| From: | Joe Block <JPB1@******.COM> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Thoughts on attack/defense programs |
| Date: | Mon, 26 Jul 1993 02:07:48 -0400 |
First, I think that if a decker is writing his own software, he should be
able to specialize or concentrate the rating. Here's my rationale.
Say I'm Electric Eddie, hotshot decker planning a datasteal on a Widgets Inc
database. I've done some research, asked my chummers, maybe made a couple
of little scouting runs into other WI computers, and I find out that WI uses
a lot of DataGuard Inc's ICE software. I get my hands on dissassembled
listings of a couple of their programs, make a Comprehension roll (see my
previous post), and figure out what code they share, some weakness in the
logic, etc.
Now I sit down, spend a couple of days hacking out an optimized Sleaze
program that preys on the weaknesses I found. It isn't as efficient against
everything since it isn't general purpose, but against DGI code, it is hot
stuff. Maybe I get a specialization against Access with a concentration in
DGI software, or perhaps the other way around.
While the advantages this seems to give might initially seem a bit
unbalancing, consider the drawbacks.
First, the decker has to spend oodles of time writing this special purpose
stuff. If his info is wrong (maybe they upgraded to version two of DGI's
Matrix Security Suite this weekend while Eddie was hacking away on his
version 1 slayer) or outdated, he may end up screwed.
Secondly, nothing stops the corps from doing this too. Say I am a wage
slave, I deliberately write some gray IC code with an apparent logic flaw to
lure the poor decker into optimizing his code against it. I then write
Black IC that is optimized against programs using the logic approach that
works best to take advantage of the flaw in the gray stuff. Eddie slips in,
waltzes past the first layer of IC, blasts a few bits of Gray IC, and in
comes the Black. All of a sudden, the progs that were working great five
seconds ago, aren't doing squat against the Black.
Joe Block <JPB1@******.com>
"Naturally the common people don't want war... but after all it is
the leaders of a country who determine policy, and it is always a
simple matter to drag the people along... All you have to do is tell
them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of
patriotism and exposing the country to danger."
-- Hermann Goering, 1936
-----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
Version: 2.2
mQCPAiv+bCkAAAED/0m+vSOplAuo8oaGYY3wzagPAG3JbH0uiVlqN72VAzABsLeq
87bcRcgdbsHBUFjb9qRiJDhu4iwsvbhMg3zM9tFCwjUqVG1hGKkcXHrdU3Lg5BIe
0ogV3YeORSVHkIh2ok9V9v6Mv6h5nsUEfr2zbUDFJnT4syHVg+txc3oEvkqJABEB
AAG0G0pvZSBCbG9jayA8anBiMUBkZWxwaGkuY29tPokAlQIFECwCmy3rcXN6BL5K
iQEBvMUD/ijml+VqGk/2IcCS6V5QDdbT8koI3cxcV9ZKIaZd4XEzYXG9lb0u45Ok
KigxHW8JHf7q79+gE+taRoJcxDH1K636RccWyBsq8Qo8z8RQM+OrpMacqbSmJsAA
JWRPt+9xzUWxiGgGZQnNYlo6pyoc0WIUSGpinxdDeEx79tjZVxKS
=GHcU
-----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
