May 30, 2004

The World's Most Dangerous Password: Minutemen ICBMs were deployed in the early 1960s, and grew to over 1000 in number. They were allegedly protected from a "rogue launch" by an approach known as PAL (Permissive Action Link). The PAL required that the correct 8-digit launch code be entered by the missiliers before the missile would establish ignition. What if all the PAL codes had been set to '00000000,' and 'everyone' in the Strategic Air Command knew it? That is unbelievably what happened, as described in this article from the Center for Defense Information. Not exactly a great example for getting people to choose difficult passwords! Via Slashdot
posted by McSly 20 years ago
  • One MORE thing to worry about! Good post, 'Sly.
  • those diry reds would never have thought that we would put the password to 00000000. It's like having your password be "password" or "not found".
  • one-click nuclear holocaust! does amazon have the patent on this too?
  • The other day my cat walked all over the keyboardt5dttttj1jdh3yyyyyyfgdtyj,ae55555555555as7a000000000
  • GramMa, your cat's got some jittery legs.
  • Total fucking incompetence. Abject stupidity. Everything I have come to expect from the human race, particularly those ones. You know who. We're doomed.
  • Working as a sys admin this is not surprising in the least. Most common question is, "Can my password be blank?" and most common password is "12345". Most used password when a user has locked themselves out or forgotten their password, "iD10T".
  • DrMoxie, you've just given me evil monkeyfilter lost-password ideas. But I daren't irritate the monkeys by calling them names. :)