Re: linux has added "close on exec" flags to lots of fd calls

["Steven M. Bellovin" <smb%cs.columbia.edu@localhost>]

On Mon, 04 Aug 2008 12:42:54 -0400
"Perry E. Metzger" <perry%piermont.com@localhost> wrote:

> 
> Linux seems to be adding lots of flags to things like "open" to set
> close on exec from the time an fd is born. They claim this helps with
> security. I'm not sure I believe that,

I do -- I've seen this failure fairly often, though not as much in
recent years.  It was more common in the days before window systems
(and especially before job control), when lots of programs had shell
escapes.  Even adventure(6) had one.

                --Steve Bellovin, http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~smb