Unix (In)Security

[jbn at wdl1.UUCP]

     Another comment on UNIX security: things are getting worse.  V7 Unix
was substantially tighter than later versions; the only shared objects
were files, there weren't too many set-UID-to-root programs, and the
semantics of file protection was well understood.  Since then, a lot of
new machinery has been added inside the security perimeter, which includes
the kernel and all set-UID-to-root programs.  UNIX at the 4.2BSD level now
rivals the giant mainframe operating systems of the 1960s and 1970s, and
is equally weak in the security direction.  There are just too many
primitives and no security model.