Re: My limited user is not so limited

<burnedtechie@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:1156907448.207473.172310@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
I tried to improve the security of my home machine by making the
accounts my wife and I use into "limited user" accounts in XP Home. I
first created a new admin account, of course, with a really long
password.

Now, when I've restarted my computer and logged into my old account
(which is now *limited* and no longer admin), it shows *some* signs
that it's limited but I don't think it really is completely.

Signs it is NOT really limited:
I can install software!! Seriously, I thought limited users could not,
but I totally installed a trojan simulator which even modified my
registry (TSServ.exe). Also installed Google Earth for fun. All
logged in as this limited user and I did NOT do any "run as", nor did I
EVER have to provide that long admin password I mentioned. Ever.

Signs is IS limited:
Norton AV will no longer let me change settings.
Windows won't let me change the time on my clock (says I must have
admin privs)
Windows won't let me create files on c:\ (the root folder).

So, what's up with this? I'm no more secure than I was!!



Any program that installs its files in YOUR profile path (%userprofile%) will install okay because that path has you as the owner with permissions for writing. Google Earth installs in your profile path because of this. Don't know about the trojan simulator program. My guess is that if it looks like it wrote into the registry then it probably actually modified YOUR registry file (NTUSER.DAT) that is, yep, located in YOUR profile path. If you start looking at permissions on folders and files under your own profile path, you will see that you have full permissions to them.

.

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