RAPID7 – NICER
100 like how the internet itself works .” Citing their ability to find effective solutions to problems which are still economically viable , Beardsley also believes that policymakers ability to bring pressing issues to the forefront of people ’ s attention makes them an invaluable ally . “ They can sound the national security alarm and people will listen ,” he adds .
NICER explores in great detail two protocols still in widespread use : Telnet and SMB . Under analysis , Rapid7 found that both were outdated and neither was particularly suited to modern internet usage ; in fact , Telnet was originally specced out as a temporary solution in the 1960s . “ It is obvious from this RFC ( request for commands ) that [ Telnet ] was intended to be a temporary solution and that ‘ more sophisticated subsystems will be developed in time ’, but to borrow from Milton Friedman , ‘ there is nothing quite so permanent as a temporary solution ’,” says the report . This is not to say that old systems or protocols cannot have value . However , the antiquated nature of Telnet comes from a time when active and passive
attackers did not exist , thus rendering its practical use limited . Alternatives such as SSH ( Secure Shell ) make for a compelling alternative , albeit with its own drawbacks related to exposing console access to the internet . “ With SSH , I can tell with certainty that the
OCTOBER 2020