On 30 Jul 2006 at 10:54, Hugh Gundersen wrote:

> So pass the buck if you want to pay.  Ok so I am not the pentagon or
> the bank of England and it's a risk crossing the road but you asked
> about FTP servers and I gave you my 2c worth so please don't start an
> argument over my comments that are meant to help.  If you don't like
> the advice don't take it or don't ask.

I said in my OP that I had checked out external FTP services providers, if I 
didn't make that clear enough, my bad, however no where in my original 
posting did I ask about setting up my own ftp server in house...

> That is what you are paid for.  However many if not all ISP that offer
> web site space use FTP servers for uploading and they don't panic!

Yes, they also lock it down in a way that would not be appropriate for what's 
needed as per my original posting.

> Consider how many ISP use this FTP service and how many people take
> advantage of it and say 10% are hackers -- why aren't there more
> hacked FTP servers?  

Because most ftp servers are restricted in a way that's not appropriate for 
how this client needs to use it. In corporate environments, what invariably 
happens is that a PHB gets wind of the FTP server and says, okay lets open it 
up to all our business partners, friends etc.  Eventually that box gets 
hacked <shrug>. I continually fight with PHB's that have no concept of 
network security and don't want to learn/hear about it, "just make it easy 
and make it work", lowest common denominator mentality.   

> If FTP is so terrible then go direct to WS-FTP and ask them for an
> answer - as EXPERTS I would think they can give you a more definitive
> answer. 

FTP isn't terrible, it's just inherrently risky, plain text passwords of ANY 
variety are just plain dangerous.  

If I got a dollar for each time I had to explain to a client why checking 
email or using ftp is dangerous when on a non-trusted network (like the 
neighbours wifi connection), I'd have retired long ago.

I am of the mindset that there should be no plaintext passwords crossing any 
network period! That includes internal lans.

If one is using ssl'ifed ftp or scp, or sftp, that's a whole other ballgame, 
however given that most people don't know how to use secure ftp and complain 
vociferously when forced to use it, I don't see regular ftp as an option on 
any FTP server I am hosting.

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Harondel J. Sibble 
Sibble Computer Consulting
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