Since the notice
came out that campus users are required to register all devices connected
to the University network that are intended to "serve" information
to on- or off-campus users, it has been noted that many users are
unclear about whether they are required to register their University
workstations, PDA’s, laptops, and home computers.
The
majority of computer users on campus will not fall under the tenets
of this policy. They operate a workstation and utilize
it to read their Groupwise email, compose documents or spreadsheets,
sign into Spectrum, etc. They do not have a web server application
installed on their computer, although they do utilize an internet
browser such as Netscape or Internet Explorer. PDA’s and home systems
used to connect to the VPN or internet to read campus email or work
from home are also not subject to this requirement unless
the home computers have applications installed that provide services
to others, such as web servers, mail servers, ftp servers, etc. These
applications are not normally installed by default when a new Windows
workstation is purchased. If the workstation’s operating system is
Linux, Solaris, or another “flavor” of Unix, then it is far more common
to see server-level applications residing on the system that will
render it subject to the requirement of being registered.
Those users that
install file sharing programs such as KaZaa, Bearshare, or Audio Galaxy
and do not change the default settings that allow anonymous users
over the internet to connect to their systems to get files are
required to register their computers as serving devices.
Their computers are providing a service—they allow anonymous individuals
to obtain songs, movies, and other copyright materials directly from
their computers. A couple of things to consider, though—most likely,
they are unintentionally violating federal copyright laws and do not
realize the other security ramifications of installing these types
of software programs (invisible installations of spyware being one
of them). Therefore, the majority of campus users would be better
served by either uninstalling this software from their University
systems or configuring it to disallow others from obtaining files
that are downloaded with these software programs.
Campus users installing
web server applications on their University workstations—Apache and
Microsoft’s Internet Information Services (IIS) are the two most common
web server applications—are required to register
their computers.
In order to assist
with the registration process, it is advised that all users who are
operating server devices consult with their information technology
representatives. The benefits of this are two-fold—these staff members
can provide assistance and advice in managing these systems and in
properly securing them so that they do not become compromised through
targeted attacks and intrusions.