The Daily WTF: Curious Perversions in Information Technology

Security by Post-It

by Alex Papadimoulis in Feature Articles on 2011-04-28

Over the years, we've seen some fairly interesting security principles discussed here on The Daily WTF. While most in the industry already appreciate the benefits of Security by Obscurity, readers like you have contributed some fascinating alternatives including Security by Oblivity, Security by Insanity, Security by Letterhead, and and Security by Posterity. Today, I'm excited to add a new strategy for securing information systems: Security by Post-It.

With the rash of high-profile breaches happening everywhere from credit card processors to government bureaus to gaming networks, many organizations are clamping down on security to make sure that everything feels extra-secure. Now granted, many of these break-ins are a result of SQL Injection, social engineering, and simply forgetting to check authorization rules, anything could be a vector of attack – including your very own mind.

275 comments - Last comment @ 2024-12-28

Reduhdant Power

by Remy Porter in Feature Articles on 2011-04-26

The ancient gods released their fury; wind and wrack raged outside. Wind and lightning smote the power to Hubert's office, plunging the offices and server room into darkness. Hubert was new to the company, and had never received any training on emergency procedures, but he did possess a degree of common sense. Instead of stumbling upstairs to the server room in the dark, he reached for one of the emergency flashlights and turned it on. Or tried to- the battery was dead.

Hubert stumbled to the server room in the dark, guided only by the blinking lights of WiFi routers scattered throughout the building, or the faint hints of light from the windows. When Hubert reached the electronically locked door protecting the server room, it was, well, locked. That battery was still working, although it was anyone's guess as to when it was last replaced. The voltaic cell managed to cough up enough power to grind the lock back with the speed of a stone door in the Temple of Doom.

117 comments - Last comment @ 2017-09-08

What the Ad?! - Maybe It Means 'Exclusive OR'

by Mark Bowytz in Feature Articles on 2011-04-14

You may either use Thoth to manager your contacts and appointments...or another product...but never both.

133 comments - Last comment @ 2025-06-09

Contract Termination

by Remy Porter in Feature Articles on 2011-04-12

"It's a module to turn AS/400 flat files into XML. How hard could it be?"

A week into his one-year contract, Bobby suspected that statement would be his epitaph. As a contractor, you can only do so much recon before you walk into a job. You miss little things, like the fact that the IT manager you'll be working for and the IT manager that hired you are locked in a death-struggle, and you're little more than an artillery shell lobbed over the cubicle wall.

147 comments - Last comment @ 2018-02-07

The Phantom Password

by Alex Papadimoulis in Feature Articles on 2011-04-07

“Before I broke into the IT racket,” Scott Simons writes, “I was a front-line Customer Service Rep. At the time, the procedure for logging into our service management system was a bit puzzling.”

“Like many organizations, your User ID was assigned by the company, but you had to choose your own password. But instead of having a screen to do that, you had to fill out a Password Request Form and fax it corporate headquarters. And then things got strange.

177 comments - Last comment @ 2011-05-10

Accessing the Portal

by Remy Porter in Feature Articles on 2011-04-05

A new job is like a child. At first, it appears completely harmless and full of wonder. It's only after you've invested grinding years of your life into it, surrendering sleep and any sense of fun, that you discover that it's a complete disappointment and will never amount to anything, never respect you, and it certainly isn't going to take care of you during your twilight years.

Chuck's first day at his new job was much like that. He whistled a cheerful little tune as he walked across the parking lot. There were no first-day nerves. He looked forward to the day. The company ran clinical drug trials, so he felt like he might be doing some good in the world. The co-workers he had met while interviewing seemed like good people. Plus, he'd get to brush up his .NET chops. It wasn't a dream job, but it looked like a pretty good place to work.

161 comments - Last comment @ 2011-04-15

Attributed to Malice

by Lorne Kates in Feature Articles on 2011-04-01

Sometime around midnight...
Lorne: And so another April 2nd begins. Hope you enjoyed all three articles this April 1st. What, three of them? Yup. I guess you're one of the, like, 3 people who didn't figure out by hacking the site / clicking View Source.

All three articles are now display:block for your viewing pleasure. Thanks to Alex for throwing his sabos into the "RSS Factory", and for letting me indulge in a bit of mischief. Half the fun was trying to subvert the article system. The other half was researching wood-analogs for human bone. (I'm a writer. I really like research. It's like constructive procrastination).

For the record, two of the three articles are fakes. The screen shot is not from a real blade sharpening system, and no one had their dev servers bombed as "a test".

That bit of php, though? Paraphrased nearly line-for-line from a system I worked on once. Oh, memories. Painful, painful memories.

- Lorne, April 1, 2011

(PS: Svengali is real, and his show is better than Cats. You should go see it, again and again.)

Today's ~~story~~stories comes to us from Svengali:

141 comments - Last comment @ 2017-12-14

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