Klarinet Archive - Posting 000504.txt from 2002/12

From: Wayne P Hill <thanos563@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] How it happens
Date: Fri, 20 Dec 2002 16:00:18 -0500

> (1) Must a 'cookie' be limited to data, such as ASCII text, that
> cannot
> wake up and execute itself?
With the exception of graphics and certain embedded content such as flash
files, MIDI, or other multimedia ALL data sent over the internet is
essentially ASCII. It is possible to create a web page complete with
Applets and JavaScript with nothing more than Notepad (or Simpletext for
you Mac guys) With cookies it is possible to embed a PERL script in the
file which can be activated for any number of reasons. On the non-cookie
side of things though it is possible to pull just about any kind of
information from a person's machine using JavaScript. A age I once had a
while back would tell you what OS, Monito Resolution, and CPU you wee
using and also what page you had visited just prior to mine. If your
e-mail was embedded anywhere on your machine or your browser it would be
very possible for an unscrupulous webmaster to gain the info.

> (2) Obviously the entity who places a cookie on my machine can
> access it
> at a later date. What --- if anything --- prevents just anybody
> from
> accessing these cookies if they're willing to write the necessary
> code
> and to wait until I ask their machine to exchange data with me
> (example:
> ask your machine to search the Klarinet archives)?

To my knowledge..nothing.
> Thank you,
> Bill
>
>
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