remote access to your machine at home via the net

[Troy11277]

At work we were just presented with this website . I thought it was a pretty interesting idea, but have to seriously question the security issues. Needless to say, we have already modified our ACL's disallow. We don't really need any of our "highly trained" users to have this ability


[glowpurple]Our Technology



GoToMyPC is a unique Web-based technology that works with your existing firewall and Internet infrastructure. You do not have to change or open ports, configure IP addresses or deploy any hardware or software, and you can use your existing corporate Internet connection. The service and architecture are designed for maximum performance, reliability and scalability. Try it now!




GoToMyPC Overview Security White Paper


Comparison of GoToMyPC and VPNs Comparison of GoToMyPC and pcAnywhere™

Components


Web Site
Users visit the GoToMyPC Web site to 1.) Register the computers that they will remotely access, and 2.) Log in to remotely connect to their host computers.

Software
Users download a 1.4 MB installer on their host computers. The software runs as a service and waits for a connection request. When a connection is requested, the program prompts the user for an access code before completing the request.

Viewer
The Viewer is the window displayed on the client computer in which the host computer's desktop will appear. The Viewer can be resized and adjusted for maximum usability. There are two Viewer options: the Native Viewer and the Universal Viewer. If your user accesses the host computer with a Windows-based client computer, a small plug-in automatically launches the Native Viewer. For a user who connects to the host computer via a client with a Mac or Unix operating system (or from a Windows-based client that does not accept downloadable files), the Java-enabled Universal Viewer launches automatically. There is nothing the user needs to do to select the appropriate Viewer – our technology will automatically detect the client computer's operating system and launch the appropriate Viewer.

Web Servers and Communication Servers
The Web servers run a Java servlet engine and dynamically generate all Web pages in conjunction with the application server and database. The Web servers' primary role is to initiate a connection between the host and client computers. Once a connection is established, the encrypted data stream is passed through the communication servers.

Administration and Management Tools
Corporate Plan users have access to administrative features that allow them to add and remove their company's users and monitor usage. Real-time, online reports allow 24/7 access to information on their company's usage of GoToMyPC.

Secure
State-of-the art security features include an SSL-encrypted Web site and end-to-end AES 128-bit encryption of the data stream and chat as well as keyboard and mouse input; multiple passwords, including an access code that resides on the host computer and is never transmitted or stored on GoToMyPC servers; and notification when the PC is accessed. Additional features include lockout protection, inactivity timeout and the ability to lock the host keyboard and mouse and to blank the host screen.

Reliable and Scalable
Web-balancing switches monitor the network flow and transparently distribute server requests among all the servers. Redundant switches and routers; clustered servers; and backup systems ensure reliability and scalability.

Firewall Friendly
Because the GoToMyPC software on the remote computer initiates an outgoing connection, the technology works with your existing firewall and does not require special configuration. Nor does it compromise the integrity of your firewall.

High Performance
Only the screen image of the remote computer is transmitted and it is updated only as it changes. The data is also highly compressed. For these reasons, the user does not experience the lag time associated with other remote-access solutions. [/glowpurple]





They seem to think that it's pretty secure from evil do'ers. But how secure is it from the nasty spy's that like to track everything we do...for our "security". And to top it all off....they are making money off of the poor user who signs himself up to allow anyone with the intentions to monitor what they want. I wonder who they are in business with......hmm.

[ThePreacher]

My only problem with this is that the whole plan requires the user to pay monthly service charges.

[V3RIZON]

A good free alternative that is relativey secure is VNC, find it here

http://www.uk.research.att.com/vnc/

Both the client and server are lightweight and even over dialup the sppeed is good. Check it out

[draziw]

Originally posted here by V3RIZON
A good free alternative that is relativey secure is VNC

I'd still recommend tunneling this over something like SSH - it's a relatively easy tunnel to setup, too.

[linuxcomando]

Yep paying for something or reciving something better for free........hmmmm....i think ill stick with ssh.

[BrainStop]

Originally posted here by V3RIZON
A good free alternative that is relativey secure is VNC, find it here

http://www.uk.research.att.com/vnc/

Both the client and server are lightweight and even over dialup the sppeed is good. Check it out

The nice thing about VNC is also that you can use it on one platform to control another. Back in my previous job, I regularly had to access PCs (running NT) spread around the world and being able to access them from an HP-UX box was a great advantage (especially since I could log in to the HP-UX box from home )

Cheers,

BrainStop

[fr0z3n]

I'm not sure wut your trying to do.. but, why don't you just use a trojan?

Just be careful is all =)

[Remote_Access_]

Why people continue to pay for services that are free is beyond me..
Freeware is your friend.

Remote_Access_

[preacherman481]

Originally posted here by fr0z3n
I'm not sure wut your trying to do.. but, why don't you just use a trojan?

Just be careful is all =)

If you mean something like Back Orifice or Sub 7, that would be asking for trouble. Whoever designed those things might have backdoors built into them that you don't know about. I think this falls into the category of: "Don't try this at home."

[SoggyBottom]

We came across this product some time ago, and decided to test it. Working in the IT Security field we were somewhat amazed that we could remotely operate our workstations from home over the Internet, without any configurations to our Firewalls.

Im sure that their are heaps of programs their similiar to this one, like some versions of ICQ and IRC, that you simply cannot Firewall. One solution is putting ACLS on your router, but it is such an overhead, and how do you ACL every one of these programs?