Know thine enemy - The Problem Makers

• Rootkit writers - true knowledge is typically very high but undisciplined; these are dangerous folk but they aren't attacking your site directly (but that doesn't matter)
  
  • They have their own to attack, it is far easier and less noticeable
    
  • You have nothing they want (gun for hire must be hired)
  • They do it for the glory or the thrill of victory
    
  • Can and do find new bugs in old code that often show the way to make previously secure code insecure
    

• Scriptkiddies - true knowledge is typically minimal and easy to defend against; these people take advantage of lax security practices and are not themselves a threat (unless ignored)
  • But there are a lot of them and they have a lot of time
  • They include spam artists, and others looking for financial gain
    
  • They use the rootkits and stay current with them
    

• Shared infrastructure (administrators from other sites) - backdoor (server) as well as frontdoor (service) is important;
  
  • backdoor attacks are often silent
    
  • administrators are human and not inherently trustworthy
    • and often faced with temptation
  • mistakes happen (it may be your providers mistake)
    

• Site administrators - your trusted help may not be that trustworthy
  • Curiosity can get the better of people
  • Access control may be broader than desired
    

• Shared resources - access to a service may open up your service (Facebook API as an example)
  • sometimes there is no enforcement of a contractual
    

• Look in the mirror - a LOT of problems stem from not reading the documentation and missing crucial steps Particularly true for Open Software Check for:
  
  • Default passwords (or no passwords at all)
  • File permissions (use least privilege model)
  • Access permissions (Drupal is your friend, sort of)
  • Third-party integration and authentication

• Bad coders - new, naive, ignorant, and even rarely willfully negligent (it doesn't matter why, of course)
  • Same mistakes
    

• Malicous coders - Trojan horse, spyware, malware
  • Most dangerous yet perhaps least likely threat for most Drupal site owners
    

Sad truth is we are all dishonest under the right circumstance and perceived anonymity is often enough; it is a dangerous world out there