Security and Privacy Forum

[MishaSherpa]

I suggest that Linux Mint make a "Security and Privacy" section of the Board and pay attention to it, i.e., actively participate in answering questions.

[daveinuk]

Sounds good to me, it's an area a lot more people are becoming concerned with in light of recent events and revelations. . . . . . . . Great suggestion, this post should have a poll......

[sammiev]

I agree as well. Need a poll for this thread is another great idea.

[Mohr]

The hard-coded-Google-ping-affair clearly showed to me that privacy was not as important in the past as it should have been in my opinion. Snowden/NSA makes it also a huge future task.

Heads up!

[DrHu]

For Mint distribution purposes, it may turn off the common user being addressed (an windows OS user); however like everything else about any OS, for those that concern themselves with such issues

• We know windows users must, since they tend to constantly buy anti-virus, anti-malware and spam applications, whether it comes with their machine or not..)

So, I would vote yes or probably of value

• --even if I don't think many users would be s interested in that approach, getting into the nitty-gritty of an OS is not most users' forte..

[mintcane]

The hard-coded-Google-ping-affair

Link?

[Mohr]

viewtopic.php?f=90&t=145176

[deminted]

Thanks, MishaSherpa. Completely agree! (You've seen my independent post https://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?f=29&t=146357&p=777586 - apologies for missing this when I posted.)

I am astounded that the standard Mint comes without AppArmor (easy) SELinux (not quite so easy) or any such protection, just the standard inward-only firewall (off by default). Not to mention a default ssh-server in Mint-KDE at least, and the impossibility of stopping smbd.

Perhaps it should be known as the Mint with the hole?

Also some fairly standard diagnostic programs are actually quite difficult to add, because essential parts are not even in the main repo (which makes me even more suspicious that major distros could with relative ease - could have been - infiltrated by people whose interests may not coincide with those of the rest of us).

Thanks too, Mohr, for the note on "The hard-coded-Google-ping-affair" { viewtopic.php?f=90&t=145176 }
Most interesting.

There's certainly a good deal of meat for the Security/Privacy topic, not to mention counter-infiltration vigilance.
It really shouldn't be an afterthought!

[MishaSherpa]

Not to mention a default ssh-server in Mint-KDE at least, and the impossibility of stopping smbd.
Perhaps it should be known as the Mint with the hole?

Can you explain smbd more? I don't know much about shares. Yes, openssh-server is weird. I think it shoulf be uninstalled by default

[Mohr]

Openssh-server is not installed here ... I didn't deinstall it. LM 15 Mate.
Maybe it's only in KDE-Versions?

Interesting smbd-topic! Please explain!

[mintuser]

Ubuntu comes with AppArmour right?

[everready]

We all understand how virus and Linux don't mix but for that one in a 1000 time you find yourself in a jam a forum would be a benefit for everyone, imo. Kind of like the jam I'm in, Windows has a virus I'm running Linux on a USB drive and need a way to kill the virus with the only tool i have at my disposal.. Just about to start a thread in the "?" forum..

Thanks

everready

[FreedomOfTheOpenCode]

Yes please. Like many topics it may not interest everybody but it is important to some. I don't accept the argument that, if you're not doing anything wrong you've nothing to worry about, and I don't know if I should get used to the idea of people going through my mail.

[Epicurean]

Any news on this yet?

[Mohr]

MishaSherpa - why did you leave the forum without any message / explanation?

[sammiev]

MishaSherpa - why did you leave the forum without any message / explanation?

I guess we will never know.

[clfarron4]

I would say this is a good idea, though some people might see this as a reason to screw the tinfoil hats so tight they aren't rational.

[Epicurean]

I would say this is a good idea, though some people might see this as a reason to screw the tinfoil hats so tight they aren't rational.

What I have learned in the last year from reading the news is that the foil hat people were actually the ones being rational after all. The plot twist that we never thought could happen did.

[clfarron4]

I would say this is a good idea, though some people might see this as a reason to screw the tinfoil hats so tight they aren't rational.

What I have learned in the last year from reading the news is that the foil hat people were actually the ones being rational after all. The plot twist that we never thought could happen did.

Actually, you do have a point in that most people thought the government agencies didn't have the capabilities they do have. That said, I've always believed they could anyways, so all this fuss about Edward Snowden is nothing new to me.

The reason I made my point about tin-foil hat people was from a discussion I was having on a Google+ community for Linux Mint users. I'll link the post tonight.

[monkeyboy]

Can someone please tell me a form of communication that governments haven't mined for information? Bottom line I never expect privacy on a public channel.