Geekmaster 👽

@Geekmaster@ioc.exchange
233 Followers
216 Following
1.7K Posts

Technology professional with 40+ yrs of experience on systems and networks. I like to talk shop, be a geek, and I know things.

#MasterUser
#Pipesurfer
#WhiteHat
#Certified #Cybersecurity #Architect
#Certified #Systems #Engineer
#Certified #Security #Engineer
oh, and I'm a lifetime #gamer too
#AnimalLover
#SpaceGeek
#3DPrinting
#TravelBug

I know enough to make me dangerous. I know better than to be dangerous. I chose to protect, rather than to attack. 🅅

YouTube Channelhttps://www.youtube.com/@GeekmasterGeneral
Bloghttps://geekofthehouse.blogspot.com
GitHubhttps://github.com/Geekmaster-General
AbuseIPDBhttps://www.abuseipdb.com/user/21995
Geekmaster 👽Apr 29
Neil BrownApr 28

How far can a toot travel in the fediverse?

I chatted recently with someone who complained that the fediverse lacked "reach".

So I'm curious: if you are up for it, could you please reply to this toot (which started life on single user instance on a tiny computer in a garage in the United Kingdom) saying which country you are in?

Edit: 12 hours, 74 countries: https://neilzone.co.uk/2025/04/a-toot-travelled-to-fediverse-users-in-53-countries-in-12-hours/

A toot travelled to fediverse users in 77 countries in 12 hours

A little over 12 hours ago - yesterday evening, at around 20:07 UTC +1, I tooted:

Geekmaster 👽Apr 28

#CyberHygiene is an important topic, now more than ever, and even more so as time goes on, especially in the new-world of #AI. So, let's have a quick chat!

I talk about this in my #AwarenessTrainings that I put together for my company. People sometimes have the mistaken notion that they aren't targets for bad actors because they aren't famous and don't have a high net worth, or don't have a high-profile job. But that's simply not the case today. Anyone with any online presence is a potential target to attackers. That means everyone needs to know their cyber hygiene. So what does that look like?

Basic cyber hygiene is essential and easy. Steps include (extra details below):
➡️ Be more stringent about the info you share online 📅
➡️ Review and adjust #privacy settings 🔒
➡️ Use strong and unique #passwords 🗝️
➡️ Enable two-factor #authentication 🗝️
➡️ #Monitor online presence 👀
➡️ Learn about data brokers ⬅️
➡️ Secure all devices 🔐
➡️ Be skeptical of unsolicited requests 😯
➡️ Regularly audit third-party apps with access to your accounts ❗
➡️ Monitor credit reports 💰
➡️ Separate personal and professional identities 👬

I go into A LOT more detail about each point in my recent blog post (TL;DR for  lol). Check it out here, and let me know your thoughts or questions!

https://geekofthehouse.blogspot.com/2025/04/a-chat-about-cyberhygiene.html

A chat about #CyberHygiene

  #CyberHygiene is an important topic, now more than ever, and even more so as time goes on, especially in the new-world of #AI . So, let's...

Geekmaster 👽Apr 12
This is scary. Make sure you get the #IOCs and update your #security platforms to protect against this dangerous #RAT: https://www.cyfirma.com/research/neptune-rat-an-advanced-windows-rat-with-system-destruction-capabilities-and-password-exfiltration-from-270-applications/
NEPTUNE RAT : An advanced Windows RAT with System Destruction Capabilities and Password Exfiltration from 270+ Applications - CYFIRMA

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY At CYFIRMA, we are committed to providing up-to-date insights into current threats and the tactics used by malicious...

CYFIRMA
Geekmaster 👽Mar 30
Have I Been PwnedMar 30
New breach: German Doner Kebab had 162k unique email addresses publicly posted to a hacking forum last week. Data also included name, phone and physical addrress. 74% were already in @haveibeenpwned. Read more: https://x.com/DarkWebInformer/status/1905275857159008341
Dark Web Informer - Cyber Threat Intelligence (@DarkWebInformer) on X

🚨Alleged database leak of German Doner Kebab (GDK) Data reportedly includes: Customer names, dates of birth, email addresses, mobile phone numbers, customer addresses, postcodes, marketing preferences, and additional text field information.

X (formerly Twitter)
Geekmaster 👽Mar 30
SarlackLabMar 30

Command-and-control IPv4 map, 2025-03-17 to 2025-03-30 #Cartography
https://abjuri5t.github.io/SarlackLab/

124.220.0[.]0/14
3.120.0[.]0/13
113.44.0[.]0/16
147.185.221[.]0/24
1.94.0[.]0/15
148.66.0[.]0/19
176.65.140[.]0/23
101.42.0[.]0/15
176.65.144[.]0/24
196.251.84[.]0/22

SarlackLab C2 Tracking

Geekmaster 👽Mar 30
feliksMar 29
Geekmaster 👽Mar 28

I fell WAY down a rabbit hole in 1985, and just keep falling #Hacker #Geek #Geekmaster #CyberGeek

I never want to get out. This is way too much fun! #UnlimitedKnowledge

Geekmaster 👽Feb 22
Lesley Carhart Feb 22
On immigration as American IT people
Show threadGeekmaster 👽Feb 14

We should reopen and #evangelize #libraries, and I think everyone should spend a few hours per week just finding any book on any topic and reading it cover to cover. There's still something to be said about holding a #book, especially an old one, in your hands. Flipping the pages. Absorbing its scent. Not saying you can't get the same experience digitally, but many people don't use their digital devices for true #learning and #cognitive growth. Apps and games aren't the same.

It's how I grew up and fed my deepest #addiction - #learning - spending hours in the library and just reading. The Internet barely existed. That's true knowledge. Ever learning. Ever #craving more. And I believe knowledge is true power.

#knowledgeispower #fin

Show threadGeekmaster 👽Feb 14

I used to enjoy #deep, highly #nerdy, and rather #philosophical #conversations with many of my #peers and family members. I see that number of people who can "keep up", as it were, dwindling quite fast. Then I scroll through the little corners of the #Internets I do have active, and it astounds me how far people have #fallen, especially the younger generations. So #smart in so many ways - yet so mind #numbed in so much more.

(part 2)

×
Lesley Carhart Feb 22
On immigration as American IT people
Show threadAnnaFeb 22
@hacks4pancakes honestly good career advice in general. “Go for the non-sexy niches.”
Show threadLesley Carhart Feb 22
@AnnaGeeks but VITAL to have a chance to leave without education restart
Show threadGwyn CieslaFeb 22
@AnnaGeeks @hacks4pancakes absolutely. I've basically been an IT janitor my whole career. It's fun and more lucrative than you'd think.
Show threadNo.Feb 22
@hacks4pancakes I got pretty miffed once when some programmer acquaintance called what I do, system administration, being an IT Janitor, in a derogatory tone. It is a noble task. Civilisation run on an enormous amount of legacy systems of all kinds.
Show threadLesley Carhart Feb 22
@m and it might get you out right now.
Show threadNo.Feb 22
@hacks4pancakes I am a Dane in Denmark, so I am currently not in a situation I want to get out of. I was just commenting on the relative sexiness of things.
Show threadLesley Carhart Feb 22
@m oh, I meant an ambiguous “you”!
Show threadNicole ParsonsFeb 25

@m @hacks4pancakes

Still adore "When Sysadmins Ruled the Earth" @pluralistic

https://craphound.com/overclocked/Cory_Doctorow_-_Overclocked_-_When_Sysadmins_Ruled_the_Earth.html

It was included in the anthology "Wastelands"
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wastelands:_Stories_of_the_Apocalypse

When Sysadmins Ruled the Earth

Show threadRyan LounsburyFeb 22
@hacks4pancakes I suppose that should be the thing I should focus on. As a lone wolf IT pro at my current company I do literally everything. It is exhausting to have to find it, build it, implement it, train it, and maintain it.
Show threadLiminal witch 🧙‍♀️ SarahFeb 22
@hacks4pancakes in case anyone wants to ask, where to learn COBOL, IBM has a course for that https://www.ibm.com/blogs/ibm-training/free-course-announcing-learning-cobol-programming-with-vscode/
Free course: Announcing Learning COBOL Programming with VSCode - IBM Learning Blog

You can take this 16 hour course for free and earn your badge. Get set and dive in for some actual COBOL! This introductory COBOL course helps a novice learn the Structure of COBOL programs, Data types & Variable Handling, Intrinsic Functions, Branching logic and more. The goal of the course is to enable the […]

IBM Learning Blog
Show threadJenna SmithFeb 22
@xgebi @hacks4pancakes what in the world is COBOL? this is my first time hearing about but I’d love to know what the uses are for
Show threadLesley Carhart Feb 22
@jennasmith @xgebi one of the oldest programming languages. The age of your grandma or great grandma. It’s still used all over.
Show threadJenna SmithFeb 22
@hacks4pancakes @xgebi omg really? That’s crazy. Ive never heard of it before in other tech spaces despite the fact it’s still used today. Maybe cause I’m still new in tech, so I’ll definitely read about that IBM course.
Show threadLesley Carhart Feb 22
@jennasmith @xgebi welcome to a super fun rabbit hole!!!
Show threadJenna SmithFeb 22
@hacks4pancakes @xgebi LOL thank you, this is what I’m spending my Saturday on than touching my assignments 🫡
Show threadDaleFeb 23
@jennasmith @xgebi @hacks4pancakes indeed it is a very fun rabbit hole, I was introduced to it forever ago but forgot about it until I read an article like this. I saved the article for years as a “in case of layoff emergency try this” because of my job search experience during the tech bust of 2001. I lost the article but remembered ‘COBOL cowboys‘ which now I guess has a Wikipedia article 😲!! https://www.npr.org/2020/04/22/841682627/cobol-cowboys-aim-to-rescue-sluggish-state-unemployment-systems
Show threadmr_tenorFeb 23

@jennasmith

In many problem domains, when something is working and gets to a certain level of complexity, it bakes in the accumulated knowledge of lots of people, many who will no longer be working there ("no-one knows how this works or why it does certain things"). At that point it is either too risky or pretty much impossible to replace it with some new shiny technology, so it just keeps getting maintained forever.

No new projects are implemented in COBOL

@hacks4pancakes @xgebi

Show threadJenna SmithFeb 23
@mr_tenor @hacks4pancakes @xgebi oh okay, so it’s like hospitals and all still using legacy systems?
Show threadEleanor SaittaFeb 23
@jennasmith
Every bank in the world (to the first approximation by capitalization) would be bankrupt within 24 hours if their COBOL code stopped working.
@mr_tenor @hacks4pancakes @xgebi
Show threadSu_GFeb 23

@mr_tenor @jennasmith @hacks4pancakes @xgebi

A good & helpful explanation on the past, current & future role of COBOL. Thanks. 🙂

Show threadMichael WeissFeb 23
@jennasmith @hacks4pancakes @xgebi COBOL enabled my father in law to retire in 2000. There was a demand for COBOL programmers that far exceeded the supply at the time, due to Y2K. He was paid handsomely for his work that last year to fix software written in the 60s and 70s.
Show threadAndy DFeb 22

@hacks4pancakes @jennasmith @xgebi

It's still widely used in the financial space and quite a lot of legacy banking still runs on mainframes 🦕

Show threadJenna SmithFeb 22
@IckleAndy @hacks4pancakes @xgebi wait really? is there any security risks to using it or is it that good?
Show threadLesley Carhart Feb 22
@jennasmith @IckleAndy @xgebi it’s fantastically vulnerable like 60% of the legacy stuff providing you electricity, trains, gas, and water. Security has to be delicately implemented around it.
Show threadJenna SmithFeb 22
@hacks4pancakes @IckleAndy @xgebi ohhh okay that makes sense
Show threadAndy DFeb 23

@jennasmith @hacks4pancakes @xgebi it's reliable (lots of overnight batches etc) so used as systems of record - ledgers/customer records and the like but there will be a lot of plumbing between them and the internet facing bit that is your banking app/Internet Bank website.

But being old and reliable means that a large amount of tech debt has built up so migrating to a more modern platform is quite a large undertaking.

Show threaddr_barnowlFeb 23

@jennasmith @IckleAndy @hacks4pancakes @xgebi

It's flat out _terrible_.

But it is the implementation of enormous quantities of critical infrastructure. Banking. Public services. We're talking multi-million line codebases that underpin society.

You stick your card in an ATM, at some point, COBOL will be involved.

Show threaddr_barnowlFeb 23

@jennasmith @IckleAndy @hacks4pancakes @xgebi

And because most of these codebases predate modern development practices, they don't have automated tests, specifications, or often even version control that'd you'd recognise.

The system itself is the spec. Porting it to something else is a hard hard option. And taking it offline while you wait for something else probably isn't either.

Guess we might find out what that looks like soon if the DOGEbois get their paws on one of these systems.

Show threadGraham PhillipsFeb 26
@hacks4pancakes @jennasmith @xgebi And I still speak it fluently
Show threadQRSS_TestFeb 22
@jennasmith @xgebi @hacks4pancakes It runs banking and inventory systems all over the world. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/COBOL
COBOL - Wikipedia

Show thread🌴 Seph 💭 👾Feb 23
@jennasmith @hacks4pancakes @xgebi Computer language, rather out of date these days as far as I know, however a lot of old legacy systems run it because of a combination of no budget for upgrades, and if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Show threadstaringatcloudsFeb 23

@xgebi @hacks4pancakes I wonder if Musk has seen this

He might not think the US send cheques to 150 year olds if he does this

Show threaddr_barnowlFeb 23

@xgebi @hacks4pancakes

Even more niche : Natural.

https://documentation.softwareag.com/natural/nat911mf/overview.htm

Same vintage as COBOL, similar application space.

Natural for Mainframes

Show threadmav Feb 22

@hacks4pancakes
also, for reasons I completely can't justify, some of us think it's fun.

Being a tech janitor is near-infinitely employable. I'm hoping it stays that way as I age,because tech is notoriously ageist.

Show threadTomFeb 22
@mav @hacks4pancakes I'm a SysAdmin ... I think that makes me a tech janitor! 😂
Show threadTim Clevenger Feb 22
@hacks4pancakes I feel like there's a decent market for COBOL programmers who also know other languages as organizations seek to build and connect more web/cloud/mobile-friendly applications to their mainframes rather than having disparate teams just throwing shit over the wall at each other.
Show threadSamofheartsFeb 22
@hacks4pancakes I'm trying to go from pentester to manager because it's a lot more universal of a skill and I just really like solving big picture issues and working with people.
Show threadGeekmaster 👽Feb 22

@hacks4pancakes 100% agree across the board here. I pride myself as a one-man-army in tech. It keeps me employed, but I too have learned to focus my efforts this past decade, using my full knowledge and skills to connect all the dots, and plug as many holes as I can. It's not "just a job" for me. It's a responsibility I take proudly, a passion that feeds my soul, and to some extent foresight. We see the world in ways most could not comprehend. It's true, there aren't many left who can manage, let alone secure, legacy systems. It's solid advice to specialize in these technologies. They're highly valuable as well, for those motivated by money - they pay mid to high 6 figures. But, you need to be an expert, so put in the work, and be the best at it.

As a community, we need to be prepared, prepare our spaces, and enlighten the next generations. I feel there's a rouge wave brewing out there, bigger than we can imagine, and as a society we're not ready. Time to clean up the mess, so we can get ready. 

Show threadBinder🅅Feb 22
@hacks4pancakes I've love to do old legacy stuff... all the position I've seen aren't very good though.
Like 30% below market.
Show threadLesley Carhart Feb 22
@binder yes, but I’m talking about people who are trying to stay alive or married by getting out
Show thread⁂ KalebFeb 22

@hacks4pancakes that is a hard reality. I’m just technical enough to to understand things, but in all honesty I’m just a guy who:

  • was educated to look at 🌧️ and 🛩️ around it
  • drove big 🚛 and then 🚔
  • eventually stumbled into touching 💻

Now I don’t even do a lot of that, I’m more a cheerleader and advocate for users than anything truly technical anymore. Professional level immigration is competitive.

anyone seeing this who might be hiring for a Director of Product Development, or Director of Technical Support, HRIS Systems Administrator, or even a solid MSSQL DBA in Canada or Europe, please just forget you saw this and meet me for the first time on https://haugenh.us/kaleb instead

Haugen Hus: Cirriculum Vitae

Show threadRich Smith "" (Ace Tomato Company)Feb 23
@hacks4pancakes likewise I earned a nice steady living doing NetWare to Windows conversions. There’s career security in niche fields. As I told a colleague who made an honest mistake that resulted in a 2 day outage, “look at the bright side, you owned up to it. Who else are they going to get to do the restoration? In 2-3 days, cooler heads will hopefully prevail”. They did prevail. He brought me aboard after a 3 year career break. We converted legacy technology debt for 6 years.
Show threadsilfraFeb 23
@hacks4pancakes What about people that have your background? By the way, congratulations on making it to Australia.
Show threadIrishMASMSFeb 23
@hacks4pancakes dam have to break out my Cobol books again
Show threadPrivacyDigestFeb 23

@hacks4pancakes

Heh heh, COBOL. Those were the days😀

And PL/1 , PL/S , SVC calls, little pink/blue/red cards, PUT Tapes, VSAM , TCAM ,MVT, SVS, MVS. And while Z/OS itself is kind of new, it runs on those IBM style Mainframes

Hardly anyone has the time, people and resources to totally rewrite/re-create those old platforms and backends. And as you mentioned, they aren’t sexy … Maybe I should dig up some of my old documentation 🤔

Show threadPusher of PixelsFeb 25
@hacks4pancakes remember a quote - "People love to hate on Visual FoxPro...but it put my kids through college"
Show threadWombatadonFeb 25

@hacks4pancakes sometimes those people have just moved on to second careers 😊

For compliance in Australia the standards are generally the ACSC Essential 8, and for government the ISM (Information Security Manual)

I second your advice, but it would take a lot to get me back to COBOL