Of course, you're right... I just thought it was a step up from having the
password in the EXEC. And hey - you can make NETRC DATA file mode 0! ;-)
Scott
On Wed, Sep 2, 2009 at 9:04 PM, Alan Altmark <alan_altm...@us.ibm.com>wrote:
> On Wednesday, 09/02/2009 at 07:02 EDT, Scott Rohling
> <scott.rohl...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > Just fyi - You can use the NETRC DATA file to store userid/pw for
> different
> > hosts... that way at least you're not hardcoding that part in an
> EXEC. If
> > it's present -- you can assume you will be logged in when you start FTP
> -- so
> > you just queue up the commands you want issued, and skip the USER part..
>
> Ahem. That means you have a host password laying around in cleartext on a
> disk, likely in violation of your company's password security policy.
> "Hates it....."
>
> If you need to do this sort of thing, at least obscure the password with
> something like
> hashpw = bitxor(pw, copies('AA'x, length(pw)) )
> and store it on disk with name other than "HASHED PASSWORD". Issue the
> same function against the hashed version gives you the original password.
> Stack it rather than putting it in NETRC DATA.
>
> Or, for something a little safer, have your PROFILE EXEC prompt you for
> your password, hash it, and put it in an in-memory-only GLOBALV variable.
> Your exec retrieves the variable and reverses the hash. (Please name it
> something other than MYPASSWORD.)
>
> For extra credit you can get creative with the CIPHER MESSAGE (KM)
> instruction and the use of a prompted-for "master key" to decipher each
> line of a file. Therein you will find the list of hosts and passwords
> that you previously encrypted with said master key. Again, store the
> array GLOBALV PUT (not PUTS or PUTP). GLOBALV GET the one you want. The
> password file remains securely encrypted and your hands never leave your
> arms at any time during the show.
>
> The extra paranoid among us will still apply the bitxor hash to the
> password before storing in GLOBALV. Doing so ensures that it doesn't
> appear in a dump in cleartext. Of course, if someone looks at memory
> while your "ftp" exec is running, they will see the password. It has to
> come out of hiding at some point...
>
> Alan Altmark
> z/VM Development
> IBM Endicott
>
