Full Disclosure mailing list archives
Re: Google Desktop Search
From: mike () ampeisch com
Date: Fri, 15 Oct 2004 12:24:53 -0400 (EDT)
Hello All; At the risk of being flamed, I would submit that you didn't know it indexed web history at all, because you didn't read the part of the info page where it says: "It's a desktop search application that provides full text search over your email, computer files, chats, and the web pages you've viewed." This can be found at: http://desktop.google.com/about.html Where it also says: "The Google Desktop Search program does not make your computer's content accessible to Google or anyone else. You can learn more by reading the Desktop Search privacy policy." And, whether security pro or good consumer you should READ the privacy policy, before using the product. What if it said "by downloading this software, you agree that we can access all contents of your hard disk whenever we want to, and share the information with all of the vendors on the planet"? Admittedly, that first quote sounds scary, and it certainly doesn't hurt to test and see what information, if any, is being sent out, but really. You people are security professionals. . . do you honestly think that it "magically" came up with the password to your email account from a cached web page? Read the javascript in the headers of Yahoo's login page: <-- Begin javascript comments from Yahoo --> /* * A JavaScript implementation of the RSA Data Security, Inc. MD5 Message * Digest Algorithm, as defined in RFC 1321. * Copyright (C) Paul Johnston 1999 - 2000. * Updated by Greg Holt 2000 - 2001. * See http://pajhome.org.uk/site/legal.html for details. */ <-- End Javascript comments from Yahoo --> THEY don't even cache, or pass, your password. Like all secure programs, they store, and transmit, an MD5 Sum. Besides, why would you keep confidential information in a Yahoo email account anyway? I don't mean to chastise anyone, and it certainly isn't my place, but we should all try to avoid generating FUD when we can. M.
If you noticed during the install, it gives you the opportunity to include https pages in web history caching. When it said this it made me curious since I didn't know it indexed web history at all, but apparently it does and this option can be disabled on the preferences page if you don't want it. I tried to reproduce what you said happened with Hotmail and it did index the messages I have viewed and brought them up in the search results, and it did let me view a cached copy without a username/password, but it did not allow me to access the real message in my account without my username/password. Are you set to login automagically? Dave King http://www.thesecure.net DogoBrazil wrote:Hi everybody! I decided to test Google Desktop Search yesterday, 10-14-04. It's supposed to seach almost any kind of information "inside my hard-drive". In the beginning I put my nick to play with, Dogo. The research came with a bit more than I expected 'cause the engine went to some webmail based accounts: Yahoo and MSN. I could click in the results and opened my Yahoo Mail inbox page without a password. Maybe some password lost in my HD? Maybe some page cached? I really don't know yet but didn't like to see my mail exposed this way. Well, I just used for maybe 20 minutes until the index was being prepared. I uninstalled the tool. Did someone try it? Any opinion? Cheers! _______________________________________________ Full-Disclosure - We believe in it. Charter: http://lists.netsys.com/full-disclosure-charter.html_______________________________________________ Full-Disclosure - We believe in it. Charter: http://lists.netsys.com/full-disclosure-charter.html
_______________________________________________ Full-Disclosure - We believe in it. Charter: http://lists.netsys.com/full-disclosure-charter.html
Current thread:
- Google Desktop Search DogoBrazil (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search Ivan Krstic (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search Mary Landesman (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search Exibar (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search mike (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search Mary Landesman (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search bipin gautam (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search Ivan Krstic (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search Dave King (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search mike (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search Dave King (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search rem (Oct 16)
- Re: Google Desktop Search yahoo@localhost (Oct 16)
- Re: Google Desktop Search mike (Oct 16)
- Re: Google Desktop Search Andrew Farmer (Oct 20)
- Re: Google Desktop Search mike (Oct 15)
- <Possible follow-ups>
- Google Desktop Search Dogo (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search xploitable (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search James Tucker (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search Etaoin Shrdlu (Oct 15)
- Re: Google Desktop Search xploitable (Oct 15)
- RE: Google Desktop Search DAN MORRILL (Oct 15)