▶ 6.3 Password Guessing
Password guessing takes many forms. Several unusual stories have appeared over the years on computer security discussion groups.
An Incident: A woman found a coworker using her password-protected computer. She confronted the coworker, who admitted to having found her password by phoning the “Psychic Friends Hotline.” A helpful psychic had told her the password.
The story is probably an urban legend, but it carries a nugget of truth. Careless or untrained computer users often choose passwords with a strong personal association. Through careful listening and observation of such people, a potential attacker can construct a list of likely passwords. Traditionally, a so-called “psychic” establishes credibility by speaking ...
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