Possible login name leak on SunOS 5.6

From: Pete Krawczyk (petekat_private)
Date: Mon Oct 12 1998 - 13:43:27 PDT

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    It is possible for a user with time on his hands to obtain a few login
    names on a SunOS 5.6 box with Desktop Login enabled.
    
    At the gui login screen, the user is asked for a login name.  When the
    user inputs it, the login client checks the user's preferences for which
    wm the user will use and displays the wm choice as a graphic to the right
    of the password prompt.  If the user has chosen a different wm from the
    default (i.e. OpenWindows instead of CDE), this will be reflected by the
    picture on the right.  Thus, an attacker could keep trying usernames until
    he finds one where the wm graphic is not the same as the default wm
    graphic.
    
    This has been tested and confirmed on stock SunOS 5.6.
    
    -Pete K
    --
    Pete Krawczyk  pkrawczy at uiuc dot edu -or- petek at mc dot net
     http://www.uiuc.edu/ph/www/pkrawczy  Finger for PGP public key
    If you attempt to mail me at pkrawczyat_private, I will not get it.
    



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