Security - Prevention of un-authorized use.

[Gopher2011]

Hi guys.

I am after advice on how to stop my program from being run outside my office. I don't have card reader security etc, I need a software solution.
Assuming someone puts the install onto a flash drive and takes it home how do I prevent them from running it?

Here are my thoughts.

1. Check the IP address of the local machine.
2. Ping the corporate website and if its very very quick assume your near the server.

Does anyone else have any ideas?

Cheers.

 

[ss7thirty]

You could ping one of your internal servers and no-response = not logged into your network. You could use IP address as well which may be the way to go. You could also look at the Domain and Account information or setup some sort of username / password preventative measures. The other option is to restrict access to the files through Active Directory which solves the problem at its root cause.

 

[Gopher2011]

Hey nice idea. Thanks.

 

[Christopherx]

I think using the IP address might well be problematic at some point, given the advent of dynamic IP, and the conversion
from IPV4 to IPV6. Yo might find that your solution is only a temporary fix. However if you have access to an sql server,
you can make a much more straight forward, and long lasting implementation. Look for Mac Addresses. On an Sql server,
save a table with the details of all the legitimate computers, e.g:

MacAddress UserName
390;3593 Dave

That way, when someone logs into the computer from that particular machine, you can have their name appear aswell, which is always a nice touch .

If you're worried around security, you could also hash the macaddress, so it could be like

Certificate Username
aemvws Dave

THen it's just a case of running the appropriate SQL query and ensuring there is a return value. I hope this helps

 

[Gopher2011]

Dave, thanks - that's good idea. Yes I do have access to SQL server.

 

[Christopherx]

No problem, and im Chris by the way. I just used the name Dave as an example