Re: Port 119 blocked at work and I want it opened
From: Tony Whitmore (tony_whitmore@nospamhotmail.com)
Date: 11/24/02
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From: "Tony Whitmore" <tony_whitmore@nospamhotmail.com> Date: Sun, 24 Nov 2002 21:32:36 -0000
"Eddie Hotchkiss" <eddieh@howdydoody.btinternet.com> wrote in message
news:arnplb$ke5$1@helle.btinternet.com...
> Hi, I've read some of the posts from earlier this year about Port 119
being
> blocked at work sites and security being given for the reason.
>
> Some of the replies intimated that this security was maybe due to the
> employer wanting to stop people accessing innappropriate groups rather
than
> any threat of attack.
Although NNTP is a fairly safe protocol, to be fair newsgroup access could
be blocked to prevent porn, illegal or virus-infected binaries from being
downloaded.
> We are in the same position. We have a Junior member of staff at our main
> location who has blocked 119, now in the main this is no probs, but us
> techies (mainly desktop and server) need it to get to the microsoft news
> server.
If you have a legitimate need to access certain internet based facilities in
order to do your job, then make them known. No manager will prevent you from
working by not giving you access to a newsgroup that is important for your
job. Take it as far up the company as you need to go in order to be provided
with the access you require.
You sound to be in a large enough organisation (it has "junior" and
therefore "senior" members of staff) to have an acceptable usage policy
under which your computer use should be governed. Assuming this is well
enough written then you should be prevented from visiting certain newsgroups
by that, rather then just technical means. If you are in a large enough
organisation, then the internet facilities provided to the local network
should be governed by appropriate policies, defining what should and
shouldn't be provided, rather than the whim of an indiviudal. Having said
that, he does seem to have thought it through sufficiently far to provide
you with web based access through Google (whether it appeals to you
personally or not).
> This bod, who isn't very experienced and reads lots of manuals to advise
the
> boss (who unfortunatly taks this kids advice as gospel, rather than the
> techs with 10 - 15 years experinece (no not an age gripe, just the
draconian
> ban rather than a rational planned out policy) ) and says he has done so
as
> a security issue and wants us to use Google (sorry, but I hate web based
> news (other at our site don't mind it))
Suggest a local news server carrying only certain groups (as "server guys"
this shouldn't be difficult to set up) as an alternative. Make the case for
being able to post using news clients rather than Google - posts not being
shown very quickly on Google, for example.
There *are* legitimate reasons for preventing *any* internet access on
security grounds. Any data brought into the local network via FTP, NNTP,
HTTP or whatever could have a potentially destructive payload. But if they
want you to do your job properly then they need to facilitate you in doing
that - giving you access to that newsgroup.
By the way, if your problem is "not an age gripe" why mention his age at
all? As for reading the manuals - well, how many times are stupid questions
asked on groups because someone hasn't RTFM? People have to accumulate
knowledge somehow, and its probably better that his comes from an
authorative source.
Cheers,
Tony
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