Text 12600, 77 rader
Skriven 2010-11-25 06:34:14 av Bob Ackley (1:300/3)
  Kommentar till text 12581 av Peter Knapper (3:772/1.0)
Ärende: N'other one evicted from dyndns?
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Replying to a message of Peter Knapper to Bob Ackley:

 PK> Hi Bob,

 PK>> Lets see if this stand up... 

 PK>> The machine in question is behind an EXTERNAL Firewall, that KNOWS
 PK>> about Email URL's. Once the Email has arrived at that machine, an
 PK>> EXTERNAL Firewall has already recorded the URL and provides instant
 PK>> Blocking of that particular URL from ANY application on that
 PK>> machine. Please note that this is just ONE possible scenario...

 BA>> IMO the blocking is handled internally within each 
 BA>> computer, it's simply a matter
 BA>> of preventing clicks on email links from working, and 
 BA>> the software (XP and W7)
 BA>> is smart enough not to allow pasting of links from 
 BA>> emails into the browser search
 BA>> line.

 PK> Yes, this is possible, however I know I would not do what you describe
 PK> that way, as I simply know that there are ways to work around this
 PK> type of scenario.

There probably is, I'm just not interested enough in that sort of thing to
bother.
Note that the machines are locked down pretty tight.  The 'C' drive is flatly
not accessible and the 'D' drive is wiped every time the machine is rebooted.
The command prompt is disabled and the right mouse click function is mostly
disabled.  If a user wants to save anything s/he must bring her own media
(floppy,
blank CD-ROM or thumb drive) to save it on; one can 'save' one's preferences in
IE, but the next time the program is started they're gone.

 PK> I dont consider Windows secure enough to stop any
 PK> decent attacker from bypassing this self imposed limitation (IMHO).
 PK> An external control point is a different matter.

 BA>> The machines are provided to the library by the Bill & 
 BA>> Melinda Gates Foundation - or so it says at startup.

 PK> That would immediately get me suspicious.;-)

 BA>>> The only emails I've
 BA>>> wanted to click on links in are sort of newsletters I 
 BA>>> want to unsubscribe from;
 BA>>> since I've been unable to do that I just have to delete 
 BA>>> them unopened like I do junk
 BA>>> mail at the post office (the local post office keeps a 
 BA>>> large trash can conveniently
 BA>>> in the lobby for that purpose).  A minor annoyance.

 PK> Is the text of the URL able to be trapped and stored locally?

 PK>> The only option that I can see is to use another machine that is not
 PK>> "protected" from this type of activity... ASSUMING my above theory
 PK>> is correct, there is no way to modify the behaviour of this machine
 PK>> to allow what you want, as the control point is external to the
 PK>> machine.

 BA>> All of the machines in the library are "so protected" - 
 BA>> as are the ones in 
 BA>> the public library over in Red Oak, IA.  It's only a 
 BA>> minor irritant as it only
 BA>> takes a couple of minutes to delete all the junk emails 
 BA>> I don't want to see.

 PK> Is it possible to substitute your own machine for the provided one?

Probably, but that sort of thing isn't allowed.  There's a fellow who sets 
up a laptop on his porch across the street and accesses the library's
system through its wireless connections (the original fsix machines are
hard wired but the three new ones use a wireless connection because
they didn't want to string cables in the open.).

--- FleetStreet 1.19+
 * Origin: Bob's Boneyard, Emerson, Iowa (1:300/3)