[PLUG] [OT] How to use cybercafes?

[Randal L. Schwartz]

>>>>> "dh" == dh  <dh at mda.huntbros.net> writes:

dh> I'll be in Ireland for three months and have to depend on cybercafes for
dh> internet access.

Ahh, a topic that is near and dear to my heart.

dh>  I have two shell accounts on Linux boxen here that I can
dh> can only access using an ssh login, and the cybercafes I have to use run a
dh> M$ OS. How does one launch an ssh login session from one of these things?
dh> Will ssh2 likely be already on these boxes? Any special security
dh> considerations, since I don't have control over these M$ boxes or their
dh> networks?

The easiest is if they just give you access to a desktop.  If that
happens, fire up IE, enter "www.google.com" and then "putty ssh
download" and then hit the "I feel lucky" button.  Download Putty (the
first link in the middle of the page) and save it to the desktop.
Double click, and you're on.  Be sure to select ssh not telnet.

If they give you a web browser and not a desktop, select the "run it"
rather than "save it" when it starts to download.  This is less likely
to work, but works more frequently than you might expect. :)

If that doesn't work, google for "authenticated mindterm", and run any
one of the dozen hits you find.... it'll fire up a Java ssh terminal
inside the browser window.  A few of the control keys won't work
(they'll be intercepted as browser controls), but the rest is fine.
(Forget emacs. :-)

I've found one of those three plans almost always works, unless it's a
really crappy internet cafe.

dh> Secondly, I have to access my bank's website too. Would accessing these
dh> pages from a cybercafe's browser pose special security considerations?
dh> Would one browser be any safer than another? Would it be safer to ssh into
dh> my shell account here, then launch a local browser? I think I can do the
dh> banking with Lynx, but not sure yet.

Make sure you're getting 128-bit SSL and not 40-bit SSL.  But SSL
is better than nothing.

-- 
Randal L. Schwartz - Stonehenge Consulting Services, Inc. - +1 503 777 0095
<merlyn at stonehenge.com> <URL:http://www.stonehenge.com/merlyn/>
Perl/Unix/security consulting, Technical writing, Comedy, etc. etc.
See PerlTraining.Stonehenge.com for onsite and open-enrollment Perl training!