Here we cover how to add a banner message in the GNOME Display Manager (GDM), this message will display in the graphical user interface (GUI) prior to a user logging in.
Monthly Archives: December 2015
How To Set GNOME Display Manager Banner Message
Posted by Jarrod Farncomb
on December 30, 2015
No comments
Overview of Kiwicon 2015
Posted by Jarrod Farncomb
on December 27, 2015
No comments
This year for the first time I made my way down to Wellington in New Zealand to attend Kiwicon 9. Kiwicon is a security / hacker conference that has been held each year since 2007.
I’ve previously attended Ruxcon 6 times, which is another computer security conference but here in Australia so it’s a bit easier for me to get to. After my experience with Kiwicon I am definitely interested in going back, it was easily the best security conference that I’ve been to so far.
How To View BitLocker Disk Status
Posted by Jarrod Farncomb
on December 23, 2015
19 comments
BitLocker is Microsoft’s solution to providing full disk encryption. While setting up BitLocker and encrypting your disk you probably want to check and view the progress and see the current status, as it can take quite a long time depending on the size and speed of your disk.
Here we cover how to view the current BitLocker status in both the graphical user interface, and with PowerShell.
Configure Squid Proxy To Forward To A Parent Proxy
Posted by Jarrod Farncomb
on December 16, 2015
9 comments
Here we’re going to take a look at configuring two Squid proxy servers to forward requests from an internal network with no connectivity to the Internet out to a DMZ network and then onto the Internet if required.
The configuration will allow us to select which domains should or should not be forwarded on to the next proxy server, allowing requests that are destined for domains within the internal network to not be forwarded to the next Squid proxy, while other requests to the DMZ network or the Internet will be forwarded to the next proxy.
How To Disable USB Storage Devices In Linux
Posted by Jarrod Farncomb
on December 10, 2015
9 comments
By default when you plug in an external USB storage device into a computer running Linux it will automatically mount, allowing the user to access the contents.
This behaviour can be less than ideal from a security perspective, as it can allow an attacker to copy confidential files, or allow a user to run a malicious script stored on the USB device for example.
With some simple configuration changes we can disable USB storage in Linux for unprivileged users.
How To Defragment An XFS File System
Posted by Jarrod Farncomb
on December 8, 2015
5 comments
The XFS file system generally does a pretty good job at keeping itself clean and tidy, however it can still get fragmented over time. Here we’re going to show you how to check the level of fragmentation in place on your XFS file system and how you can defragment it if required, further increasing disk performance.
Is IT Certification Worth Your Time And Money?
Posted by Jarrod Farncomb
on December 2, 2015
1 comment
Certificates aim to validate that the holder of the certificate has a certain level of knowledge and/or skills in a particular field, typically validated by a vendor or organization in the form of a paid test. This test will generally require you part with some of your hard earned cash and spend your time to study and learn new things in order to prove that you meet the specified requirements to become certified.
So the question that we are looking to answer here is are IT certificates worth spending your time and money on? Let’s find out.