Re: [NTLK] [OT] Excellent Password Source

From: Ed Kummel (tech_ed_at_yahoo.com)
Date: Wed May 01 2002 - 18:56:15 EDT


That's why SGI needs to bring LavaRand back!
Ed
web/gadget guru
http://newton.tek-ed.com (download Newton packages)
http://npds.tek-ed.com (my NPDS server and it's new
subdomain)

--- Will Hartung <willh_at_msoft.com> wrote:
>
> Hmm...
>
> No, not really.
>
> You still need a random source with which to guide
> your selection from the
> static list of random numbers.
>
> So, while the numbers themselves may perhaps be
> random, the selection
> process may not be.
>
> For example, say it was your policy that your users
> receive a "random 5
> digit password". You could simply print out this
> list, and check off each 5
> digit sequence as you handed it out to the users.
> Now, the numbers you hand
> out are themselves random, but since the key is
> public, someone could easily
> predict future passwords of random numbers. So, in
> reality, they're not
> random at all!
>
> All this stuff can get your head in a spin.
>
> See http://world.std.com/~reinhold/diceware.html
>
> Best Regards,
>
> Will Hartung
> (willh_at_msoft.com)

=====
Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
- Arthur C. Clarke -

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