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in reply to Re: HTTP/CGI Backup interface w/Perl
in thread HTTP/CGI Backup interface w/Perl

Yup. Don't do anything silly like system("tar cvf - $my_user_input_from_a_form");, unless you want to hand out tar files of your server's passwords, though.

andramoiennepemousapolutropon

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Re: Re: Re: HTTP/CGI Backup interface w/Perl
by sauoq (Abbot) on Jun 10, 2003 at 00:36 UTC

    This is very good advice and I was remiss in not noting such myself. That said, you should also know that, if you did so, you might risk a whole lot worse than the loss of your password file. It would permit a user to run any arbitrary command on your system with privileges the same as those that the cgi script runs with.

    Know the risks, understand the issues, and use the -T option to help you catch dangerous code.

    -sauoq
    "My two cents aren't worth a dime.";