Unprivileged User Accounts

An unprivileged user account is a user account with no privileges to any programs or files. Many programs run as unprivileged users or use unprivileged users to perform specific duties. These unprivileged users get only the rights needed to perform a limited task.

“Only the rights needed to perform a limited task” sounds like every user account, doesn’t it? That’s true, but the account used by the least privileged human being still has more rights than many programs need. Any user with shell access usually has a home directory. Users can create files in their home directory, run text editors, process email, run scripts, and compile (if not install) software. An average shell user needs these minimal privileges, but ...

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