzoCeHf7+OAVLN6COx5vGC6yL3EoDL1Ocjm52bWh1nxoIfsGImRBuqRo9R Mcwa6Av+/kn9271O6I6VKLnFU6SYA35vuOAACOAVB647aQ6dAOfheU2fLAd0xEEZ l9mpaNalm7E= =HXZ/ -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- -- Bob Snyder N2KGO MIME, PGP, RIPEM mail accepted snyderra(a)post.drexel.edu PGP & RIPEM keys on key servers When cryptography is outlawed, bayl bhgynjf jvyy unir cevinpl.

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