From: eighner AT io DOT com (Lars Eighner) Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.djgpp,comp.os.msdos.programmer Subject: Re: Weird Characters in Filenames Date: Sat, 04 Dec 1999 05:36:41 -0600 Organization: Lars Eighner, Author Lines: 28 Message-ID: References: <82988f$v00$1 AT newsg1 DOT svr DOT pol DOT co DOT uk> <47Y14.700$_j4 DOT 22367 AT dfiatx1-snr1 DOT gtei DOT net> <82a08t1161b AT enews4 DOT newsguy DOT com> NNTP-Posting-Host: dillinger.io.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit X-Trace: hiram.io.com 944316156 22052 199.170.88.20 (4 Dec 1999 14:02:36 GMT) X-Complaints-To: abuse AT io DOT com NNTP-Posting-Date: 4 Dec 1999 14:02:36 GMT X-Newsreader: Yarn 0.92 with YES 0.22 X-ISP: Illuminati Online X-Revision: 1 Originator: eighner AT dillinger-2 DOT io DOT com (Lars Eighner) To: djgpp AT delorie DOT com DJ-Gateway: from newsgroup comp.os.msdos.djgpp Reply-To: djgpp AT delorie DOT com In our last episode <82a08t1161b AT enews4 DOT newsguy DOT com>, the lovely and talented mrgus AT zombie DOT net (Mr. Gus) broadcast on comp.os.msdos.djgpp,comp.os.msdos.programmer: |Pointless for the guy making the game but still sort of cute, you can |use the 255 character (hold down ALT and hit 2, 5, 5) in files from |the command line. I've had loads of fun putting friends' important |files in nested directories consising of different amounts of ascii 255. This is a classic (slight) security trick: Rename the format command and other sensitive commands with a trailing \255 (on the base name). This is supposed to confound bad guys even if they get console access. The DIR listing shows the command, but you can't tell the \255 is there, and of course entering the command without the \255 gives a bad command or filename. But it is a very old trick. Renaming those commands to something more obscure is a good idea anyway since this will defeat some trojans. Nothing is really going to protect you from a human being with unlimited console access. -- Lars Eighner 700 Hearn #101 Austin TX 78703 eighner AT io DOT com (512) 474-1920 (FAX answers 6th ring) http://www.io.com/%7Eeighner/ bookstore: http://www.io.com/%7Eeighner/bookstore/ Anyone who lives within his means suffers from a lack of imagination.