Kmem security (was: Re: How do you make your UNIX crash ???)

[Craig Campbell]

In article <6093 at ptsfa.PacBell.COM> dmturne at PacBell.COM (Dave Turner) writes:
>In article <638 at minya.UUCP> jc at minya.UUCP (John Chambers) writes:
 
>I'd be surprised if a least one user didn't learn your rootpassword
>by typing a ps (ps -ef on system v) while you were running this command.
>
>The security exposure of running a grep with root's clear password is
>much greater than someone getting it from /dev/kmem.
 
>Dave Turner	415/823-2001	{att,bellcore,sun,ames,decwrl}!pacbell!dmturne


Huh??!!  Whose SysV Rel 3 are you running?  P.S. -ef will only display the
command line.  The password is prompted for by the su program.  I am speaking
with intimate knowledge of AT&T SysV Release 3.1.1 -> SysV Rel 4.0.2.1.

Who is this rootpasswd person anyway?  Some dangerously stupid add on shell
script??  The functionality of ps has been well known and documented for a
longgggg time.  Unix, being Unix, will of course, cheerfully help you pull 
the trigger, if you insist on shooting yourself in the foot....

craig