Chapter 8. Scanners
This chapter will examine scanners, the benefits they offer, and the threats they pose.
What Is a Scanner?
A scanner is a security tool that detects system vulnerabilities. Here's a primitive example:
#!/usr/bin/perl $count==0; open(MAIL, "|/usr/lib/sendmail mikal") || die "Cannot open mail\n"; print MAIL "To: Administration\n"; print MAIL "Subject: Password Report\n"; print MAIL "Reply-To: Password-scanner\n"; open(PASSWORDS, "cat /etc/passwd|"); while(<PASSWORDS>) { $linenumber=$.; @fields=split(/:/, $_); if($fields[1] eq "") { $count++; print MAIL "\n***WARNING***\n"; print MAIL "Line $linenumber has a blank password.\n"; print MAIL "Here's the record: @fields\n"; } } close(PASSWORDS); if($count < 1) { print MAIL "I found ...Get Maximum Linux Security now with the O’Reilly learning platform.
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